Paulo Pezzolano - Head Coach

As an expert on all the managers we are rumoured with I have written in extensive detail everything there is to know about them after studying hours of scouting videos and attending live games


Make no mistake: Diego Alonso’s brand of football is as fierce as the “Los Tuzos” he once led at Pachuca, and he brought that very DNA to Miami FC (the “Bayhawks”). Deft in a high-octane 4-2-3-1, he demands an intense Gegenpress as soon as possession is lost—think Klopp’s Reds but with a Latin twist. His double pivot isn’t mere ballast; it’s a launchpad for vertical thrusts, ensuring Miami transition in two touches or less. He’ll tinker, sliding into a 3-5-2 when the occasion calls for added wing-back zing, yet the core philosophy never waivers: relentless work-rate, rapid build-up and end-product flair. Fans craving pulsating end-to-end drama and furious ball recovery will feel right at home under Alonso’s tutelage.

If you want unvarnished intensity, look no further than Pacheta, whose Villarreal “Submarino Amarillo” donned his high-pressing, man-marking ethos until his departure in November ’23. His favored 3-5-2 morphs into a 3-4-3 when attacking, unleashing marauding wing-backs like torpedoes on the flanks. In possession, it’s rapid-fire distribution—one-touch, two-touch, then you’re through; out of possession, it’s embrace-the-chaos pressing until opponents crack. The by-product? Adrenaline-fueled matches that oscillate wildly in momentum. Defensive gambles can yield holes, but whether you love it or loathe it, Pacheta’s brand is 100% visceral football.

You won’t hear lofty buzzwords here—Garrido cut his teeth in Real Madrid’s “La Fábrica” before rubbing shoulders with the “Los Blancos” first team. Though yet to pilot a senior side, his CV reads like a tactical bible: precise positional rotations, patient triangles and a protective defensive shape. He’s a prodigy of Spanish possession craft—no flashy blitzes, just controlled build-up and clinical exploitation of half-spaces. Trust him to blend a systematic youth-development focus with a polished, Merengue-style calmness. If you’re after measured, cerebral football with a nurturing touch, Alberto’s your man.

Lens’s “Les Sang et Or” have rediscovered swagger under Will Still, and it’s no fluke. Still’s 4-3-3 is a living organism: midfielders shuttle between double-pivot solidity and box-to-box dynamism, full-backs morph into auxiliary wingers, and forwards interchange like pieces on a chessboard. His pièce de résistance? A suffocating counter-press that turns every turnover into a chance. Imagine Nagelsmann’s pattern play fused with De Zerbi’s verticality—and you’re in the ballpark. The result is free-flowing mayhem tempered by strategic discipline—a true feast for the tactical connoisseur.

From Barcelona’s “Blaugrana” cantera to Las Palmas “Los Amarillos,” Pimienta is the embodiment of tiki-taka evolution. His attacking 4-3-3 isn’t some museum-piece homage; it’s a dynamic, possession-first system that bends and molds around opponents. Short passes, tight triangles and rotational runs are de rigueur—think Xavi meets Guardiola but with an Andalusian edge. Defense transitions into a low block that springs rapid counters once the opportunity arises. Games may unfold at a deliberate tempo, but the technical verve and spatial mastery on display keep spectators rapt. For those who worship ball retention and midfield artistry, Pimienta’s football is nothing short of mesmerizing.

 

I'm no great fan or disciple of his, but at this level, in particular, he plays football that is light years ahead of Clevz; it's incredibly generous to put them in the same sentence in that regard. He certainly seems to have plenty of his own alternative flaws, but still.

 

I think DNSYE mentioned there would be an Uruguayan coach, hinting at Diego Alonso. A couple of other folks seemed to have heard him. But I just think he’d be an utterly irrational appointment so in light of that have suggested that his name was intentionally leaked. Don’t run with that. Just a theory. But Alonso is so bad that getting someone else in would just distract from Cleverley’s sacking.

 

Is it? Managed to get promoted with one of the best squads in the league, but finished mid-table with Swansea and MK

 

I think I might have found the perfect Pozzo coach candidate, former Steaua Bucuresti manager Leonardo Strizu

1) Not currently employed so no compensation
2) Has managed a top second tier European side
3) No one in England has heard of him
4) Was arrested and convicted for 'influence peddling' in 2007
5) Owns a pickle production company

All aboard the Strizu train!

 

Now do Cleverley

 

Which makes it more likely to be true. Irrational owner, irrational decision. Welcome aboard, Diego!

 

what a game CM01\02 was !
I always started with Hull who were in the bundocks then but could never get them beyond
8th in the Premier division .
Michael Duff, Jamie Victory, Joaia Paiva, Daniel Nardellio, Michael Jack and if you could land him Taribo West on a free !

 

"6 ft 2
looks good in a suit
Diego Alonso is coming for you "

GET. HIM. IN. NOW.

 

Alonso’s terrible record makes sense if you remember Gino doesn’t really value the job of a manager, and just sees it as an admin role to get his talented squad pointing in the right direction.

His squad is like his child, and he’s unable to see past its flaws and massively overstates it abilities, our squad is the Lance Stroll of the championship, so whoever the manager is is incidental.

 

ChatGPT is broken.
Or it just hates us.
Or it has a sense of humour.

 

As Alonso hasn’t managed/coached much these last few years since leaving the Uruguay job, nor worked very long in Europe, the general consensus seems to be that (like Pacheta) he wouldn’t get a work permit to coach here.

Phew if true!

 

Gino is missing a trick then, aren’t there any more talented bigger name managers who can go after that also won’t get a work permit? A bit like how he’ll offer 97p and a satsuma for a decent player and claim we tried.

 

Also might get Lucy Pinder down the Vic a few times - yipee!

 

Great Minds think alike.

 

Niche Brexit bonus if it stops Pozzo hiring no mark, low quality foreign coaches.

 

I hope Reids has thrown his hat in the ring this time.

 

What is “Vertical Play”? Kick the ball as high in the air as possible?

 

I think we should congratulate whoever comes in, short stay, massive payoff after 3 months.

 

We are just waiting for the black or white smoke to come out of the Vic now.

 

DNSYE are as clueless to who the manager will be than everyone else who resides on the internet .

 

Yeah, but then again, it was the job he did at Swansea that got him the subsequent job at Southampton, wasn't it. As I said, I'm no fan or disciple, but the literal style of play he executed was well above anything Cleverley has come close to to date.

 

His time must be near surely.

 

Wages?

 

Why? Genuine question as I've never heard of him

 

Why mention that but not the win percentage elsewhere? 43% over his managerial career doesn't seem too bad

 

In typical forum style, somebody mentions this would be an awful appointment and everybody agrees despite never having heard of him

 

It’s probably more an uninspiring choice than anything else. He seems like a bit of a taskmaster and things quickly fall apart wherever he’s been. For me, I’m sick of 4231 so I hate the idea of this guy already. But really, any typical Gino choice right now will be ripped apart.

 

Well because Sevilla are not a team that should be winning 14% of games under ANY manager. Also the only club that isn't tinpot.

 

Did fine with Uruguay over small sample size. Really fell off cliff last 2 jobs though and sacked in short order. Underwhelming but it’s not like we are box office ourselves. I guess this is the whole futility in sacking Cleverley. Next season’s squad is going to be poor whichever yes man is in situ.

 

They’ve won 9 from 34 this season scoring only 37 goals and are still in relegation trouble. Quite a few of the fallen giants of La Liga like Valencia and Sevilla are going through big upheavals and aren’t the best example.

 

You have to go back six years to find the last time he was anything like a success with a club.

He did ok with his national team, and I think in Qatar they got four points and only exited on goals scored.

The current Uruguayan manager did win promotion from the Championship btw!

 

In which case we should definitely disregard his Sevilla record

 

Good point well made