what the papers say

Dan the man for QPR?

The Mirror say...

'QPR plan loan move for Manchester City starlet Daniel Sturridge'

QPR are planning a move to take Daniel Sturridge on loan from Manchester City.

Hull's Caleb Folan remains on their hit list but Sturridge, 19, is the Hoops' top priority.

Sturridge is looking impressive at Eastlands, but City boss Mark Hughes may sanction a short loan deal for the winger to benefit from regular first-team football.

Also in the Mirror, the name of Roque Santa Cruz pops up again as he continues to be linked with a move to City...

'Stoke line up £4m move for Aston Villa striker Marlon Harewood'

Stoke City are lining up a £4million January swoop for unsettled Aston Villa striker Marlon Harewood.

Potters manager Tony Pulis wants more firepower, as their club-record £5m summer signing, Dave Kitson, is yet to score.

And Harewood, 29, is seeking a New Year move after starting just one Premier League game since his £4m switch from West Ham in July 2007.

Harewood fears his chances will be limited further, with Villa manager Martin O'Neill in the hunt for two new strikers - with Reading's Kevin Doyle, Blackburn's Roque Santa Cruz and Emile Heskey of Wigan all in the frame.

Harewood is tempted by the prospect of a move to Rovers in part exchange for Santa Cruz, but Manchester City are favourites to sign the Paraguayan.

And finally Henry Winter writes in the Daily Telegraph this morning with reference to Mark Hughes...

'Good managers are worth every penny'

Tottenham Hotspur's £5m move for Harry Redknapp shows value of good manager

Ludicrously, eyebrows are being raised over the £5 million Tottenham Hotspur gave Portsmouth to release Harry Redknapp.

For a club who spent a similar sum on Kevin-Prince Boateng, a midfield misfit too poor even to be granted a squad number at the Lane this season, Redknapp’s transfer fee constitutes a bargain.

When all the qualities that Redknapp brings are totted up, from man-management to shrewd recruitment, £5 million seems crazily cheap, yet still people ponder the size of the compensation. Try telling Pompey that £5 million is a fair swap for their most important employee.

A trade now exists in decent managers that increasingly reflects the established market for players. Compensation packages grow by the season. Steve Bruce cost Wigan Athletic £3 million when he moved from Birmingham City, and it has proved excellent business by Wigan chairman Dave Whelan. Languishing in 19th place when Bruce arrived last November, Wigan finished a comfortable 14th, guaranteeing them £30 million (while Birmingham slumped to an expensive relegation).

Manchester City paid Blackburn Rovers £5 million for Mark Hughes. Again, good business, particularly as Mark Bowen and Eddie Niedzwiecki were included in the compensation package. City gave Fiorentina almost a million more for Valeri Bojinov, a striker benighted by injuries.

Outstanding managers like Hughes arrive early at the training ground and leave late, often heading off to scout opponents or transfer targets. Few businesses are so reliant on one individual’s energy and expertise.

A magazine found at most training grounds is The Manager, the regular bulletin from the League Managers’ Association, and the latest offering includes illuminating comments from Professor Chris Brady, Dean of Bournemouth Business School and adviser to the Football Association’s Pro-Licence course.

Brady argues that managers must deliver immediately. “If you don’t produce the goods, you’ll be fired – and often that doesn’t take long,’’ he says. “Research we conducted a few years ago found the average tenure of a Premier League manager to be 39 months compared to 46 for the CEO of a FTSE 100 company.’’ (The life expectancy of both breeds has shortened recently).

“Both roles are results-orientated,’’ Brady continues. “You’re under incredible pressure, people rely on you, you manage numerous tasks and personalities and you’re closely scrutinised every step of the way.’’ Unlike CEOs, managers often attend the equivalent of AGMs twice a week, when those with a stake in the club’s fortunes, the supporters, loudly question their sanity and parentage.

When assessing the importance of a manager, events at Everton make a useful case study. The chairman, Bill Kenwright, cannot have written a more productive cheque than the £1 million despatched to Preston North End for the services of David Moyes.

In his first full season at Goodison, 2002-03, Moyes led Everton to seventh, eight places better than the previous year (in itself worth £4 million in merit money). Guiding Everton into the Champions League in 2004-05, albeit briefly, was a phenomenal feat, particularly as they had sold Wayne Rooney.

A significant development occurred at Goodison recently with Moyes reportedly becoming the club’s best-paid employee, his £16 million, five-year deal taking him ahead of the top earners on £45,000 a week. Good. Moyes motivates and buys well (Tim Cahill, Mikel Arteta, etc) and deserves such reward.

The manager should be the highest earner. It is absurd that Sir Alex Ferguson’s pay is half that of Cristiano Ronaldo. Ferguson’s glittering CV makes him immune from real criticism but the stress still remains, the spotlight still burns fiercest on him. Alone.

In the days when Ferguson was friendly with reporters, he would sit in his office the morning after a big match, munching through a mound of toast and surfing teletext to check whether the club’s share price had risen on the back of his team’s success. Men like Ferguson make fortunes for their employers. No wonder the Tottenham share price rose on Monday.