The England and West Ham United legend Sir Geoff Hurst has questioned the managerial credentials of Gianfranco Zola and said the Upton Park manager, who guided his club to a 1–1 draw at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, is not cut out to be a success in the Premier League.
Hurst, who made more than 400 appearances for West Ham between 1959 and 1972, said he did not believe Zola had the experience necessary to manage in the top flight. "I admire him as a fantastic player, one of the best, if not the best that we've had in the Premier League. But my overall view is that if you go in to the position of a manager in a major business or football club you have to have some experience.
"[England manager Fabio] Capello managed under-16s and under-19s in Italy. He took six years to do that, learning his trade. Now at the top end you have people like Harry Redknapp who is over 60 years of age when you're probably at your best. You need to have that experience in the game and for people to come from where Gianfranco has come from, managing the Italian under-21 side, it doesn't really equip him to be in a dogfight at the bottom end of the Premier League."
Hurst, whose own managerial career lasted 79 games at Chelsea in the old division two between September 1979 and April 1981 for 35 wins, 18 draws and 26 losses, said he expected Zola to find it "tough" to avoid relegation. "We've got the January transfer window coming up and there's a big concern on whether we're going to sell our best players."It's a hell of a prediction before Christmas but you're looking at five clubs [in the relegation battle] — West Brom, Blackburn Rovers, Newcastle United, Stoke City and ourselves, any three from those five," said Hurst. "I think Sunderland will get out of it, I think Spurs will get out of it and even though Manchester City are down there, I think they will get out of it. It's going to be a dogfight right to the end of the season, I don't think there's any question about that."
Meanwhile, Zola himself has said he believes the Premier League's big four will find it increasingly harder to have it all their own way after West Ham became the seventh team to take points off Chelsea at Stamford Bridge this season. Chelsea have now dropped 14 points at home this season while Liverpool, Manchester United and Arsenal have all stuttered on their own soil.
Zola insisted better organisation among the lower-profile teams was having an effect on the big four's supremacy. "I would say the smaller teams are getting more organised and playing more tactically. This is making it more difficult for the big teams to beat them. This is a very competitive championship and the competition is making everybody else better, including the smaller teams, and that is certainly another reason."
