FORMER ARSENAL AND Tottenham defender Sol Campbell has hit out at the lack of coaching opportunities that have been afforded to him since he retired from football.
Campbell made over 100 appearances in two spells with the Gunners, winning two Premier League titles and three FA Cups there in the process.
Speaking on the Arsenal podcast Highbury & Heels, he confirmed rumours that he had recently been turned down for the Oxford job and suggested his knowledge of the game was underappreciated by people in football, while indicating that he was being punished for speaking his mind on footballing matters.
“I did go [for the Oxford job] and they didn’t accept me,” he said.
“Maybe it was a lack of experience, things like that, but it’s a full circle. Experience? How do I get experience? Well I need a job to get experience.
“I don’t want to go too low that it’s a struggle, and I don’t want to go too low that I’m under someone and thinking ‘what am I doing here?’ I would rather be managing a club myself.
“I’m competent and it’s not like it’s rocket science to run a football club, especially when you get to that level. If you’re intelligent enough and a quick learner you will work out pretty soon, within two or three games, what the team needs, training-wise, to survive in that league, get better in that league, to get in the play-offs or even win the league.
I’m intelligent enough, it’s not like I played on a fox and dog pitch all my life. I can’t believe some people, I’m one of the greatest minds in football and I’m being wasted because of a lack of experience or ‘maybe he talks his mind too much’ or whatever.
“Go to Germany, they love people who speak their minds. They got the jobs… I’m sorry that I’ve got a mind, but don’t be scared of that. That should be something you want at your club, but obviously not.”
You can listen to the full podcast here.
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