Sol Campbell has said “the sad reality is I might never get a club again” when opening up in an interview with FourFourTwo.
The former top flight and England defender is often outspoken, having a difficult time convincing clubs to hire him yet constantly is named among one of the bookies favourites for jobs in Leagues One and Two.
He won two Premier League titles, four FA Cups and a League Cup during hit glittering five-year spell at Arsenal, but now comes to terms with no clubs wanting to offer him a job.
“I’ve applied for England Under-21s, Bristol Rovers, Bristol City, I had a chat with Swansea, MK Dons, Doncaster, Ipswich, Preston – the list just goes on over the course of a couple of years in recent times,” he said to FourFourTwo.
Sol Campbell on getting back into management 🗣
“The sad reality is I might never get a club again. I really don’t know. Maybe I need some divine help from God, but I’ll keep pushing – I’m a trier & I’ll keep trying. I’ll visit clubs & I’ll keep my knowledge up.”
(FourFourTwo) pic.twitter.com/etFpzjrBr4
— Footy Accumulators (@FootyAccums) July 4, 2022
After retiring from playing in 2010, Campbell managed to be appointed as the manager of Macclesfield Town – whom he performed a miracle in helping them beat relegation from the EFL on the final day of the 2018/19 season – before going on to then-League One side Southend United. However, at both clubs he left his post surrounded by the sides’ financial issues which predated his arrival.
“I’m open to going abroad as well, and if a manager said, ‘Sol, would you come in and work with me’, I’d look at that too – I nearly helped Thierry Henry with the defence when he was managing in Canada, but then there were the travel restrictions with quarantining and it didn’t work out,” explains Campbell.
“But ultimately I want to be a number one. Ideally I’d love a team in England. I know football inside-out, I’ve played at the highest level – I know that doesn’t mean everything, but it means something. I can pass my knowledge on. I need a better environment, a foundation where I’m not constantly putting fires out every day, where I can concentrate on the team.
“It’s tough when you’re not getting an opportunity and you’re getting overlooked. I love being around football and I don’t want to lose that. But when you’re on the sidelines, it does test that love and commitment – it’s not easy to carry on when you’re not getting interviews, and sometimes I don’t know why. Forget who I am and what I’ve done, just see if I can fit into your club.
“The sad reality is I might never get a club again. I really don’t know. Maybe I need some divine help from God, but I’ll keep pushing – I’m a trier, and I’ll keep trying. I’ll visit clubs and I’ll keep my knowledge up. If it happens, I’ll be prepared.”
In June 2021, he told talkSPORT how had applied for 14 managerial roles within the last year up to the date of the interview.
Only two clubs, one of which including Sunderland, offered an interview.
“Just give me a chance, I’ve done all my badges, I’m raring to go, I want to do this job, I’m in love with football,” he told talkSPORT ahead of our upcoming documentary ‘Being Sol Campbell’.
“I don’t want to fall out of love with football. I’m trying every day to get in there. I want people to understand the passion I have for the game.
“I want to pass it on, if that’s through knowledge, or helping young players reach the top, or tweaking top players to get them a bit of an edge.
“I’ve been through all that. I’ve played at the top for a very long time under pressure. I don’t want all this talent and knowledge to go to waste.”
Campbell added: “For me, it’s all about the CEOs and the people who make the decisions knowing a little more about me.
“You don’t want hearsay, if you want to know who the person is, talk to them. That’s the best way, that’s the way I was brought up.
“Then if it’s not the right fit, it’s not the right fit.”
Campbell isn’t giving up his managerial dream any time soon, adding: “I’ll keep going. I’ve got too much to give for the game.
“I want to show what I can do, win the things I’ve never won before.
“I want to get promotion, save teams, bring players on, make money for the club.
“I want to be in football. I love football, I love being in and around the players. The ups and downs, the banter, the shouts, the arguments, the happiness.”
Fans reacted as Sol Campbell says“the sad reality is I might never get a club again”…
@tinchysneijder7: Or get better at your job when you have one
@WHUBruce: No sympathy. He’s expecting to walk into a PL or CH job which won’t happen. He’s unwilling to go lower down
@OnTheToon1: You mean like Rooney, Lampard and Gerrard did?
@FSake1983: He’s never come across as very likeable. He needs to go down to bottom, work hard and prove people wrong
@AndrewAHerbert: He did this at Macclesfield…
@Chr15PG: I need some coaches for @HolbeckMoorJfc if you fancy it Sol? I’ll get you a bag of crisps and a pint at the committee meetings 👍🏼
@matthardy_97: Clubs tend to steer clear of managers who have backed winding-up orders to ruin one club, and relegated the other…
@alirook: As an actual manager. Sols stats are very poor.
@Lee13Vincent: It’s because he’s absolutely shit at it….!?!!
@McGuckin8: Still beating that drum! Give overrrrrrr
@Benali7378: The sad reality is – you had a chance and you were crap. End of discussion
@onuronny: Can start by learning the name of the club you manage 🤦🏻
@slickeighties: He’s not as bad as everyone says. There are many worse mgrs on the merry go round who get untold chances.
@AS__1867: He doesn’t get jobs cos he’s shite. How can he not understand that?
@nufcoliverr: He’s a shite manager and only gets jobs because of his reputation within the game
@TomJordan21: I know he’s not the most likeable, but can understand his frustration. Rooney, Gerrard & Lampard just walked into high rank jobs 🤷🏼♂️
@BirdsTheWord__: Knowledge of what team he’s actually managing would be a good place to start
@kick_in_grass: I have heard he was lazy at Macc Town. Macc fans weren’t sorry to him go (not the ones that I know – I respect their opinions too)
@DJpatRovers1: This blokes issue is that his absolutely wank at management
@Sean99Wall: He’s probably right if he’s gonna keep applying for championship clubs after 2 failures in League 1&2
@ben_race91: Or don’t claim a clubs racist because they’ve not employed you as their manager because you’re black. #gtfc
@xDellisOfficial: Problem is when you accuse everyone of being a racist nobody’s gonna hire you out of fear of backlash when you underperform
Left out that Macclesfield had no money and couldn’t even pay the manager and player.
— chris roberts (@chris_roberts96) July 4, 2022
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