EUROSCENE: So then, John Toshack prefers the volcanic ash of Mount Etna to the soft rain of Dublin. Late last Thursday night, at a time when Irish media speculation had included his name on the shortlist of possible successors to Mick McCarthy as Ireland manager, Toshack wrong-footed the pundits by signing for Italian second division (Serie B) side Catania.
To say that this appointment is intriguing is to say the least. If we can think of a thousand good reasons for not taking the Irish job (recent results and a gentleman by the name of Keane, R.), we can think of three thousand for not taking the Catania job and we are not alluding to the volcanic activity of nearby Etna.
The eruptions that may give Toshack more pause for thought may well come from the club owner, controversial Luciano Gaucci. For a few days this summer Luciano Gaucci made world media headlines when he sacked South Korean striker Jung Hwan Ahn, the local hero who scored the golden goal in South Korea's dramatic 2-1 World Cup elimination of Italy.
Guacci, you see, also owns the excellent little Serie A unit, Perugia, a team where Ahn had played (not very often) for the two seasons prior to the World Cup. Allegedly outraged by the affront perpetrated on the Italian nation, Gaucci sacked his player, explaining: "That gentleman need not come looking to join up with our team again. I have given orders we exclude any possibility of extending his contract. I am simply outraged. Ahn became a good player only when he had to play against Italy. I am a patriot and I consider his behaviour not only an affront to Italian pride but also an offence to the country that threw its doors open to him for the last two years."
Not surprisingly, even when economic good sense dictated a rapprochement between Ahn and Perugia, the Korean player declined to return to Italy.
In June 1999 Gaucci sprang a major surprise when appointing Italy's first woman professional coach, Carolina Morace, to take over at third division Viterbese (a club owned by him, but since sold). The appointment generated worldwide publicity that began to look just a little silly three months later when, only three games into the season, Gaucci and Morace parted company with the latter offering her resignation amid allegations Gaucci was making it impossible for her to work at Viterbese.
Not that hiring and firing coaches is anything new to Gaucci since in the 11 years that he has owned Perugia, experienced coaches such as Ilario Castagner, Nevio Scala, Giovanni Galeone, Vujadin Boskov and Carlo Mazzone have come and gone. Toshack will be the third man to coach Catania this season, following the sackings of Osvaldo Iaconi in September and Maurizio Pellegrino last week.
Currently in the Serie B relegation zone, with a tempestuous owner and even more tempestuous fans (after a 2-0 defeat by Napoli last week, Catania fans were involved in riots which saw six policemen injured and one fan shot in the leg), Catania hardly look the sort of club to tempt Toshack who won the Spanish title with Real Madrid (1990) and a second place in Portugal with Sporting Lisbon, and he has also had spells with Real Sociedad and Deportivo La Coruna in Spain and Besiktas in Turkey.
Nor has Gaucci offered a king's ransom with Toshack's reported annual salary being €260,000 with an offer of €320,000 for next season if Catania avoid relegation. Starting as of last night when he watched his new club play Siena, Toshack has probably got an idea of the task facing him. That idea could become a lot clearer next week when he faces Palermo in an always "hot" Sicilian derby.
In the meantime, Toshack is confident: "I can understand that people might wonder about my lack of Serie B experience but you know I haven't just managed big clubs, I also won third and second division promotions with Swansea. I'm not frightened of anything."
Not even of eruptions, either from Mount Etna or Mr Gaucci?
