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The man who might have 'Pep-ped' up Wednesday!
THE phone call is one I remember taking. Can't, though, remember actually when it was except it was only a few years ago.
Thankfully, I mentioned it to my colleague Paul Thompson when he returned to the office the next day.
He recalls me telling him and what it was about.
It was a woman. It was about the Sheffield Wednesday manager's job which was vacant at the time.
The person she was speaking on behalf of would be interested in that or any coaching job.
He'd no experience of management but was looking to get into it. He would even be willing to be part of the coaching staff. And he'd like to work in England.
Could I make a note of the name, perhaps mention he'd be interested. He used to play for Barcelona.
It was Pep Guardiola.
The call came one Friday afternoon but I just can't pin down the year. It could well have been when Chris Turner was appointed in 2002.
His sacking two years later and the Paul Sturrock appointment was a very quick turnround and, had it been then or on his departure in 2006, I'm sure I'd remember more clearly.
I do remember thinking that Wednesday would hardly be interested in someone with no managerial experience much more a foreigner with no experience of England.
It may be the closest Wednesday come to having a European Cup winning manager at their club.
THERE'LL be a lot of people supporting the referee at Wembley tomorrow, not least those who've been involved with Howard Webb during his rise up the refereeing ladder.
People such as Dave Marshall, who'll proudly take his seat at Wembley, and Ron Skidmore, who'd love to be there but has to take special measures to ensure he'll be able to see him at all on the telly.
Dave, through his work at the time as referee appointments secretary in Rotherham, helped oversee the young Webb's refereeing development.
"I couldn't have been prouder than when Howard once spoke at a lecture and said: 'When you are coming through, you need people like Dave Marshall behind you'," said Dave, now secretary of Rotherham and District FA.
"I'm really so proud what Howard has achieved so far, it has been monumental. I've known his dad all his life and seen Howard grow up and been like a second dad.
"I recognised in his early 20s that here was an exceptional refereeing talent and what he has done so far is monumental," said Dave, himself a former referee.
"And he's still such a lovely lad, his feet are on the ground, he's not big headed and he conducts himself superbly and is a credit to his family and the game.
"He's the first from Rotherham Referees Association to referee the FA Cup Final and every member past and present will have pride in that."
Ron Skidmore, former referees' assessors co-ordinator who assessed the young Webb on his way up, shares in that pride and also the fact that there are two others on duty on Saturday who he assessed in the Northern Counties East League a few years ago, namely fourth official Martin Atkinson and one of the assistant referees, David Richardson from Halifax.
"I assessed Howard during his early years and he never forgot and sent me a lovely letter when he did get on the Premier League acknowledging my help," said Ron who lives at Conisbrough.
"I've often had a chuckle about one assessment when Howard had a habit of repeatedly pulling up his shorts. I suggested he needed some strong elastic so should see his mother and as his voice was a bit on the quiet side I suggested he saw his father - y'see his father had a rather loud voice."
Ron, now blind in one eye and partially sighted in the other, is set to get some special glasses that will at least enable him to see one of his 'old boys' on his big Wembley day tomorrow.
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Weather for Sheffield
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 9 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 14 mph
Wind direction: East
