Gordon Smith: Experiences of Henrik Larsson and Ronny Deila show that success, or failure, comes at a price

Henrik Larsson (Stu Forster/Getty Images)

THOSE who imagined football management to be a cushy number might be reconsidering after the events of the week gone by.

Certainly it is true that at the very top level even failure can be rewarded with very high payouts, with pay-offs often running into seven-figure sums.

But as the experiences of Henrik Larsson and Ronny Deila have shown they often come at a price.

Celtic legend Larsson resigned from his job as manager of his hometown side, Helsingborgs, following the club’s relegation from Sweden’s top division.

Their demotion had been marked by shocking scenes with his teenage son Jordan, a striker for the team, assaulted at full-time in the loss to Halmstad.

His fellow Scandinavian Ronny Deila, meanwhile, revealed the anxiety attacks and sleepless nights he had suffered during his time as manager of Celtic.

People might argue it is part and parcel of what is, after all, a results-based business.

Successful players and managers are hailed as heroes, so it is only logical to imagine those who fail will sometimes find themselves accused of being villains.

Seeing just how hard it can hit those at the sharp end can be deeply disturbing.

I still remember the initial shock of seeing Walter McCrae, the manager who gave me my debut as a teenager at Kilmarnock, struggling when results were going badly.

Others hide it well – Ally McCoist was a very good example at Rangers. But I was never in any doubt that the pressure was always there.

Football is not forever. It is important for those unfortunate enough to find themselves in the latter situation to keep a sense of perspective.

Larsson was quick to quit, which seems a smart move to me.

Things have got very heated and other opportunities will, I am sure, await a man of his pedigree in the not too distant future.

The same applies to Deila, who admitted to his troubles in an interview with Norwegian television.

He hadn’t managed outside of his home country prior to joining Celtic but he had an excellent reputation there. I can certainly see him enjoying success leading a Scandinavian team.

On the subject of going back, news of Joey Barton’s return to Burnley seems like common sense all round.

As we discussed in this column when news broke that the player was leaving Ibrox, Rangers manager Mark Warburton rid himself of what had become an irritating distraction.

Some felt his displays in Scotland would not exactly have clubs battering down Barton’s door with job offers. But I was always confident his reputation would mean he would be fine.

And Burnley seems the perfect fit.

He knows the manager, Sean Dyche, and the players very well from his last spell at Turf Moor, which culminated in last season’s Championship title win.

They have struggled a bit since coming up and clearly feel that adding a player with Barton’s experience has the potential to help them out.

I expect it to be something of a marriage of convenience which both sides will look to reassess in the summer.

In the meantime, one thing we can be sure of is that Larsson and Deila won’t be the last men we see suffer the backlash of the beautiful game.