Bobby Robson More Than A Manager review: Riding in on a wave of World Cup fever comes this involving documentary on the late football legend.
Bobby Robson More Than A Manager review by Dave Bennett.
Bobby Robson More Than A Manager review
We open on a somber note, with the late Sir Bobby describing his struggle with a life-threatening nasal melanoma and intrusive facial surgery in 1995, just 9 months before landing the job as manager of Barcelona. Sir Bobby’s health issues are referenced throughout as a testament to his strength and dedication to the game, sometimes ignoring his doctors’ recommendations of retirement.
Through an impressive ensemble of talking heads including Sir Alex Ferguson, Ronaldo, Pep Guardiola, and Jose Mourinho, Sir Bobby is portrayed as the kind, down to earth man that he undoubtedly remained throughout his life and career, despite some vicious treatment from the British press. Paul Gascoigne’s insights into his father/son relationship with Sir Bobby are especially poignant. it is well known that Gazza is a vulnerable character, and the importance of his bond with Sir Bobby is plain to see when he says fighting tears, “With Bobby, I knew I was safe.”
This is a neatly stitched together documentary, flicking backward and forwards in time to the moments that made Sir Bobby, from taking a risk on a 19-year-old Ronaldo at Barcelona, to Italia ’90 semi-final heartbreak. For England fans wanting to reopen some old wounds just before Gareth Southgate’s England cut some fresh new ones, the section on the ’86 world cup stomps well-trodden ground but is essential in capturing Sir Bobby’s spirit.
The contributors are open in their adulation of Robson as both man and manager; Guardiola explains how it was Sir Bobby’s stewardship that inspired him to manage himself, plainly saying, “He is one of the nicest people I met in my life.”
Sir Bobby’s character was widely celebrated during his life and since his death, but More Than A Manager does a great job of reminding us that as well as being a lovely man, he was fiercely competitive, winning trophies in Holland, Portugal, England, and Spain, whilst developing the careers of some of the world’s best players. Footage of a pre ‘Special One’ Jose Mourinho on the bench beside him at Barcelona, wide-eyed and eager to learn, make particularly compelling viewing.
To seasoned football fans, this documentary will serve as a nostalgic portrait of one of football’s nicest men, whilst younger viewers will gain an understanding of Sir Bobby’s influence on giants of today’s game like Guardiola and Mourinho. The latter extols, “You are not dead until the last person that loves you dies.” If that is true, Sir Bobby Robson has a long time left yet.
Bobby Robson More than A Manager review by Dave Bennett, June 2018.
Bobby Robson: More than A Manager plays in select theatres, as well as Digital Download on 1st June. It will be available on Blu-Ray/DVD from 4th June 2018.
