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It's unfortunate, but when you back off and look at this situation coolly and objectively (which is what I hope Clark is doing) then base your analysis on the totality of Pioli's performance in Kansas city, you are forced to arrive at the conclusion that he is functionally incompetent.
I've know a few people who have risen to the very top in their respective fields who were functionally incompetent - two in the music industry and one in financial planning. It happens. It starts by being in the right place at the right time. It's a combination of pure, blind luck and associating with people who are highly effective. Then, you capitalize on the organization's accomplishments by positioning yourself as a principal factor in that success. Soon, your name becomes synonymous with achievements that were, in actual fact, the work of others.
The fascinating part is that each of the men I've known who found themselves in that situation did not know the difference. They actually believed that they were responsible (in large measure, at least) for their success. How they convince themselves of it, I do not know.
Pioli is simply the product of a system. He was part gofer and part media figurehead. And the public persona and reputation he cultivated over the years did not reflect his true abilities.
Worst of all, he honestly believed that he could do the job here ... and probably still does. And that, my friends, is dangerous. He will say the things he's learned to say in public, and they'll sound reasonable. Meanwhile, privately he doesn't understand why things aren't working. He's probably imagining that time alone will correct the problems. But he will lack the capacity to see himself as the issue and, in his mind, any fault or failure will have an external cause. It's why we've spun our wheels as we've continually dug the hole deeper and deeper and it's why Clark must fire him as quickly as possible. There is a form of madness in Pioli for which the only cure is failure.
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