We can find reasons in isolation and analyse different individuals (I have myself in opposition to the Rooney rule), but as a collective the white stars of the “golden generation†do seem to be getting more or better opportunities than their black “golden generation†counter parts.
Looking at the individuals discussed, Rio may well be happy to stay down the punditry career path (sensible if you ask me), but the others all appear to want coaching careers. Ashley Cole followed Lampard to Derby for the same reason Rooney went there - on the promise of a part time coaching role as part of Lampard’s team. He then subsequently followed Lampard to Chelsea and now works in their academy. He clearly does want to get into football coaching and management - it’s why he has taken the job and his qualifications. Sol Campbell has spoken many times about wanting managerial jobs and not being given opportunities and Ledley King retired 8 years ago and yet only a matter of months ago finally got a coaching job at Spurs. The timing of the King appointment was interesting, with it coming not long after the ramifications of the BLM protests that sparked probing questions of all areas of society including equal opportunities within football. Did Spurs appoint him following them asking questions of themselves? If so, how long had King been waiting and hoping for that opportunity?
The Bramble and Dyer examples are also interesting. I understand and agree with their views that they would want jobs on merit and they can only speak from experience about their former colleagues (who may have never considered the option due to a lack of role models maybe?). Both Bramble and Dyer however wanted to go into coaching, yet looking at their careers 6 years after those comments, how have both got on? Bramble is currently coaching an academy in Ghana while Dyer decided in the summer of 2019 to leave Ipswich after 5 years of working in their academy to look at getting a head coach role elsewhere. 13 months later, again post the spotlight of BLM, Ipswich decide to rehire Dyer as their U23 team coach (he had failed to get a managers job in the intervening 13 months). Funnily enough, Dyer’s views have changed somewhat in the last 6 years as an interview with talk sport last summer saw him name a number of former team mates (including Joey Barton and Scott Parker) who had managed to get decent managerial jobs fairly easily after retirement. I suppose at the time of making the original comments 6 years ago, most of his playing colleagues hadn’t yet walked into good roles, it’s only now he has seen that play out.
I don’t really think top players should just walk into good jobs based on their playing careers. Being the best welder around doesn’t mean you will be a good factory foreman - it doesn’t even mean you will be the best welding teacher. When however the likes of Lampard, Gerrard, the Neville brothers and now Rooney can all get significant managerial roles so soon after retirement without earning many stripes, it does make the Rooney rule feel inevitable as this will be yet another example. Personally, I still stand by the fact that I think there is a wider issue with coaching pathways as the English game has up to this point been very close minded and does not give opportunities to new thinkers and previously didn’t really seem to give many English coaches a chance in the top divisions full stop (you seemed to need help from a former playing colleague mate to get into a coaching team). I always argued bringing in the Rooney rule in isolation would almost be a healing plaster, when the whole system needed full surgery. At some point though, with every Lampard, Gerrard, Gary and Phil Neville, every Wayne Rooney, Scott Parker and Joey Barton, the game will eventually have to bow to the pressure.
