Dario G

Dario Gradi is a football legend and deservedly so, his 24 years at Crewe is something to be proud of on its own, let alone the list of great players that have departed that club for bigger things. The BBC have a great article here about the planned handover of the managerial reigns from Dario to current academy boss Steve Holland. When Gradi finally makes way he will hand over the title of longest serving English football boss to Sir Alex Ferguson. I bet Fergie doesn't manage to give up the reigns at Old Trafford with as much dignity.

The list of former players makes impressive reading and includes David Platt, Rob Jones, Craig Hignett, Neil Lennon, Danny Murphy, Dean Ashton and of course ex-Fulham midfielder Wayne Collins. The one thing they all had in common was the ability to play good football. My other interest in Dario G is due to friends of my parents who lived in a maisonette above Dario's Mum. I had hoped that one day we might bump into him and could invite him up for a cup of tea and a bit of cake while we chatted about football, but alas it never happened. I wish Crewe well for the coming season and hope they have found the man to lead them on through the next 25 years.