Michael Laudrup is being installed as favourite to take away the Manager of the year award at the end of the season after delivering the Swans first major trophy with the Capital One Cup. And rightly so?

For many years it has normally been the manager that delivered the Premier League trophy that seemed to get the award but with Sir 'He Could have Killed RVP' Alex at the top of the pile almost certainly on that front it does start to look more as if the performance of our Great Dane is the one that should walk away with the award.

But who would his competitors be? Away from Sir Alex there is little competition around for him this season. Manchester City are still in the FA Cup but have a bigger gap between them and their city rivals than there is between the whole bottom half of the Premier Leageu so that would rule out Mr Mancini especially when you factor in their spectacular fail in the Champions League.

Chelsea managers can't be included on the basis that they may have another two interim ones between now and May and none of the other sides competiting for a Top 4 place have set the world alight on a regular enough basis to be considered. Some would argue that AVB at Spurs may have a shout if he gets Top 4 and delivers a Europa League trophy but I'm not so sure even that would be enough.

So we start to look further down the table and you have Steve Clarke who has lifted his side into a Top 10 position but this is only what Michael has done but without the major trophy and with a much bigger budget (although not big enough for Mr Odenwingie!)

Outside of that you don't have a huge amount left. In fact outside of that you don't have any stand out candidates at all which leaves us purely down to a choice between Sir Alex and Michael and for us Michael shades that by some distance. Even if you put aside our obvious bias on the subject.

To come into English football and take over a side who many were predicting had reached their peak was never going to be easy. But what Mr Laudrup has done is given us a style of football that eclipsed that which won us so much praise last season and he has given us results that never happened last season - wins at Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool for starters. And then of course there is the magical day at Wembley, European football next season and some of the biggest bargains of the Premier League season.

The evidence seems to be compelling and we are firmly of the beleif that come May there will be a Manager of the Year trophy sat in the manager's office at the Liberty Stadium and that would cap an amazing first season in South Wales. Not bad for second season syndrome...

Photo: Action Images

Plasticman added 17:44 - Mar 12 Here's hoping for him to get it :D
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