To be honest I don't like the DOF idea. It's daft.
It's a sensible idea that most European clubs have been doing for decades. It's only in Britain were it's considered to be an evil concept.The problem with the British model is what happens if you get in a manager who plays style X, but half the team cannot? It means in order for that manager to be successful, you have to sell half the players at a reduced price and buy even more players at an inflated one. But if he goes, then you are going to likely to tear up the model again. But if you are picking managers whose ideas match that of your team, there is less waste.
This system is going to be more collaborative, which yes means more arguments, but in end provides greater checks and balances. The manager who is hired will be responsible for training and in-game management. They are also going to have input on signings. Players won't necessarily be signed without their consent. But what we won't be doing is buying players who don't fit the model, regardless of what the manager thinks. If you aren't going to play a system involving wingers, why heavily invest in them? The role that Van Gaal has been linked with is essentially to be a figure who unifies the different parts of the club and pushes down the club's philosophy. He'll be guiding the manager and assisting him in looking for players with the scouts that fit in with the philosophy. He's also an authority figure to ensure the manager's work can be done.
When the right people are in place, the system works. If you look at AC Milan, they have Galliani as their MD/CEO: a man whose previous experience in football at Monza wasn't great and who sold electronic products to Berlusconi's TV company. But what Berlusconi recognized in Galliani was someone who isn't soft and can strike a bargain and hence he's in charge of negotiations. How else can Milan be able to get the likes of Ibrahimovic and Robinho on the cheap and tells us they'll renegotiate a deal for Aquilani? They then have Ariedo Braida as their current technical director, who is responsible for bringing in players in and working with scouts. They also have Vittorio Mentana who acts as a Director of Communications for the entire structure. At the bottom of the food-chain is the current manager Allegri, who they plucked from 16th-placed Cagliari because his ideas and approaches matched the system. But if Allegri gets sacked tomorrow, the staff will remain in place, unless they aren't doing their job.
For all you can knock about Berlusconi's morals and politics, he clearly has made sure that Milan have the right people in place. They've won 8 Serie A titles, 5 European Cups, 6 Italian Super Cups, 1 Coppa Italia, 3 World Club Cups and 5 UEFA Super Cups since he saved them from bankruptcy in 1987. Milan have changed managers 13 times (4 of those being mid-season caretaker roles) since he took over. In the previous 25 years, they changed managers 28 times and won 3 Serie A titles, 2 European Cups, 2 Cup Winners Cups and 4 Coppa Italias and 1 Club World Cup. They have a system in place that has given them continuity and allowed them to quickly rebuild in fallow years. It enables them to hire the right managers who fit the program's philosophy, whether they have only ever managed in Serie B (Sacchi), or youth teams (Capello) or small Sardinian clubs (Allegri)
