The Managers Merry-Go-Round

Now the Premiership Circus has finally rolled into town after a rather entertaining but disappointing (for all those who aren't Spanish) World Cup, plenty of Pundits and experts, otherwise put back into storage, are back to give their two-pence worth over the coming Season. One particular topic is the annual "Race for the Sack" which is basically who the hallowed experts believe will lose their job's first amongst the 20 men given the often demeaning task of leading their club to glory. More often than not, the freshly promoted clubs, such as; Blackpool, Newcastle and West Brom are the favourites to jettison their beleaguered leaders, while other pretenders such as Stoke, Bolton, Sunderland and West Ham make up the typical clubs who get nervous in or around Christmas Time, with the highly volatile Man City thrown in for good measure.

However, why is it that this rather unfortunate supporting act is often made as big a story as the actual games which provide us with so much weekly entertainment? Usually, it can be deduced that it is either the rather schizophrenic Boards of the aforementioned Clubs or the Managers capitulation in the face of high pressure expectations from the Media, Fans and, indeed, their employers. More often than not any club who is bottom at Christmas faces the abyss of Championship football, with only one club; West Brom, ever surviving this fate. Therefore, it is often the case a Manager will lose their job if they are on the end of too many losses so their Club can attempt to survive with a different Manager at the helm. Does this strategy work? Often is exacerbates the poor form of the Club, as who can turn-around the fortunes of an ailing club who are destined for relegation with so few games?

This is the focus of my thoughts today, as it is surprising how shallow the pool of "Managerial Hero's" actually is, and how the same mediocre Managers are given the task of saving a Club from relegation from the Promised Land. So far this summer, Martin O'Neill and Steve Coppell have suddenly resigned as Aston Villa and Bristol City Managers respectively, while Roberto Manchini is never guaranteed to stay on at Man City unless they win the Double. In addition, Roy Hodgson, tempted by the lure of a struggling Liverpool FC has allowed Mark Hughes another chance to prolong Craig Bellamy's career at Fulham. So far, the Premier League seems a little incestuous when it comes to Managers, constantly changing hands with little discernible success. But who are these riders of the Managers Merry-Go-Round?



1) Bryan Robson. Although, quite rightly, credited with saving West Brom from the drop in 2005, Robson has never convinced as a top-flight Manager. After a series of successes with Middlesborough, a highly ambitious club after promotion to the Premier League in 1997, eventually relieved Robson of his post after struggling to lead them to higher than 9th position in the table. Bradford City came calling and appointed Robson to save them from the drop from Division 1, which, even after taking 22 points from 27 games, he failed to do so and was subsequently sacked. Returning to the top flight with West Brom, he steered the club to safety on the final day of the Premier League season with a 2-0 win over Pompey, however the following year after a series of dreadful results, Robson was once again sacked after relegating the club back to the Championship.
The final nail in the coffin of Robson's career came with Sheffield United. Appointed in May 2007, Robson would eventually be sacked after a string of poor results and uninspiring displays, with massive pressure to quit, he was put out of his misery in February 2008 and eventually left to become an Ambassador for Manchester United.



2) Iain Dowie. Described once as the "most ugly man in football", Dowie has also had a rather petulant Managerial career. Beginning at Oldham Athletic, Dowie lead the club into the play-offs after spending heavily on new talent. However, financial trouble subsequently meant Dowie could no longer continue and left for "family reasons".
Then, in 2003, Dowie took the helm at Crystal Palace, the 19th placed Division 1 club in dire straights. After implementing a tough and disciplined regime and spending on new players, Dowie secured promotion to the Premier League after a 1-0 win over West Ham. However, the hang-over continued into next season, as the club suffered relegation back from whence they came. After losing to Watford in the following seasons Play-Offs, Dowie contentiously jumped ship to Charlton, much to Simon Jordan's dismay. However, Jordan's fury was short lived as Dowie, after a horrific 15 games in charge, left Charlton in November 2006.
Then, with additional unsuccessful spells at Coventry, Queens Park Rangers, Newcastle United and eventually Hull in 2010, Dowie became a Sky Sports pundit. As the phrase goes; "Those who can't Manage, join Sky Sports".



3) Gary Megson. After notional spells at Norwich City, Blackpool, Stockport County and Stoke City, all with rather poor ends to each spell, Megson is most remembered for his stint at West Brom (them again!).
Megson took over in March 2000, and after securing safety for the club in the First Division, lead the club to the play-offs, while picking up a November Manager of the Month award, but unfortunately lost out to Bolton Wanderers. However, the following season brought glory to the West-Midlanders after overcoming an 11 point deficit to Wolverhampton Wanderers and securing promotion to the Premier League and Megson a Manager of the Year award.
After a public falling out with then chairman Paul Thompson during the 2001-2002 Season, Megson suffered relegation back to the Championship in 2003 after one season in the Premier League. After a further promotion in 2004, Megson eventually resigned after falling out with Thompson and a string of poor results in October 2004.
In January 2005, Megson took over at Nottingham Forest, however his reign would end after further relegation and a poor subsequent season after a target to reach the Championship eluded him. Megson eventually resigned and was reported to have said his spell in Nottingham cost him c£500k.
After a brief 41 days at the wheel in Leicester, Megson joined Bolton in October 2007. After a poor to intermittent season, Megson finally saved a club from relegation after a desperate 1-1 against Chelsea on the final day of the Season. The 2009 campaign began with almost 50 days without a win which resulted in Megson losing his job in December 2009.

While Robson, Dowie and Megson are my favourite examples of Managerial flops, despite intermittent achievement, it remains that many top-flight clubs choose the same faces with the same consequences. Why is this? Many news reports cite the "vast experience" of these men as a benefit to turning a club around. Other reasons could be that these were the only men available, the cheapest candidates or simply that a desperate appointment was needed.

Despite my rather scathing evaluation of these three Managers careers, I do profess that it is the somewhat unrealistic targets set by their respective employers which put their achievements into context, thus it is unfair to ask an individual to take their club to the Champions League places in 2 years if their previous positions have been mid-tier and with little funds to achieve the aim. In the end it is the Manager who is made scapegoat while the Board avoid the blame.

Therefore, I believe we are destined to continue this roundabout of failed marriages between Manager and Club, as there will always be a club to save or an unrealistic Board to serve. I have always maintained that a Managers job is extremely tough, due to the heavy expectation set my Fans and their Boards and with the growing gulf in financial prowess between the Sky Four and the chasing pack. Perhaps if we could have a situation were we could sack the board we would have less Managerial flops and more stable clubs? But then Turkeys have never voted for Christmas and they won't start now.