[Archived] Next Rovers Manager

[alexanders]

No to Big sam!

[joey_big_nose]

Houllier left Lyon a year ago and dont think he's attached to a club.

Lets get real, it's gonna be Allardyce!

No it won't.

The board will be aware that the vast majority of fans don't want him. The last thing the board want is to empty out Ewood. Plus post Newcastle there are serious questions about his credentials. No chance that JW will take him on.

[Presty On Tour]

george donis anyone? former rover and remember he beat us with a girls team!

[alexanders]

george donis anyone? former rover and remember he beat us with a girls team!

I have had him in mind my self.

He was appointed head coach at AEK Athen 14th of March according to wiki.

[RibbleValleyRover]

Well its official he's gone.

The search now starts!

[Hi Mack]

I think I am going to put a fiver each on Ince, Billic, Coppell and Laudraup.

I can't see it being outside of those four.

Cant see it being any of them!

[andrew92]

rite hes gone, now never come back and look at ANY of our players!!!!! lol

"your getting sacked in a season" lol only joking, good luck sparky

[andrew92]

jesus christ anyone watching sky sports news!! how do city think they are? roaldoinho, jo, and want to become one of the leading clubs in the country! now hes good, we no that but im not sure hes a miricle man!

[tcj_jones]

I think I am going to put a fiver each on Ince, Billic, Coppell and Laudraup.

I can't see it being outside of those four.

Am I correct in thinking that Ince hasn't even managed outside of League One? He's done a fantastic job so far, but to become the manager of the seventh best team in England is surely a step too far at this moment in time? Billic won't leave until after the Euros (not sure if that will make things too complicated), while Coppell just got a team relegated from the Premier League. If he is as straight as a dye as Nicko suggests, then I doubt he would turn his back on Reading weeks after committing his future to the club. Finally, Laudrup is on the verge of joining Panathanikos, as I understand it.

I would wait a while before putting any money down.

[robborover]

Well life goes on. I guess it's like losing your girlfriend of 3 years to another lad at school or something.

Sparky did a good job and has left us in a better situation. Who would have thought that Santa Cruz and Benni would be upfront for us. Or that we'd have a genuine England midfielder?

The job is on for Williams now. I'd like to see Bilic, laudrup or Advocaat. Arshavin anyone?

For me, Fat Sam would be the easy option and would only take us back to the dark Souness days.

Does anyone else hope that Shinawatra gets his assets frozen again?

The club is bigger than Hughes.

[tcj_jones]

Wow, Souness's odds are stupidly low, which means there must be people out there putting money on him. You'd have to be an absolute idiot to think the same Rovers board would appoint a manager they were on the verge of sacking four years ago who has failed spectacularly in football management since leaving.

Seriously, who would be betting on Souness?

[Eddie]

[Cocker]

Does anyone else hope that Shinawatra gets his assets frozen again?

I have both hands raised so that counts for double.

Anyway:-

1. Hughes has left us with a decent side for whoever comes in.

2. Whoever comes in needs to convince our main guys that Rovers is the place to stay (although you can bet Bentley is probably already on the phone to his agent)

3. I'll do it

[vintageadidas]

Could be a large exodus from the club to be honest. Many players may fancy a change.

We need a new manager as soon as possible!

We need to keep hold of RSC THOUGH.

[gumboots]

Players can ask and want but I don't see anything much being allowed to happen on that front just yet. Mr Williams will quite rightly be busy finding a new manager before he's willing to take phone calls from players and their agents. Most of them will probably want to think about their situation before asking to leave as most are on their hols or on duty somewhere with national teams. Bentley supposedly already wanted out so he might be asking but while some others might be thinking I don't think they're off yet.

[Cocker]

Anyone else reckon we are going to get City at home first game of the season

[robborover]

Either that or another promoted team!

Setanta Sports suggest we got £4 million. Setanta Sports

[joey_big_nose]

Am I correct in thinking that Ince hasn't even managed outside of League One? He's done a fantastic job so far, but to become the manager of the seventh best team in England is surely a step too far at this moment in time? Billic won't leave until after the Euros (not sure if that will make things too complicated), while Coppell just got a team relegated from the Premier League. If he is as straight as a dye as Nicko suggests, then I doubt he would turn his back on Reading weeks after committing his future to the club. Finally, Laudrup is on the verge of joining Panathanikos, as I understand it.

I would wait a while before putting any money down.

We shall see. I think the criteria for selection will limit it to a new up and coming manager wiht a good knowledge of the game and lots of ideas.

That was what got Hughes the job, it worked very very well, so we will try to continue in that vein.

All the other names mentioned don't fit with that criteria. Its only speculation but I am pretty certain that is how JW etc will approach it. No chance of an "old hand" coming in imo, too much, as Nicko put it, baggage and too few ideas. No "old hand" has taken over a club and made any real progress with it apart from Redknapp in recent years. Edit - O'Neill as well to be fair. But he is very high quality and we cannot afford that sort of established talent.

One thing I would happily place money on now is that the Rovers staff are currently calling Laudraup's agents. It shall be interesting.

[Lathund]

Laudraup is clearly the outstanding candidate. However his pedigree and success mean that bigger clubs than us are after him Panathanaikos who can offer Champions League football. Not sure how he would feel about a club like Rovers.

Scandinavians in general want to play in England above anywhere else, and while that's not necessarily true for Laudrup we can at least hope it is

As for me I'm not sold on any of the realistic candidates yet... it's Slaven Bilic I want. I've not seen more than a few games of his but there's just something about him that says that he'll go on to be one of the great managers. I haven't got much to base it on but I'm sure JW will have a lot to go on. He'd also have knowledge of Eastern Europe, where I'm sure there are plenty of bargains to be had.

It was a joy to watch Dick Advocaat's Zenith team in the UEFA Cup, and while I can't say how much of that was down to him and how much was it was due to the players it certainly bodes well. Like a lot of people though I fear the financial demands will be too much, and that he'll want to finish what he started with Zenith and play in the CL with the very talented team he has. However if we got, say, £3m for Hughes that would let us give our new manager £1m extra per year over three years, which would make it one of the highest paid jobs outside the very top clubs. Now perhaps it'd be wiser to spend that money on the squad, but there could be a scenario where going the extra mile for a manager could be worth it.

Paul Ince is someone I hadn't even thought of a few days ago, but his record (Albeit in the lower leagues) is great. Young, up and coming, and has the name recognition that even if not vital, certainly helps.

Interesting to see the likes of Dalgleish on the SkyBet list. Hasn't been in the game for a long time so may have passed him by, but if anything he is at least a winner, and would be nice for nostalgic reasons. I think he's just on there because Sky ran out of names however.

Now, a former Rover would be great to see, but who? Grayson, Newell, Hendry, Coleman? None particularly stand out as a great manager but then I haven't watched their teams all that much (With the exception of Coleman).

I can say right now that I don't want Shearer. As an assistant perhaps, but not as manager. He is a big name, but I've seen nothing to suggest he'd be a good manager. Now obviously I can't be certain that he won't be, but I'd want someone with at least some experience, even if it's just a couple of years.

Steve McClaren and Sam Allardyce would be solid appointments IMO. They'd keep us in the premiership, but then again I think that's all they'll do, and it won't be pretty. Safe, but boring appointments.

[Mr Brightside]

Gutted sparkys gone, fair enough if one of the "top four" had came in for him but city??

We dont want Big Sam or Mclown coming in, we need someone who will control the dressing room otherwise their will be a mass exodus of our quality players.

No real quality managers out of work at the moment.

Bring back Big Tony Parkes!

[vyeo]

Well life goes on. I guess it's like losing your girlfriend of 3 years to another lad at school or something.

Sparky did a good job and has left us in a better situation. Who would have thought that Santa Cruz and Benni would be upfront for us. Or that we'd have a genuine England midfielder?

The job is on for Williams now. I'd like to see Bilic, laudrup or Advocaat. Arshavin anyone?

For me, Fat Sam would be the easy option and would only take us back to the dark Souness days.

Does anyone else hope that Shinawatra gets his assets frozen again?

The club is bigger than Hughes.

Well, I sure hope they liquidate Man City.

Having had a few days to think it over, Fat Sam would not be the end of the world, although he is by no means my first choice. In fact, objectively, Fat Sam would probably represent the best choice out of the jobless managers now because:

1. He has shoe-string experience with Bolton, and did make some inspired signings, which suggests he has a good network of contacts.

2. He did do exceptionally well with Bolton.

3. He takes a scientific approach, and would therefore be able to harness the systems we already have put in place.

4. Sam is probably hurt by the Newcastle fiasco, and would be motivated to do well.

My biggest issue is, I (and many others here) fundamentally dislike him (attitude, bung allegations etc). But to be honest, I'm already mentally prepared for him because he's the most logical choice at this point. He is also the most logical and convenient choice.

However (and I'm really trying to find a bright spot here), that's not to say that the board will definitely appoint him because the inherent assumption we're making is that we would not make an approach to a manager who's currently in a job. Most of the speculation has been focussed on candidates who are jobless, but given our reputation in the footballing circles, we could probably tempt some who are current hired. I do not think we'll go for a continental manager, although this is mainly a gut feel. We've been pretty focused on going British in the past, and I think that will continue. But the circumstances now are probably different than when Hughes joined - we now have a much better squad technically, and the English game has evolved.

I just hope that the board will now be brave enough to look outside Britain. Spurs pretty much plucked Juande Ramos from a stronger club in Sevilla, who's to say we can't do the same? I really hope we at least speak to Mancini (although he really depended on the quality he had at Inter and its quite hard to make that lot lose), Houllier or someone like Lippi. Why not be adventurous and go for someone like Del Bosque even? The important thing is that we are brave enough to make that appointment, and not go for the convenient solution. I really do believe that a continental manager will be able to take us up one level, although funding would be important. (I suspect though that with a new manager, slightly more funds would be released.) And I would be terribly disappointed if we don't even try.

If we were to look within Britain, I would say Ince although he's untried at this level. The guy has played at the highest level and for the biggest clubs, has continental experience, and would probably belong to the breed of new-age, scientific managers. He also has an air of self-belief, which is immensely crucial to this job. He also has a good reputation as a player, which could help attract players. That said, I do not think he would figure that highly in the club's shortlist, and would probably be behind Fat Sam in the pecking order.

In sum, while I would not like it, I am prepared (read resigned) to accept Fat Sam. However, I cannot in any way accept McClaren or Jewell because those would be represent a complete regression. At least with Sam, for the reasons I've listed, I can still see a glimmer of hope. But especially with McClaren, the future is too bleak to imagine.

[Grabbi Graeme]

I think somebody mentioned in one of the threads about having a female manager not sure if it was a joke but what about Hope Powell we would certainly break new ground in football management and lets face it can't be any worse than Brian Kidd.

Also if BFS is appointed do we have the wage budget to cope with the 150 backroom staff he seems to employ.

[vyeo]

Well life goes on. I guess it's like losing your girlfriend of 3 years to another lad at school or something.

Sparky did a good job and has left us in a better situation. Who would have thought that Santa Cruz and Benni would be upfront for us. Or that we'd have a genuine England midfielder?

The job is on for Williams now. I'd like to see Bilic, laudrup or Advocaat. Arshavin anyone?

For me, Fat Sam would be the easy option and would only take us back to the dark Souness days.

Does anyone else hope that Shinawatra gets his assets frozen again?

The club is bigger than Hughes.

Well, I sure hope they liquidate Man City.

Having had a few days to think it over, Fat Sam would not be the end of the world, although he is by no means my first choice. In fact, objectively, Fat Sam would probably represent the best choice out of the jobless managers now because:

1. He has shoe-string experience with Bolton, and did make some inspired signings, which suggests he has a good network of contacts.

2. He did do exceptionally well with Bolton.

3. He takes a scientific approach, and would therefore be able to harness the systems we already have put in place.

4. Sam is probably hurt by the Newcastle fiasco, and would be motivated to do well.

My biggest issue is, I (and many others here) fundamentally dislike him (attitude, bung allegations etc). But to be honest, I'm already mentally prepared for him because he's the most logical choice at this point. He is also the most logical and convenient choice.

However (and I'm really trying to find a bright spot here), that's not to say that the board will definitely appoint him because the inherent assumption we're making is that we would not make an approach to a manager who's currently in a job. Most of the speculation has been focussed on candidates who are jobless, but given our reputation in the footballing circles, we could probably tempt some who are current hired. I do not think we'll go for a continental manager, although this is mainly a gut feel. We've been pretty focused on going British in the past, and I think that will continue. But the circumstances now are probably different than when Hughes joined - we now have a much better squad technically, and the English game has evolved.

I just hope that the board will now be brave enough to look outside Britain. Spurs pretty much plucked Juande Ramos from a stronger club in Sevilla, who's to say we can't do the same? I really hope we at least speak to Mancini (although he really depended on the quality he had at Inter and its quite hard to make that lot lose), Houllier or someone like Lippi. Why not be adventurous and go for someone like Del Bosque even? The important thing is that we are brave enough to make that appointment, and not go for the convenient solution. I really do believe that a continental manager will be able to take us up one level, although funding would be important. (I suspect though that with a new manager, slightly more funds would be released.) And I would be terribly disappointed if we don't even try.

If we were to look within Britain, I would say Ince although he's untried at this level. The guy has played at the highest level and for the biggest clubs, has continental experience, and would probably belong to the breed of new-age, scientific managers. He also has an air of self-belief, which is immensely crucial to this job. He also has a good reputation as a player, which could help attract players. That said, I do not think he would figure that highly in the club's shortlist, and would probably be behind Fat Sam in the pecking order.

In sum, while I would not like it, I am prepared (read resigned) to accept Fat Sam. However, I cannot in any way accept McClaren or Jewell because those would be represent a complete regression. At least with Sam, for the reasons I've listed, I can still see a glimmer of hope. But especially with McClaren, the future is too bleak to imagine.

[speeeeeeedie]

How do Rovers find a new manager? Do headhunting firms specalise in this sort of thing or does John Williams get his contact cards out and starts ringing?

[SuperStella]

I’d have Shearer and a manager with pedigree alongside him to teach him the ropes

The return of our greatest ever player would have the town buzzing again and the players on cloud 9 – we’d soon forget about Hughes.

As far as I’m concerned it’s over now, he’s gone. So like any other premiership manager I hope he does nothing. No room for sentiment in this day and age.