The Right Appointment

[Andy Horsman]

Aside from appointing the RIGHT manager (whoever that might be, and frankly there are dozens of threads debating that point), it is of paramount importance that the club is totally honest with the successful candidate, and everything possible is done to ensure that the new manager is not set up to fail. Sebastian Vettel, is one hell of a driver but reduce his car's capacity to win races by even 10% and he will be looking at the backs of the likes of Button and Hamilton in no time. If his pit team is substandard that is another unnecessary and counter-productive obstacle in his path.

We may be about to find out who City's new manager will be, and potentially he may have a 'Clough' type influence on our modest, provincial football team. We will however never know, if the new gaffer is in fact managing in name only and has no say in who is bought and sold, who coaches for him, who scouts for him, who assists him in his managerial role and who he ultimately reports to in the hierachy behind the scenes. Similarly there is no point having an Academy if the desired formations/tactics/style of play is not established throughout the club.

There have been countless rumours and suggestions about why the club has 'hit the buffers', why Millen never succeeded, why Coppell walked, what a clearly miffed Wigley was alluding to in his interview, allergations alluding to potentially disruptive influences in the dressing room and the sense that the Chairman and former Manager were at odds over recruitment etc etc. What CIty need now is a real sense of unity, purpose and a genuine ethos of working together from Schoolboys through to the first team. The new manager can then get on with the real essense his job, preserving our Championship status in the short-term and building a team which plays watchable, exciting, winning football aspiring to greater heights in the medium to long-term.