Wednesday 5 June 2013

Young Championship managers: is Howe the best?

No doubt there will be a few more managerial changes in the Championship before next season gets going. Poor old Gus Poyet surely will move on having been put out on gardening leave for what seems like an eternity at Brighton & Hove Albion. I cannot see how both sides can really kiss and make up after such a difficult period. Millwall have also to decide on who will fill their managerial hot seat, but we should find out on Friday.

Looking at the division though there are no manager names that impress me as much as the playing style that our own Eddie Howe conjures up for us every week. Sure, there are some famous names like Gianfranco Zola, Paul Ince and Gus Poyet, but I don't see many masterminds in the Championship who have not failed somewhere along the line. Harry Redknapp is certainly the most experienced and Eddie going toe-to-toe with him will be intriguing. In that bracket I'd also put Tony Mowbray and Mick McCarthy who might also give Eddie a difficult game.

If I had to pick another aspiring young manager that I feel is going to set us problems it is probably Dougie Freedman at Bolton Wanderers. He has started to turn that club around and they have the fan base and experience to be right at the top of the league. Having already learnt a lot at Crystal Palace, Freedman is proving to be a manager with real qualities.


I do wonder how Brian McDermott will get on at Leeds Utd. While I think McDermott is a worthy opponent for Howe to be up against I expect Leeds fans to give him little room for mistakes before he comes under pressure. Eddie will also get to take on a Nigel Adkins team again in Reading.

At least Eddie Howe knows that the fans and the board are all behind him. I do expect our chairman and board to give Eddie all the time he needs to find answers to any problems that arise. We can't expect a dream season every year, but we can back our manager to do his best and try and make sure that our stay in the Championship is not a brief romance.

Which manager do you think will give Eddie Howe the most problems next season?

4 comments:

  1. Hi again Peter, like i said the other i day i really enjoy your daily blog.. i wondered if you had contacted the newsnow network as they seem to be a media grab site that are free and certainly more people might get to see your worthwhile articles.

    Hope you try it andif oneday it makes you rich remember me, and send me an invite for the monaco GP on your super yacht.

    Jim

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  2. Hi Jim, It is planned that the blog is featured on Newsnow in the future but they stipulate that sites must have been running for 6 months before they can apply. Cherry Chimes only started in February.

    As for Monaco, I'll put that in my diary for us both.

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  3. Oh and Jim, please tell your AFCB friends about the blog. Everyone who spreads the word and contributes ideas is a big help.

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  4. I think there will be some very tough opponents and every point will have to be hard fought

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