Bournemouth had to make the change - but who is in next?

Jason Tindall's record probably doesn't sit too badly against some former AFCB managers who won't have had the chance to have managed in the Championship. But when the Chairman and owner told the fans before the season began that promotion was the goal, then Tndall had to fall on his sword with the promotion places slipping away and four defeats and one draw in the last five league matches.

Taking the manager's job is always a gamble
and it just didn't work out for Jason Tindall.

After 27 games, 11 wins and nine draws it is the seven defeats that have shot up in recent weeks that have seen the end of JT. The logic of sacking Jason now is probably not that great having just had a window and let him pick the players he wanted to come in. Arguably the decline could be seen at the end of December and Bournemouth should have acted then, but Jason's long history with the club probably gave him more time.

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Now the club must look forward. It has been a tumultuous last eight months with Eddie Howe and Jason going along with many senior players. The club needs a new standard to get behind and an inspirational manager. I know that Johnathan Woodgate, as interim manager, is in the prime position to take the role, but I don't see that as lighting the excitement flame with the players and fans. It's the steady option that won't cost a fortune, so Woodgate is rightly favourite to move things on.

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I'd like an expressive and progressive manager. Frank Lampard has been linked but his wage bill is going to be high and his aspirations are no doubt much higher than seeing AFCB return to the Premier League. He has good recent experience though with Derby in this league and I think he would inspire people at the club with fresh ideas, but he'd also bring the media circus with him as would John Terry.

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There will be some who will hark back to Eddie Howe and another return but Bournemouth need a fresh face now and a real desire to win games. I hope board looks carefully at up-and-coming managers perhaps in the Championship or League One. Too often the club looks internally to make appointments and this is a chance to shale things up. I also think Slaven Bilic would ruffle a few people and get the players working hard, but the style of football might be less than desirable for the fans. Gary Monk could be a safe pair of hands who plays more attractive football, but like Tindall he might just be too nice a guy for a team that probably needs a few truthful words said to the players in their 'overly quiet' dressing room. It's a shame Chris Houghton joined Forest in the autumn, I think he is the kind of manager that would have worked well at Bournemouth.

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Will Eddie Howe look at the vacant Sheffield Wednesday position?

Yorkshire Live has stated that Eddie Howe along with Tony Pulis, Paul Cook and Nigel Pearson are among the front runners for the vacant position after Gary Monk was sacked on Monday after being in the job for a year. Bournemouth fans haven't heard a lot about Eddie Howe since it went so wrong for him last season, and his statement to leave the club, but he is a manager that lives to work and he may just fancy a job that is not under quite as much scrutiny as the Premier League.

Eddie How could already be in demand again.

Eddie Howe is a man who likes to test himself. He throws himself whole-heartedly into his work and so when he commits, he really puts everything he can into his work to get a club moving in the right direction. Sheffield Wednesday is a sleeping giant that has a big fan base and they are starved of success with the other half of Sheffield seeing Premier League football. I imagine it would be a good test for Howe if he felt that he had been away from the game for long enough, but there are likely to be other jobs coming up soon.

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The Disrupted Season (2019-20) completes the story of Eddie Howe's reign at AFC Bournemouth 

- it's available now for £11.49 as a paperback - visit Amazon to order

If Eddie wants to remain in football and a manager of a Premier League side he might not get much choice, and would need to pick up one of the floundering clubs if for instance Fulham, Sheffield United, Brighton, Burnley or WBA came under more pressure. A return to Burnley might be a bit too painful for him and with the task of turning around a club that is already unprepared for the Premier League, Howe might decide that a job like the Sheffield Wednesday one is a more comfortable way back in. If he could stabilise the Yorkshire club this year and go for promotion in 2021-22, I say it was a pretty good fit. However, when you consider Gay Monk was sacked after accumulating four points from his last two games, having lost the three before that, it is hard to see the board at Sheffield Wednesday as anything less than highly demanding when he might have just been turning things around. Perhaps the style of football is something that Monk couldn't deliver.

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My doubts are about whether Eddie really is that keen on managing another club having left Bournemouth and having little to prove. If he wants to enjoy his young family, taking on another pressurised football job is not going to be high on his agenda. But if he wants to stay in football he can't decline too many opportunities, because managers can soon be declared unemployable when they have drifted out of the game.

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I think the job Eddie Howe picks will have to be a challenge that he thinks will test him, but that has good prospects with young players and the chance to build a good side. Whether that is Sheffield Wednesday we will have to wait and see.

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Previous post on Cherry Chimes - A fit Brooks is huge for AFCB's promotion push

How patient can Monk be with his Swansea side?

Gary Monk has found himself under some pressure of late and quite unjustifiably in my opinion. Not every team can have sustained success and yet Monk not only brought stability to Swansea when Michael Laudrup left he rebuilt, much of the side and has taken the side forward for the last couple of seasons. But with a few disappointing home results people forget all the good work that has been done at the Liberty stadium.

When Eddie Howe takes his team to Wales he'll not be thinking Swansea are a poor team. They don't concede many goals and with Williams, Shelvey and Gomis playing through the spine of the team, Swansea are a match for most Premier League teams. Their three star attacking players are Bafetimbi Gomis, Gylfi Sigurdsson and Andre Ayew who have scored 11 goals between them and keeping them all quiet is not going to be easy for the Cherries. It has to be a decent attacking line up if they can let players the quality of Michu finally go, but also look out for Jefferson Montero who has plenty about him in front of goal.

Back in August, everything seemed to be going well for the Swans. They beat Man Utd and Newcastle at home, but since then it's been two points from four home games. Drawing against Everton and Spurs though are hardly poor results and Swansea are still a team that are not going more than a couple of games without scoring. So it's minor adjustments that Gary Monk will be making to tweak his team and he'll have had time to work with some of the fringe players not on international duty of late.

Swansea's record against the lower half teams is also pretty good having beaten Aston Villa and Newcastle. They did surprisingly lose away to Norwich City in their last game, but they had been well in that game and just made one mistake which cost them three points. It's the lack in concentration that annoyed Gary Monk who plays a patient game. Now the pressure is on them at home though in a game where they will be favourites against the Cherries. I expect a tight game as both teams know that a win either way will change the look of the table quite significantly in the lower half. 

Swansea City Home Form
WDDLL

AFCB Away Form
WLLLL

You can now read my replies to questions from the Swansea Oh Swansea Fanzine.

Thanks to all those who have already sent Score predictions in for tomorrows game!

Rival Lines: SOS, Swans fans baffled by team's slump

Rival Lines
Match Preview: Swansea v AFCB
Blogger Interview: Swansea Oh Swansea
Twitter: @StevenSOS1987

I had a real struggle to get hold of a Swansea blogger this time for Rival Lines. It seemed that perhaps a few sites were running scared of talking about their team facing the Cherries. Luckily though, I came across a Fanzine site called Swansea Oh Swansea and Steven Carroll duly obliged to take on my questions. It is a really important game for both clubs and being the first game after the international break I think it could define where the Cherries and the Swans need to strengthen, as both teams play a similar passing game and are both lacking that cutting-edge at the moment. Here's what Steven had to say on the matter.

CC: How does Garry Monk get more out of his team this season?

SOS: Hard one to answer really. The fans are a bit baffled as to why our form has dipped since the first month of the campaign. Ultimately though, he needs to make a couple of changes to the starting eleven as there's a few players not pulling their weight. Goal scoring is our biggest problem at the moment - only 5 in the last 8 games which is not good enough and it needs to be addressed sooner rather than later.

CC: Do you think Monk needs some more support as has been suggested with someone like John Toshack?

SOS: Something does need to changed but I'm not sure that would be the answer. It appears that the board would like to see someone more experienced join the backroom team but if Monk doesn't want it then we can't undermine him in my opinion. If someone does come in then I don't think Toshack would be the answer. He's a club legend but his time has come and gone. He hasn't managed domestically in this country since he left us over thirty years ago and the game has moved on a lot since then.

CC: Are more international call ups this year affecting the Swansea performances or is that a poor excuse for form?

SOS: It's easy to use that as an excuse, most of our players who represent their countries were doing so before this campaign, the only one who is new to it on a regular basis this term is Jonjo Shelvey. It's not something that washes with me, I can understand how after each international break if a player has travelled outside of Europe to represent his country that he may not be at the top of his game but the rest of them have no excuse. With the way the break works now, very often you will play your final international game on a Sunday or Monday so you get nearly a whole week to prepare for the next club game

CC: Were you pleased with the summer signings or do you think a couple of more first team signings would have helped?

SOS: Andre Ayew has been an excellent signing and is our top scorer with five goals - he's also the only player to score from open play since August if you don't include Harry Kane's own goal! The rest were more back up players which was on the whole what we needed but we should have signed another striker really. The fact that we didn't has been a mistake and it's cost us in recent games. [Ed- we know all about that at AFCB, sounds familiar].

CC: Have Swansea fans' expectations grown a bit bigger than perhaps they should have after last season?

SOS: I don't think so. Most of the fans realise that last year was pretty much as high as we can go without major investment. The expectation for this term was just to try and finish in the top ten again from my point of view, even if it was in a lower position than last season which I felt was well within our capabilities. At the moment you would have to say that is unlikely which is disappointing as I believe our players are capable of guiding us into the top half but are not showing it at the moment.

CC: Do you feel that Swansea have needed someone fresh up front like Eder who might be back for this match (I'll be pleased not to see the Gomis' Big Cat celebration this next weekend, even if he is in my fantasy league team)?

SOS: Yes, definitely. Gomis has no goal since August and not just that he's been very lacklustre and hasn't caused the opposition many problems. He is also offside an embarrassing amount. At the last count I think it's 26 times already this season, he's wasted so many attacks it's unreal. When playing well he's a handful and he's got more ability than Eder, but he's not showing it so it's time for him to be benched and the Portuguese international given a chance to start.

CC: Do you think Bournemouth passing game will be easier to play against than some of the teams you have played recently?

SOS: We hate teams who come to the Liberty and look to keep everyone behind the ball to frustrate us so playing Bournemouth should suit us better as I feel you won't do that and will look to have a go at us. However they could be famous last words as I'd be amazed if you didn't score, if you play as well as you did against Newcastle and as I've already alluded to we are struggling for goals ourselves. We will see but hopefully it will suit us.

CC: Are you sad to see the departure of Michu?

SOS: Not really, realistically he left 18 months ago. I remember on his last appearance for us at Hull in April 2014 all he was doing was berating team mates while not trying as hard as her should have been himself. I knew after that game that he didn't want to be here and thought it was best if he went elsewhere. It's a shame how things have turned out, he could have been a legend and he gave us some great memories but they seem like a lifetime ago now.

CC: Which player do you feel is playing best in your team at the moment?

SOS: Tough one to answer as the standards have dipped. However I'll say Ayew as he's the most likely to score at the weekend.

CC: How do you think Swansea will line up against the Cherries?

SOS: There could be changes but Monk has been fairly loyal to his main men so far so I think he's more likely to stick with them so I'll go for, Fabianski, Naughton, Williams, Fernandez, Taylor, Ki, Shelvey, Ayew, Sigurdsson, Montero, Gomis

CC: Is it easy to park near the Liberty stadium and is there anything AFC Bournemouth fans should look out for on their visit?

SOS: It's not great, there is some street parking but it's limited. There's a retail park but you'd be taking a risk parking there as you may get clamped. Things to look out for would be Coopers Arms which isn't too far from the away end if anyone wants a pint and for food Rossi's chip shop which is opposite the ground. The other thing would be my fanzine which I'll be selling by the lights opposite Rossis'!

CC: Thanks Steven for your comments on Swansea. It is good to know that some of my questions were tough to answer. I think we can safely say that both teams have lost their way a bit this season after reasonable starts. AFCB's problems are well documented with the injury list but I am struggling to see why Swansea have been lacking a bit of confidence of late. I hope AFCB fans make a beeline for the SOS fanzine which Steven will have crafted with a lot of care. In the meantime, do have a look at the Swansea Oh Swansea website.

FANS' FORUM
Finally, don't forget that All Departments will be hosting an AFCB Fan's Forum tonight in Southbourne at the Wight Bear Ale House. Why not pop along and enjoy the conversation, the fund gets underway at 8pm.

You cam also check out my Shoot blog post - The pass masters which has further views on the Swansea City v AFCB clash this weekend.

Is it important not to get above our station?

So the fixtures are out. It's Aston Villa first up and then another 37 games to follow - I bet like me you can't wait! We know what the Cherries have to do. Yet, doing well in the Premier League requires a lot of good planning and every team has to be respected. AFCB have no need to hurry to achieve more than to do their best in the Premier League and every game will be like a cup final, so mistakes are going to be highlighted and it is important as supporters that we stay well behind the team and be realistic. Every team wants to better what they have done before and staying positive will be crucial.

I was interested in what Gary Monk of Swansea City said when interviewed at the League Managers Award ceremony evening at the end of May. While he acknowledged that his side needed to bring in better players each year he was clear that he was in no hurry to scale the top of the Premier League. It was gradual progression that he was after and I hope that AFCB supporters are equally patient as we head into a new season.

Winning is great, but can we stay modest too if the team continues does well?

The team facing AFCB now are not only backed by large investment and bigger crowds. They have top managers and big reputations and won’t give in lightly to young upstarts that have come to join in their party where the riches are the biggest anywhere in the world. Every point is going to be hard earned and every point gained is going to be with lots of money. We can’t expect too much from the players at the start in August. It will be frantic, high on adrenalin and a wonderful atmosphere at Dean Court but the pace and quality of the football may just take our breath away.

If the points do come quick and fast early on though then it will be important that everyone stays calm. The same is true if the club gets off to a poor start and has to play catch up. While the club motto is ‘Anything is possible’, there has to be some realism in the club and what it can do going forward. To finish above the relegated places would be a great achievement. There is time to build further and to move higher up the league if the team can survive in 2015-16 without missing out on the new lucrative deal for the Premier League clubs through the TV rights.

Getting to May and still being a Premier League club at the end of it next year will be an even bigger achievement than what Eddie Howe has probably done since leading the club from the foot of League Two to the Premier League. Jeff Mostyn called Eddie "the local messiah" and he has worked miracles at AFCB, but this is now on another level and we must give Eddie as much time to him as we can to help him achieve the best results he can for the club. 

Just an end thought for AFCB fans. If you thought Swansea City are a solid Premier League side that are exciting to watch, guess who come bottom of the poll for early spots on Match of the Day? Yep, Swansea were top billing just twice and 10 appearances in the bottom slot!

Eddie Howe can take on the best now

AFCB fans have been saying for years that Eddie Howe is one of the best young English managers in the country and soon I think even more people will be simply saying he is the best English manager in the country. Now Eddie has been named League Managers' Association Manager of the Year he also won Championship manager of the year. Eddie is only the second manager who was outside the top division to win the award since 1992 and now the Premier League beckons.

Can Eddie Howe keep the momentum going?

The Premier League gives him the opportunity to go hear-to-head against the big names in management that have come to dominate the game. While the likes of Chelsea, Man Utd, Arsenal and Man City have all gone with foreign managers it is pleasing that Bournemouth have had a hand in creating some great English managers and Eddie Howe is the next in line.

There was a time when Harry Redknapp was the only Bournemouth manager to get a mention TV. More recently it has been Tony Pulis that has been the saviour for Premier League clubs facing the trap door. Now we will see how good Eddie Howe is at leading a side in the top tier and I look forward to the day when AFCB go to the Hawthorns to take on base cap supremo Tony Pulis and his team. I back Eddie Howe and the Cherries to come out on top and looking at the Premier League as it stands he might not have to beat so many teams to be the top English manager at the end of the season. Gary Monk and Swansea are at the head of the queue at present, but it is a tad disappointing that it is hard for English coaches to get to this level in the game.

When you look at the managerial records of Jose Mourinho and Louis Van Gaal you have to say this is a real jump up in class. Eddie will not have the depth of experience of many of these managers but then again very few of them have really known what it is like to have your back against the wall, with transfer embargoes, docked points and knowing that you are 90 minutes away from going out of the football league. Eddie will draw on his experiences and will need to emulate something similar to his greatest managerial wins that he has had in cup competitions over a 38 game season if AFCB are to beat the odds.

I imagine that Eddie's notes over the summer will be running to several volumes. He'll need to asses every Premier League team with great precision and find more ways of making his own team harder to beat over the summer. Somehow, I reckon Eddie Howe will be like a kid in a toy shop.

AFCB take on Swansea - the pass masters

Gary Monk's Swansea City have a reputation of being a team that passes the ball all day. Built on the legacy of Brendan Rodger's and Brian Laudrup's sides the new look Swansea have not been changing their style and have impressed with their prolonged attendance in the Premier League. A few years ago Swansea were in a similar position to AFCB in the Championship and so there is much that Eddie Howe and his team could learn from playing the Swans.

Most of the talk at Swansea over the summer has been about Wilfried Bony and whether he would go to Liverpool or not. At the moment signs are that he is staying and that we could see him play at Dean Court. Bony played in Brazil in the World Cup for the Ivory Coast and scored in the group stages against Japan, but the 25 year-old is seen as a target for several Premier League teams having scored 25 times last season. He is powerful, quick, good in the air and will give AFCB's centre back a difficult time.

An indication of where Swansea now are was seen by the summer signing of Jefferson Monetro from Mexican club Monarcas Morelia. He is an Ecuadorian international who again featured in the World Cup and can play on the left or right wing. He is joined by Icelandic midfielder Glyfi Sigurdsson who returned to the club in the summer and will be part of a strong midfield. Altogether Swansea have made six summer signings with Monetro and Sigurdsson accompanied by former Lyon striker Bafetimbi Gomis, goal keeper Lukasz Fabianski from Arsenal, Dutch striker Marvin Emnes from Middlesbrough and defender Stephen Kingsley from Falkirk.

Swansea have been down in the south west during pre-season and have beaten Plymouth 0-4 and Exeter 0-2 in their last game. The ever present captain and Welsh defender Ashley Williams should be leading the team out against AFCB at Dean Court. I wonder what is the betting that Shaun MacDonald get a chance to share the pitch with one of his former clubs? 

Today Cherry Chimes releases its August Newsletter with its news on what was behind the popular stories of last month and a special extra article for Newsletter subscribers  -
How do AFCB make the step-up to play-off contenders?

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