New Manager

[DCFC1388]

Even if the owners do have an idea on who they want it still doesnt mean thats who gets appointed. Pretty sure Mel said he interviewed Lampard as a favour to Harry Redknapp but was thinking of going for someone with experience but was then so impressed after meeting Lampard he changed his mind and went with him.

[Earl of Tupton]

Hi All. Long time since I've posted and been through a couple of name changes since joining this board. Used to contribute to the now defunct old DET board all the time. But regularly read everyone's contributions on here and it's always entertaining.

Anyway enough about my life story. Re the new manager. Personally I don't want Rooney and currently don't think this is the right gig for a rookie manager with no coaching badges. But pleased to see that club sources have rubbished the Gregory link - that would have been more than I could stand.

Re Mac3 as a short-term stopgap appointment. I don't really get this at all. Personally I don't see the point of appointing a manager like McClaren for six months only to change manager and have to go through all this nonsense again with all the disruption that goes with it. Let's get the right guy in now and have our sights set on short, medium and long-term. I also don't get the love-in a lot of our fans have with McClaren. It's true he brought an immediate impact during both spells he was in charge. But he never has a plan B when teams suss us out and things go on the slide. So it's a no from me. Benitez and Poch? The realist in me says we won't even be at first base.

So who are we left with? I quite like the prospect of Steve Cooper and wouldn't be averse to Paul Cook either. I wasn't originally very receptive to Eddie Howe either but I've been reading a bit about him and Bournemouth's rise to the Premier League under his management and it's quite impressive overall. Admittedly, he spaffed a load against the wall once they got their but then don't a lot of managers once they reach the so-called promised land. It's what he did on the way there that catches the eye - for me at least. John Terry? I'm undecided. He is a leader for sure and has served an apprenticeship as assistant and coach at Villa. But question marks over him as a bloke. But then Cocu was a nice guy and look how that's turned out. I settle for a right 'XXXX' if they got us playing well and winning matches.

If we can get him I would like to see Jokanovich here. But otherwise anyone from Howe, Cooper or Cook for me. Someone who can stop the rot and turn things around.

[Parsnip]

1 hour ago, Nuwtfly said:

The article also states the John Gregory link is nonsense ?

Aw ?

[Tombo]

1 hour ago, DCFC27 said:

Mac came in and revitalised our academy, Nigel Clough seems to get the plaudits but it was Mac that came in and said if you want good players we need a lot more investment and infrastructure in the academy and basically told the club that the players we have in the academy coming through are no where near good enough. End of that season we basically emptied our more senior academy teams and focused on getting the best talent from around the country not just the county.  He was right nearly none of the previous years set graduates until Bogle have done anything of note. Now we have a conveyor belt of talent coming through and one of the best academy set ups in the country.

He didn’t play them because there was no one to play, instead we took young players on loans or bought from premier league teams ie Dawkins/Ibe/wisdom/Bamford/Butland/Omar Mascarell/Thorne/Ince/Christie/Michael Keane/Lingard/Roos. 
 

Mac liked a balance of youth and experience. Yes he signed Nugent and Bent too but youth was at the core, and his aspirations for the academy have set it on its way. He did play Lowe/Bennett/Hanson out of the academy too but none of them really looked all that good, Lowe looks good but I think it was good business in the end 

I totally agree. Under McClaren, along with the names you mentioned, he played Kwame Thomas (wasn't Mac's fault he was crap) and during his reign we brought in young players with a view to the first team (Calero, Koblenz, Mitchell, Roos, Bunjaku, Santos). Again, it wasn't really his fault the standard wasn't there, but they were given every chance to succeed. Youth recruitment is very very tough, and always a gamble.

The big one I recall was Kyle McAllister, who was to spend half a season in U21s to learn our style and work his way into the first team, much like Bobby Duncan amongst others we have at the moment. Injury problems derailed him but the right idea was there.

I don't exactly know how much is down to Mac as such but I'm sure he had an input being the Head Coach at the time.

[OoooMarkWright]

I see people seem to be happy with the Cooper link. He did ok at Swansea,  it they did have a decent squad following relegation a couple of years ago. He’s used his contacts well to get some decent loans in, Brewster was a massive help to sneak them in last year. He’s still quite unproven I would say. 50/50 on him as a link. I think whoever we get is always going to be a risk - personally not sure about him though. 

[Topram]

50 minutes ago, DCFC1388 said:

Is this the John Percy article?

[DCFC1388]

9 minutes ago, Topram said:

Is this the John Percy article?

Yes it is

[Ramarena]

If we go for a "glamour" appointment then Jokanovich but I'm not sure we could afford him. 

Of the realistic options so far it's between Cook and Cooper. Cook wins on his experience/CV, working on a budget and being available, Cooper wins on potential, style and youth development. Cooper edge's it but he'd be more expensive than Cook. 

If we're fishing amongst the floaters in the blokes bogs then it's Terry over Rooney..............unless Rooney brings in Mac as his assistant.....then it's a whole different ballgame with Rooney and Mac!

?

[brady1993]

17 minutes ago, enachops said:

I see people seem to be happy with the Cooper link. He did ok at Swansea,  it they did have a decent squad following relegation a couple of years ago. He’s used his contacts well to get some decent loans in, Brewster was a massive help to sneak them in last year. He’s still quite unproven I would say. 50/50 on him as a link. I think whoever we get is always going to be a risk - personally not sure about him though. 

If you want some upcoming that ticks all the right boxes then Cooper is good fit. Got history working with younger talented players, plays good football and has been getting results at this level. 

He's a damn sight more interesting than well over half who've been suggested.

[Ramley Apple]

Jokanovich would command a massive salary, assuming he's prepared to come here at all

[OoooMarkWright]

Just now, brady1993 said:

If you want some upcoming that ticks all the right boxes then Cooper is good fit. Got history working with younger talented players, plays good football and has been getting results at this level. 

He's a damn sight more interesting than well over half who've been suggested.

No I agree, he’s done a decent job. But - Potter moulded the playing style and philosophy. Cooper has continued this. That wouldn’t be the case at Derby. We’d need to change from Cocu’s slow build up play - can Cooper stamp his own style on players who have played in a different way previously? He hasn’t spent much so there are question marks over recruitment? He did great at loan players, the issue is with that - the older the England U17 group get the more difficult they are to loan. His contact list then may run dry? Question marks, like I say as he is still quite inexperienced. A tough call. 

[brady1993]

12 minutes ago, enachops said:

No I agree, he’s done a decent job. But - Potter moulded the playing style and philosophy. Cooper has continued this. That wouldn’t be the case at Derby. We’d need to change from Cocu’s slow build up play - can Cooper stamp his own style on players who have played in a different way previously? He hasn’t spent much so there are question marks over recruitment? He did great at loan players, the issue is with that - the older the England U17 group get the more difficult they are to loan. His contact list then may run dry? Question marks, like I say as he is still quite inexperienced. A tough call. 

I disagree that it would be difficult and Id also contend that he has is own identity as a coach (it just aligned with what he took over).

In this interview back from 2017 he talks about it. 

https://www.firstpost.com/sports/fifa-u-17-world-cup-2017-england-coach-steve-cooper-proud-and-satisfied-to-make-a-statement-4176145.html

"We want to play with purpose, dominate possession, play forward and get the ball back as quick as we can."

"We will never change our style or way. Whoever we play we can be a match and play better than the opposition. We have to work hard for that"

We've been builds towards a passing footballing side, we have plenty of young talented players and we have plenty of energy in the squad. 

It wouldn't be a massive transition. A few tactical tweaks here and a few selection changes there and we will be away. 

[Millenniumram]

It’s probably a good thing that the new owners are taking their time over the next managerial appointment, we need to make sure we carefully select the right man for the job. That said, the games are coming thick and fast at the moment, and we need to pick up form ASAP or we will be cut adrift of safety. I’m not sure I’m entirely comfortable with a caretaker management staff taking charge of 3 games - a lot could change in that time. Just hope they’re up to the job.

Very glad to see the John Gregory story rubbished mind, that would have been a nightmare. Of the 3 names linked, I still really hope we don’t go for Rooney. It’s too early for him yet, he needs to concentrate on playing until the end of the season at least. Maybe in a couple of years time he’ll make a decent manager, but not yet. Terry I’m pretty indifferent about. He’s a big gamble as a first time manager, but at least he’s got some coaching experience as an assistant. Pretty sure I’ve seen players speak very highly of his motivational skills, and he strikes me as having a decent footballing brain too. 

Steve Cooper is a very left field and interesting new name. He’s probably the first manager suggested that would genuinely excite me. He’s done a good job at Swansea so far, getting them in the top six with a fairly limited budget. He’s got an outstanding record developing young players, and he plays good football too. Seems to be able to attract a high calibre of loan player as well, which would be a big bonus, much like when Lampard was here. Those sort of players can make the difference in this league. Would seemingly tick all the boxes for me following on from Cocu. A young, up and coming manager might be of interest to the new owners as well, as a long term appointment.

[OoooMarkWright]

3 minutes ago, brady1993 said:

I disagree that it would be difficult and Id also contend that he has is own identity as a coach (it just aligned with what he took over).

In this interview back from 2017 he talks about it. 

https://www.firstpost.com/sports/fifa-u-17-world-cup-2017-england-coach-steve-cooper-proud-and-satisfied-to-make-a-statement-4176145.html

"We want to play with purpose, dominate possession, play forward and get the ball back as quick as we can."

"We will never change our style or way. Whoever we play we can be a match and play better than the opposition. We have to work hard for that"

We've been builds towards a passing footballing side, we have plenty of young talented players and we have plenty of energy in the squad. 

It wouldn't be a massive transition. A few tactical tweaks here and a few selection changes there and we will be away. 

I never said it would be difficult, just that Cooper hasn’t necessarily had to make his mark and change the style at Swansea. As you say, Swansea was a nice fit for him, could he impose his style on some that haven’t been playing that way for 12 months? Every coach has their own identity, it’s about can they get it across to the players? Not saying Cooper can’t, just that he hasn’t had to have that sea of change at Swansea that he would at Derby. 

[Topram]

1 minute ago, Millenniumram said:

It’s probably a good thing that the new owners are taking their time over the next managerial appointment, we need to make sure we carefully select the right man for the job. That said, the games are coming thick and fast at the moment, and we need to pick up form ASAP or we will be cut adrift of safety. I’m not sure I’m entirely comfortable with a caretaker management staff taking charge of 3 games - a lot could change in that time. Just hope they’re up to the job.

Very glad to see the John Gregory story rubbished mind, that would have been a nightmare. Of the 3 names linked, I still really hope we don’t go for Rooney. It’s too early for him yet, he needs to concentrate on playing until the end of the season at least. Maybe in a couple of years time he’ll make a decent manager, but not yet. Terry I’m pretty indifferent about. He’s a big gamble as a first time manager, but at least he’s got some coaching experience as an assistant. Pretty sure I’ve seen players speak very highly of his motivational skills, and he strikes me as having a decent footballing brain too. 

Steve Cooper is a very left field and interesting new name. He’s probably the first manager suggested that would genuinely excite me. He’s done a good job at Swansea so far, getting them in the top six with a fairly limited budget. He’s got an outstanding record developing young players, and he plays good football too. Seems to be able to attract a high calibre of loan player as well, which would be a big bonus, much like when Lampard was here. Those sort of players can make the difference in this league. Would seemingly tick all the boxes for me following on from Cocu. A young, up and coming manager might be of interest to the new owners as well as a long term appointment.

Definitely, let them get the take over completed then they can start looking, I’m sure they have ideas on who they want 

[brady1993]

2 hours ago, Nuwtfly said:

Rooney and Co could be in charge for the next THREE games, according to John Percy, as the new owners may look to take over a fortnight to find their next manager...

 

This..... concerns me a touch.

On the one hand we need to think carefully on the appointment. On the other hand we really need a quick confident boost and I'm far from convinced those in temporary charge have it in them to provide that. 

Also kind of leaves Rooney in a bit of an odd spot as a player, does he pick himself ? Do he exclude himself from selection? What happens if he doesn't perform? Does he pick himself through it? It's not a good situation to be in.

Personally would have had Wassell take control for a handful of games and clear the decks a touch more thoroughly.

[DCFC1388]

Worth noting that before his stint with England youth teams Cooper used to be academy manager at Liverpool as well as their u18 manager so will hopefully have contacts with Liverpool still. Probably why Brewster went to Swansea and Liverpool wanted Wilson to go there too

[Lander]

Perhaps Rooney being on the touchline is a way around his apparent forced involvement in the starting eleven, might turn out to be a positive after all.

[brady1993]

3 minutes ago, enachops said:

I never said it would be difficult, just that Cooper hasn’t necessarily had to make his mark and change the style at Swansea. As you say, Swansea was a nice fit for him, could he impose his style on some that haven’t been playing that way for 12 months? Every coach has their own identity, it’s about can they get it across to the players? Not saying Cooper can’t, just that he hasn’t had to have that sea of change at Swansea that he would at Derby. 

Apologies, I may have overstated your position in my previous post.

Yes it would be a bigger transition but I think it's more tweaks and selection rather than a complete overhaul. More akin to the tactical shifts we went through from Clough to McClaren or Clement to Wassell. 

I think we'd only need a major overhaul if we opted for a more "defend first and then lump it" manager.

[DCFC1388]