15 Feb 2026 11:37:29
The managers job will continue to draw media attention until we appoint a new manager. Every time a manager is sacked or signs a new deal they will report it as a potential candidate or scratching another name off the list.
I actually think that under this new regime the managers position is less important than it has been. That doesn't mean it's unimportant, just that it's less vital to our progress than over the past decade.
The problem we have had since SAF is that we have constantly been looking for the next SAF. A manager to fix everything and get us moving in the right direction. This sort of manager is even rarer in the current football landscape than it has ever been before. In fact they probably don't exist at all.
We looked to hire the biggest name manager we could, regardless of their fit to the club and the squad. Every time we did so we forced the rebuild of the team in a totally new direction, effectively restarting it from the ground up.
If we do this properly then the recruitment and the overall style of play shouldn't change with each new manager. The game to game tactics will alter with a new manager, but the way the team intends to play shouldn't.
As such who that manager is becomes less important, we aren't looking for a big name, or even a great CV. We are looking for someone who shares the same core values as the club (youth development, risk-taking front foot football) and whose tactical preferences best suit the current squad and more importantly the squad we are aiming to build.
15 Feb 2026 12:08:37
Probably why they changed the title to head coach.
15 Feb 2026 12:24:49
This ?
I think fit is essential, I know some don't agree but for me is it very important. That's why some of the names being suggested worry me, and why someone like Mourinho, amd dare I say Amorim were never right for us. And as we have seen so often, being successful with one club doesn't guarantee success with another.
I'm not wedded to some romantic idea, but we play on the front foot, we promote youth where we can, these things are part of our identity.
Some will say they'd don' care how we pmay as long as we win, bit if winning means defensive turgid football, endless 1-0 wins, then you can keep it.
Simeone doesn't look a good fir for me but would likely be hugely entertaining.
Glasner and Iraola also worry me, the United job is huge and a massive step up in terms of what is expected.
I like Tuchel, albeit he didn't tick all the boxes, I like the way he talks but that ship has sailed.
Ancelotti was not for me, a great Manager clearly but I worry he peaked a while ago.
Enrique would be awesome, but reports suggest he is staying at PSG
Nagelsmann is another interesting one but he was sacked by Bayern, who fails at Bayen?
Carrick gets the club and would not be phased, but he's a novice and has no track record of success.
I also like Poch but he hasn't set the world on fire lately either.
Its a doozy.
15 Feb 2026 13:11:38
Let's see where we are at the end of the season, I'm not pro or anti Carrick, at the moment he has done well, actually very well but will he improve on his in-game management, such as against West Ham, will he come up with a way to play against teams who are going to pack the defence and look for breaks when we make mistakes? I suppose we will see, he will certainly get plenty of chances to do so.
One thing I am against is not waiting until the end of the season, it would be crazy not to, as we all know what happened when we gave the gig to Ole.
There are quite a few managers I would not like to see, obvs Southgate is one, I'd love to see him at Liverpool, although I'd probably die laughing. Others include Poch, I feel that ship has sailed and Simeone.
15 Feb 2026 13:30:55
I think we need to show the ambition that city have showed the last 10 years and buy quality no manger will succeed without it city bought guehi and semenyo in January but it's been going longer than that.
Stones walker nunes ait nouri just some of the other names.
We done it under sir Alex with Ferdinand Keane berbatov Carrick we are slowly getting back there with cunha and mbeumo no manger will succeed if we don't back them.
15 Feb 2026 14:28:14
Key, to be honest that is what it should be in the modern game. Managers have an average shelf life of 22 months in the EPL. Very few last longer, only the successful ones.
If a manager is highly likely to be gone in less than two years then you can't be building around that manager, you need to build your club around an identity then hire a manager who fits that.
AJH, I can go through the list of potential managers with my preferences but it's probably not worth a lot. I'm basing it off of personal opinions of what limited information I know about them, often with a dollop of bias thrown in. I can't honestly say whether they did a good or bad job at previous clubs as I don't know the context of that job. Also we tend to make these judgements in a vacuum, forgetting that failure is the best way to learn. Only an idiot fails the same way twice, I'd like to think that most managers have a level of intelligence that allows them to learn from their mistakes.
For me I have a few basic criteria that I'd like to see from our manager:
1. Playing aggressive, front foot football that will play with a level of risk, rather than pragmatic percentage football. Team shape, or the exact tactics we deploy to do so I'm less concerned about. But what I want to see is us trying to win every game, and being willing to risk losing the game to try and win it rather than settle for a draw.
2. Give youth a chance, and this sort of ties in with the first one. If you aren't willing to take risks then you will be more reluctant to give young players a chance as they are more likely to make a mistake.
3. Be media savvy, this one is necessary due to the media attention that our club garners. We need someone whose good at saying the right things, in the right way, at the right time. They should be calming things down when we are struggling and taking the heat off of us. While ideally they will know what to say and when to put our opponents under pressure.
That's it, a good CV or a proven track record elsewhere are nice bonuses, but are not essential for me.
Jrred, I agree to an extent, there is no need to make snap decisions right now. Ideally we will wait until the end of the season. But you never know, what will happen down the road. What if Alonso turns out the be the right guy and he wants to start before the end of the season to start to get to grips with the squad? Or if it becomes obvious that Carrick is the right guy?
Getting it sorted sooner can have huge benefits for the summer planning and next season.
John, we need to improve the squad with quality over quantity, but we still need 10-12 new players to have a quality squad that is deep enough to challenge on all fronts, but I'd rather wait an extra year to get there with quality players, than to gamble of riskier options sooner to try and speed up the process.
15 Feb 2026 19:01:52
McKenna.?
15 Feb 2026 19:58:36
He's done wonders with Ipswich Jimbob. Two promotions and whilst they got relegated, he has them right up there again despite selling their best players. However, its a massive step up.