by Bashmachkin Wed Jan 09, 2008 6:59 pm
Shearer is besides the point in my opinion. Its rare for a player to symbolise a club as much as Shearer did when at Newcastle, and he will always be linked with the club, and perhaps a lot of people want and expect him to manage us one day, but I dont think there is genuine clamour for him to manage us any time soon. My impression is that a lot of fans think it would be too soon for him to become a manager. And what the fans want most of all is someone who will bring a bit of life and respectability to the club, who will make proper decisions and who we can progress under happily.
Im not exaggerating when I say that Allardyce was, for me, the most inept manager Ive seen in sixteen years of supporting the club. Its fair enough to argue we need stability and to give people time, but Allardyce contributed nothing in his time at Newcastle - we didnt progress in any respect but rather went backwards, with the signs being that worse was to come, and whats more Allardyce seemed devoid of any real ideas which would actually change things in any real sense. There were countless ridiculous team selections, players playing out of position, players being picked because they were the managers favourites; a clear lack of relationship between players and manager (a lack of relationship between some of the new players, like Rozehnal, and Allardyce, as well as a lack of relationship between Given and Allardyce, Owen and Allardyce); the players seemed to not understand or respect his methods; Allardyce seemed unable to motivate; his comments and interviews became increasingly nonsensical and full of lies; he made a number of huge mistakes in the transfer market in the summer (and I fear the mistakes he might have made during this transfer windown had he stayed); his whole reign was marked by an outstanding degree of negativity. The grinning after the Stoke result cant have helped his cause.
In such a situation as this, fans are going to want to see some change, and because of his relationship with the club, because hes seen as an available candidate as well as a more or less desirable one, but also because it makes a good story for the press, Shearers name has been banded about a lot. As I say, with a proper manager in charge and with any real signs of progress, I think Shearers name would be off the radar. And I dont think he is the type to try to exert an influence, or to add pressure from a position outside the club.
Anyway, despite the speculation, this feels very sudden and surprising. Needless to say Im glad that hes gone, pretty much delighted with the news, and I am hopeful that we will bring in the right man this time. As Ive said recently, my big preference would be to look abroad, for the fresh perspective a foreign manager would bring as well as because there are very few, if any quality English managers around and available. The immediate future looks a little brighter because I did fear that this transfer window might see little positive action - as it is, who knows if a new manager will arrive in time to do anything in the transfer market, but under Allardyce it seemed as though we could well sell Emre and be left with a central midfield without any creative option. Its interesting to consider what set off Allardyces departure - whether it was the Stoke game, for instance; whether it was mutual consent with Allardyce himself having doubts or issues - because I didnt envisage us letting him go at the present moment.
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