by BlueinBosnia » Wed May 15, 2013 2:58 pm
I'm going to use the Royle starting point, too, although I think Horton was manager when I started supporting. I'm factoring in 3 things: long-term stability, transfers and on-field performance in the scores I'm giving them.
Royle - Still my favourite overall manager from a business:performance point of view. Knew exactly what we needed, and how to get it. I really think that he could have kept us up, had he not been given such a generous kitty. Was surprised when he was fired, but he'd started to establish a squad I feel he may have been the wrong man to manage. At the time 8/10, with hindsight 8.5/10
Keegan - Brought about some of our most enjoyable performances, but at the same time odd signings led to financial problems. I have a feeling he knows the game on an international scale far less than his reputation would suggest, and when the funds run low, this shows. At the time 8.5/10, with hindsight 6.5/10
Pearce - Was happy when we got him, and was young and optimistic enough to continue watching boring football. Pearce was a man who would take short-term tactical chances, but was too defence-minded to give us long-term development or survival. At the time 7/10, with hindsight 4/10
Ericsson - Surprised (but neither angry nor elated) when we got him. Insightful signings, but a few simply didn't go his way (Bojinov with injuries, and Elano with fluctuating form), and a few didn't get the chance they deserved (Caicedo). I think he was on thin ice before being found out as being out-of-touch with the game and being moved into an ambassadorial/director role, and as things transpired, I was proven to be right. A few unforeseen slip-ups and odd results made me feel he maybe wasn't the man for the long-term, but I thought he should have had more time. With hindsight, had Frank's cash continued to flow for a couple more months, I think we would have been in a very, very different situation now. At the time 6/10, with hindsight 5/10
Hughes - Very happy with his appointment, considering our dawning financial difficulties. Seemed like a manager to get the best out of a squad, was good with a small budget, and seemed popular with players. My main criticism over his time with us was crony-ism, and the fact that he became obsessed with certain players; something that cost us many, many millions in under-par players and inflated transfer fees once the money rolled in. I enjoyed the football, still felt we were punching above our weight, and believe that he would have delivered in the long-term, were he to make concessions with regard to the club's policies and selection of backroom staff (which I doubt he would have done). At the time 8.5/10, with hindsight 7.5/10
Mancini - I was disappointed by his appointment, and pretty much everything about him and his way of playing (early April aside) in his first season: Adam Johnson was obviously not his signing, the performances were dire, and I believe his nonchalance towards the League Cup was the reason we ended the season trophyless - all of this for a fifth place finish, which I was certain that Hughes would have at least equalled, with the bonuses of silverware and more exciting football. I saw this half-season in the way that older Blues saw Pearce's tenure. I didn't warm to him in the slightest until the 4-1 win over Fulham the next season. Off-field, I saw him as petulant and living in a fantasy world, where transfers would go exactly the way he wanted them, simply because we had the resources to do so. He knew one decent tactic: play the 11 most valuable players, which often saw him caught out by teams with grit, determination, and a manager whose sole knowledge of us didn't come from a sticker album and the highlights on Match of the Day. Don't get me wrong, I am glad for the two trophies he won us, but the heartless challenges we put forward this season, and the 'Mancini Knows Best (TM)' attitude he had toward European competition detract from these even further in my perception of him as a manager significantly. At the time 4/10, hindsight TBD
Pellegrini - Looking forward to his appointment, and hope he can cooperate with our non-footballing staff, who seem to be grasping ever more power away from the manager. From the little I know of him, he can inspire a side, and has a good footballing brain; both things that Mancini lacked in my opinion, and hopefully these will lead to more flexibility when facing mid-low table teams who see us as a realistic scalp to get. Anticipation 7.5/10
I gave my feelings about managers, rather than how right I was with predictions, as I don't claim to be any form of oracle or font of footballing knowledge.
"Ferguson. Žvaka kurac."
(Ferguson. Chewing-gum cock.)
Old man in a bar in rural Bosnia.
