[Gilsey 56]

I will be surprised if its a manager who is currently working, because of compensation, and thats probably why we've spoken to labbadia, Hughton and even Jokanovic. surprise name in the frame Pearson?

[Standaman]

Percy always seems well informed but Hughton was reportedly ruled out because he wanted to take a break from the game. However I have long maintained that Hughton was the most likely candidate and at a stroke of Percy's  pen it seems all other pretenders have been set aside, bar one. The man with no name maybe we are getting Clint Eastwood would certainly make traning a bit interesting. "Well do you feel lucky punk?"

[overseas baggie]

Percy always seems well informed but Hughton was reportedly ruled out because he wanted to take a break from the game. However I have long maintained that Hughton was the most likely candidate and at a stroke of Percy's  pen it seems all other pretenders have been set aside, bar one. The man with no name maybe we are getting Clint Eastwood would certainly make traning a bit interesting. "Well do you feel lucky punk?"

Hughton was rumoured to be holding for a PL job, and maybe something was a possibility at that time, but if that route is now closed we are quite probably the most appealing option out there for him.

Daniel Steindel or Nigel Adkins could well be the unnamed candidate, equally Pearson or Shakespeare.   All are plausible.

[skyclad99]

John Percy says it is unlikely that Labbadia will be taking over at The Hawthorns. He has also ruled out Wilder, Monk, Cowley and Jokanovic. He says we will be meeting Hughton this week but says there is another candidate in the frame, not named.

That will be Appleton then.....

[zippyandbungle]

Sam Allardyce, Claude Puel, Mark Hughes, David Moyes, Slaven Bilic, Luis Garcia, Chris Hughton, Gary Rowett, Gus Poyet, Aitor Karanka, Brian McDermott... And about 200 other managers unemployed (some for a reason, I admit) but I find it hard to believe that we're struggling to get a coach in. Obviously money is the biggest issue here. But still being managerless in June, when theyve had months to sort it is a joke.

Yow forgot the special one 😉

[caravanc58]

The media probably know more about who we'll appoint than the board.

[divinewind]

At this moment in time Pearson seems a very good choice, in the past i wouldn't have touched him with a barge pole, but he is generally interested in the job.
We could do much worse.

[tuamigos]

At this moment in time Pearson seems a very good choice, in the past i wouldn't have touched him with a barge pole, but he is generally interested in the job.
We could do much worse.

I've hoped from day one that the board would appoint Pearson.
No nonsense straight talking, he's the boss and the players are the players.
Maybe too straight talking for this board and the Chinese ownership.
Be prepared to be underwhelmed.
If it is Hughton it can't do his ego a lot of good not being the first choice and being the cheapest option.

[hardtobeat]

So well after Dowlingfs initial time scale for an appointment we are still to talk to some of the people said to be front runners for the job !!?? This board have had since DM"s sacking to have prep done shortlists ready , only need to add those who become available later on. Due diligence ? NO ,incompetence ? YES. Grave doubts as to whether this board could run a bath let alone a professional football club !!

[tuamigos]

If it is to be Hughton how long before Glen Murray signs?

[overseas baggie]

Well they can’t talk to those currently in a job without their current club’s permission.  Of the others, Hughton was only sacked in early May so wasn’t available when DM was sacked.  Jokanovic was only affordable if we had gone up.

It’s not as easy as you make out.

[seteefeet]

If we were holding out for someone who fits our specific blueprint of how we take the team forward, I would be happy to wait. Sadly, I don't think anyone can argue a case for that, based on the candidates, they are just too different in terms of style, experience, attitude etc. All lends itself to the theory that we are indeed being run by the incompetent accountant. Nothing Dowling has said suggests he's anything more than a junior manager.
Been a shambles since Moore was sacked. No plan then, no plan now.

[overseas baggie]

I’m intrigued by what you think Dowling could say.  There’s no manager yet, and we haven’t sold any players yet, so is he supposed to (a) go out and sign players that the new manager may neither need nor want, and (b) spend money without knowing how much we can afford to spend if no players are sold?

[darbolina]

I'm starting to think that because it seems the board have little idea how to run us well, maybe a more experienced, conservative coach is the best way (e.g. Hughton). Maybe not ideal for everyone for entertainment reasons but we could argue a more experienced head coach would have got us closer to promotion this year in spite of Jenkins and Dowling. I still think out of the candidates Hughton is the strongest based on two promotions and having to sustain/ rebuild older teams. Wilder's link was (I think) maybe a cynical attempt to show we're 'pulling out the stops'. Jokanovic would've (maybe should've) been appointed in March. I dont' think the other name is Appleton. I wouldn't rule out Neil who they were apparently very keen on (I know).

[lewisant]

I'm starting to think that because it seems the board have little idea how to run us well, maybe a more experienced, conservative coach is the best way (e.g. Hughton). Maybe not ideal for everyone for entertainment reasons but we could argue a more experienced head coach would have got us closer to promotion this year in spite of Jenkins and Dowling. I still think out of the candidates Hughton is the strongest based on two promotions and having to sustain/ rebuild older teams. Wilder's link was (I think) maybe a cynical attempt to show we're 'pulling out the stops'. Jokanovic would've (maybe should've) been appointed in March. I dont' think the other name is Appleton. I wouldn't rule out Neil who they were apparently very keen on (I know).

That Kind of common sense talk is not welcome around these parts!

You make very good points and i tend to be swaying towards Hughton based on what you are saying here.

[Throstletown]

If and only an if we did appoint CH as our next manager what will talk pooh think of that especially Durham.
We need a strong manager with a back bone who can guide all aspects of our club with confidence to make sure within our limits the right staff are recruited for the upcoming season with all it's twists and turns.
I don't mind them taking there time I just want them to get the best we can afford and then support them 100%

[SmethDan]

If and only an if we did appoint CH as our next manager what will talk S***e think of that especially Durham.
We need a strong manager with a back bone who can guide all aspects of our club with confidence to make sure within our limits the right staff are recruited for the upcoming season with all it's twists and turns.
I don't mind them taking there time I just want them to get the best we can afford and then support them 100%

'Boring, safe appointment by a club wanting to be seen as politically correct following a needless sacking. Where's the imagination? The originality? The ambition? Just another dinosaur blocking the pathway for young progressive coaches.......' ad nauseam. W@nker.

[Albion79]

One name usually mentioned who doesnt seem to of been this time is Derek McInnes.

He is usually linked with the job and it does seem from previous info he has been close and does want to manage us at some stage.

I think because he was a fans favourite (may be seen as somebody who can connect to the fans), he does have experience (ie - not Darren Moore, something which was held against him) and he has experienced good and bad spells in management (and seems to of learnt), he may be the type the board are looking for.

I dont think they will go with a foreign coach (Labbadia) and i dont think they will go with a relative novice (Cowley) and as proven as Hughton is i think his wage demands may be more than we want as he is a recent successful premier league manager (kept Brighton up and got to a FA Cup semi final) plus although a good steady appointment i dont he would be an exciting appointment to get fans onside again (we lost a lot of faith with the Darren Moore sacking and the lack of plan after)

I think McInnes (or that type) would be cheaper, hungrier and possibly initially have that instant bond to get fans back on side, he is still fairly young and he only has one blot on his CV which was his Bristol City spell (i know there was talk he got stitched up)

It would seem with Rangers re-emergence and Celtics domination that he has taken Aberdeen as far as he can and as stated above there always seems to be that talk of him coming here and his previous comments (not this time around) seem to recall suggesting he would want to manage here.

I am not saying i would want him and i dont know if he would be right for the job, personally i dont care if the coach is foreign or novice, just whoever is the best but i would be surprised if our board havent considered him.

I am not ITK or anything but i do know from talking to a senior member of the club end of last week they are fully aware of how p****d off the fan base is due to the manager situation the last few months and they know they have to get this appointment right. He couldnt give too much away but he did say the board believed the fans would be pleased with the appointment which made me think they have a clear target in mind, though that could just be the way i interpreted it.

[albion59]

I would drive to Aberdeen to bring Mcinnes back to the Albion. A born leader and winner and wouldn't take no c!@p off anyone.

[timdon]

Well they can’t talk to those currently in a job without their current club’s permission.  Of the others, Hughton was only sacked in early May so wasn’t available when DM was sacked.  Jokanovic was only affordable if we had gone up.

It’s not as easy as you make out.

You are just making (poor) excuses. Have a think about how Brighton went about replacing their manager, and then see if your comments still apply. It's not so difficult if you have a plan and some competence.

[timdon]

'Boring, safe appointment by a club wanting to be seen as politically correct following a needless sacking. Where's the imagination? The originality? The ambition? Just another dinosaur blocking the pathway for young progressive coaches.......' ad nauseam. W@nker.

To be fair, if they said this, they would be quite right.

[SmethDan]

To be fair, if they said this, they would be quite right.

Maybe, maybe not. But whatever the pros and cons of appointing Chris Hughton I'm quietly confident which side of the equation his focus would centre on. And I very much doubt it would be on his track record at this level. Agenda driven toss off......

[darbolina]

That Kind of common sense talk is not welcome around these parts!

You make very good points and i tend to be swaying towards Hughton based on what you are saying here.

Thanks mate - I'm more ground down to accept a more pragmatic approach I guess! A couple of weeks ago I hoped for a revolution in our approach but now realise we probably don't the leadership to see this through properly so a more careful approach would probably be better............

[seteefeet]

I’m intrigued by what you think Dowling could say.  There’s no manager yet, and we haven’t sold any players yet, so is he supposed to (a) go out and sign players that the new manager may neither need nor want, and (b) spend money without knowing how much we can afford to spend if no players are sold?

As I said, I would like him to give us his vision of how he wants us to progress and what sort of manager we are looking at. If he did that, as I said, I wouldn't mind the wait. As it is though, our approach is so scattergun, my view is that it is guided only by money, therefore Dowling holds little sway and the club has no real blueprint of how we move forward in terms of actual football.

[mulliganstired]

I would drive to Aberdeen to bring Mcinnes back to the Albion. A born leader and winner and wouldn't take no c!@p off anyone.

I would pay your petrol and ride shotgun.  Bit dodgy up them there Scottish lands.