After 2 days in the wilderness... I'm still trying to rationalise this appointment. I'm contemplating a sweat lodge and a lot of mind altering substances to try and get my head around it.
God knows what the selection criteria on the due diligence were if Irvine is the best available. I think you'd have to put him down as an experienced coach - he's been doing it for 20 years - but with no real success in a senior position in 1st team football.
I think that the relationship between the Chairman and the Manager (or head coach) is really important in modern football. I think this is the prime motivation for the appointment. Peace has put this relationship above all other selection criteria, and Peace thinks he can work with this guy.
I am saying this because I just don't see what Irvine excels at, and his lack of relevant experience means he's not a jack of all trades either. What we need right now is someone who can attract players (at least 8 recruits required) bind them together (with the remnants of the squad) into a coherent unit and motivate them to perform. I don't see any evidence that Irvine can do this.
In addition Peace must think that Irvine offers the best value for money - which basically means that Peace doesn't think that a coach makes much difference to the number of points we'll achieve.
There was a report recently about Man City being the best paid sports team in the world. West Brom were 127th on that list and were the 28th highest paid football team. That was for the 2012-13 season. (Forgetting for a moment that we only have 13 senior pros - including Daniels, Berahino and Thorne - in our current squad.) We are likely to have gone higher up that list with the influx of new TV money, and an increase in player remuneration. So, you'd have expected us to attract a manager/head coach in the top 30 in world... Ok, some are with international teams, some are committed to other projects... Top 50?... 75?... 100? I don't think (before Saturday) any of us would have put Irvine in the top 100 managers/head coaches in British football.
http://www.sportingintelligence.com/2013/06/11/revealed-man-city-rise-to-top-of-global-pay-charts-dodgers-soar-to-challenge-110601/