Lampard is gone and Everton search for yet another new manager
The inevitable has happened and Frank Lampard has been sacked by Everton so ending his twelve months in charge at Goodison Park. What a fiasco this club is.
Everton finally did the deed this afternoon as Lampard was relieved of his duties following a terrible run of defeats that ended with last weekend’s 2-0 defeat at West Ham.
It’s like a horror film and a groundhog day of constant chaos, confusion and contradiction watching this club operate.
I wrote yesterday that I felt it was impossible for him to carry on in the job after such a dreadful sequence of results. The club have now finally agreed and once again they are searching for a new manager.
This is not a decision that will be greeted with the same kind of relief as was the case a year ago when the Blues’ finally called time on the abortive Rafa Benitez experiment.
Benitez never connected with the supporters – understandably given his past history across the city at Anfield – and it was going to take a miracle and for literally everything to go perfectly, for him to survive long in the job.
Of course that’s not what happened and following an eerily similar run of defeats and poor performances to Lampard’s, he was finally sacked in early January last year.
The club took their time in finding a replacement until finally confirming the ex-Chelsea player and manager in post just before the end of the month.
Most Evertonians were so happy to see the back of Benitez that they were more than ready to give Lampard the benefit of the doubt.
The Londoner did strike up a good rapport with Toffees’ fans over the last twelve months and so I think that there will be some genuine disappointment at this afternoon’s decision.
It has not worked out, but then again it hasn’t for any of the myriad managers who have come and gone at Goodison Park over the last five or six years.
So of course the question is once more, who will take on this truly poisoned chalice of a job?
To be honest, I would be surprised that anyone would want to become the Everton manager given the enormous problems facing this football club.
These are an inept and hugely unpopular owner and board of directors, major financial constraints making it very difficult to sign new players and a squad that has once again failed to perform with any consistency.
Because it’s those players who are also responsible for Lampard losing his job. While the manager has made mistakes, especially recently, the players have once again let down their boss.
This is a theme that has been running for years now as one manager after another have come to Merseyside and then eventually left again.
Their times in post have often started well and gone well for a while, before a rapid decline in performances and results ultimately undermines them.
For me this is the biggest problem facing any new manager. How can he get more out of these players, if indeed that’s actually possible?
Because the man who takes over from Lampard will have very little time and money with which to bring in new faces before the transfer window shuts.
As for who I would go for, as previously stated I think that Sean Dyche is probably the obvious bet, although perhaps not a long-term choice.
He has lots of Premier League experience, is very used to securing points against the odds with a seriously limited squad, and critically, is good at avoiding relegation.
Some reports today though claim Everton aren’t considering him, which does sound strange because even if he’s not ultimately given the job, his background at Burnley means he must surely be a candidate.
There is a case for trying to bring in a young coach who can really mold a side, something like the sort of approach that Brentford and Brighton have adopted.
One slightly surprising name being mooted as a candidate is Marcelo Bielsa. The former Leeds United boss is apparently admired by Moshiri and might well be courted by the owner.
Bielsa was a big fan favourite at Elland Road and he did get them up from the Champinship and kept them in the Premier League before a poor run of results saw him sacked.
I’m not sure he would fancy this job though and I doubt he could deploy his kamikaze style of attacking football with the meagure offensive resources he would have at his disposal.
But surely, after such a wretched track record and with so many managers having been hired and fired by this owner and his compliant board, the decision must be left to Director of Football Kevin Thelwell. That has to be a fundamental part of his role.
One thing that is crystal clear is that this decision must be made swifly with so little time left in the transfer window.
You have to hope there is a clear shortlist of a few names already drawn up and they get this sorted soon. I’m probably being stupidly optimistic in saying this.
Well, whoever takes on this almost impossible job, I will wish them all the luck in the world. They are certainly going to need it as the task they are taking on is enormous. Can any manager rescue Everton from relegation now?