Manager/Coach Next Manager

[Oldman159]

Former Oxford United coach 'top contender' for job alongside Michael Appleton

Former Oxford United coach Des Buckingham is a "top contender" for the Oxford United managerial job, according to reports.

www.oxfordmail.co.uk

 

[Horse]

I do worry the board will take a very long time to get it done. The saga last time went on for months. It could be too late for this season before they appoint.

 

[Wandering Yellow]

Agree, but we need to appoint somebody who will keep us up.

That feels like a tough gig for anyone right. Inheriting a demoralised squad, injuries everywhere, no solid coaching staff who have a clue now Mous has left.
Even with a new manager I struggle to see where our next point is coming from, thanks to the absolute state Karl left us in.
We are lucky not to be in the relegation places after we fluked a win at Fleetwood and the fog vs Ipswich.

KR is one of the worst managers in our history due to the way he has left our football club in tatters.

 

[East Stand Fan]

Question to those wanting Appleton (of which I'm one):

If he did enough to keep us up this season, and if next season is his team building year (i.e. a lower mid-table struggle), do we keep the faith that he will deliver in 2024/2025 season?

I'm not saying that this will happen. I am asking 'if' this were the case, do we all recognize and give our continued support knowing the right man is in charge?

It's a yes from me

After what KR has done to us last summer, I think it will take 3 years even under Jesus Christ to turn this club around. Staying up this season, next season will be offloading players and steadily recruiting and then even the season after may still be part of a transition. It really depends how easily we can get the deadwood off our books who are sitting on reasonable contracts without breaking the bank and then sourcing decent players. We barely have any foundation to build from - I'd happily see all 3 keepers leave, the midfield gutted entirely minus Cam and only retaining the likes of GOD and Goodrham. Appleton's first stint was a gradual revolving door of replacements and improvements but any manager coming to us now will have to club together an entirely new team and then work around that.

It's not going to be easy or cheap and this league is hard enough as it is but as a fan, I wouldn't expect anything for a good 2-3 years before we remotely have a competent and stable team once again. Ridding players will be just as hard and as expensive as bringing ones in.

 

[Marston Road yellow]

If you’d be ‘gutted’ if it’s Appleton how would you feel if it’s Robbie Fowler, Steve Evans or Graham Westley?!

Exactly the same. It’s not like he, in the short term is any better than those. On a short term till the end of the season I would actually prefer westley or that jockanise lump because I think they’d keep us up.

If we get Appleton we will be in a massive fight till the last day, and if we’re not it’ll be because we’re already down.

I’d far rather wilder or a battling manager than someone that only succeeds when they can build their own squad.

If he signs for the new season he’ll be good but we will need someone with more grit and an undeniable determination to keep us up.

For now I’d prefer a boring Atkins type manager that will keep us up with horrible 1-0s and keeps us in league 1 come August.

 

[Northernyellow]

Er go and listen to his Arsenal pod cast and what he said about us and worse himself. He called himself the greatest mind in football. He thinks being a lower league manager is easy, basically slating all lower league managers. The man is a delusional dickhead and the last person we need right now.

I read an interview with him in one of the Sunday supplements recently. Arrogant and deluded. I've also heard that he went for a lower league job (could have been us?) and whereas all the other candidates were fully prepped, he didn't even know the names of the players. He was a great player, but great players very rarely make good managers,

 

[Peterdev]

I couldn’t disagree more.
A few of the players are not good enough and others are low on confidence and playing in the wrong positions.
The priority is a keeper. Eastwood and McGinty have not been up to scratch and in the short term we need Stevens back. Bring back Taylor as I’m sure he will fare better under another manager.
Brannagan will be better under Appleton.
If we get any kind of bounce on Saturday we have the momentum to go forward.
I personally would love Appleton back especially with Buckingham as his assistant, on the understanding that Buckingham gets the chance if Appleton leaves later.
This to me would be an exciting pairing that will get the yellows going again. I think the supporters would welcome them to the club.
I don’t think it would be long to unravel the mess left behind by Robinson

 

[tatabanya]

I couldn’t disagree more.
A few of the players are not good enough and others are low on confidence and playing in the wrong positions.
The priority is a keeper. Eastwood and McGinty have not been up to scratch and in the short term we need Stevens back. Bring back Taylor as I’m sure he will fare better under another manager.
Brannagan will be better under Appleton.
If we get any kind of bounce on Saturday we have the momentum to go forward.
I personally would love Appleton back especially with Buckingham as his assistant, on the understanding that Buckingham gets the chance if Appleton leaves later.
This to me would be an exciting pairing that will get the yellows going again. I think the supporters would welcome them to the club.
I don’t think it would be long to unravel the mess left behind by Robinson

"we need Stevens back" - the guy who was terrible for us last season and has now been dropped by Port Vale?

 

[joshua]

Even if we went down it wouldn’t be his fault, and we’d come straight back up.

What like we did in the Conference

 

[theWizard]

I couldn’t disagree more.
A few of the players are not good enough and others are low on confidence and playing in the wrong positions.
The priority is a keeper. Eastwood and McGinty have not been up to scratch and in the short term we need Stevens back. Bring back Taylor as I’m sure he will fare better under another manager.
Brannagan will be better under Appleton.
If we get any kind of bounce on Saturday we have the momentum to go forward.
I personally would love Appleton back especially with Buckingham as his assistant, on the understanding that Buckingham gets the chance if Appleton leaves later.
This to me would be an exciting pairing that will get the yellows going again. I think the supporters would welcome them to the club.
I don’t think it would be long to unravel the mess left behind

Are you 100% sure on Eastwood's position being a priority?

The only reason Oxford haven't been on the wrong end more 3-0 this season is thanks to Eastwood's saves.

If I had to pick my player of the season right now it would probably be from Bate, Brown, Eastwood and Goodrham

Don't get me wrong, every position needs to be changed in the mid-term just not sure about making Eastwood's position the priority ?

 

[OxfordYankee]

I do worry the board will take a very long time to get it done. The saga last time went on for months. It could be too late for this season before they appoint.

I think last time the timescales were skewed by the impending sale and takeover.

 

[Essexyellows]

We need someone who can make a Michelin star meal out of the larder leftovers from the KR shopping list.

It`s time..................

 

[East Stand Fan]

I couldn’t disagree more.
A few of the players are not good enough and others are low on confidence and playing in the wrong positions.
The priority is a keeper. Eastwood and McGinty have not been up to scratch and in the short term we need Stevens back. Bring back Taylor as I’m sure he will fare better under another manager.
Brannagan will be better under Appleton.
If we get any kind of bounce on Saturday we have the momentum to go forward.
I personally would love Appleton back especially with Buckingham as his assistant, on the understanding that Buckingham gets the chance if Appleton leaves later.
This to me would be an exciting pairing that will get the yellows going again. I think the supporters would welcome them to the club.
I don’t think it would be long to unravel the mess left behind by Robinson

Taylor is out of contract and I can't see us renewing. I think he's done at this level too. Appleton and Buckingham are both first team coaches and I can't see the latter working in any assistant capacity (especially to Appleton) as it would be a huge step backwards. It's one or the other or neither.

 

[Foley]

Don’t agree…we are massively underperforming. Our squad is not good enough for promotion, but we shouldn’t be where we are. Even a string of solid performances would see us safe.

We need probably 12 points from 12 games ( and we have more than a point a game in the season to date)
You would hope that a new manager would get the new manager bounce.
So the first priority for any long term manager coming in would be to keep us up.
If we went down ( and a manager comes in in the next couple of weeks) it will be a pretty awful start for them

 

[Made-in-Jericho]

God, you'd think we could manage 3 wins out of 12 games with the new manager 'bounce'! Where there's a chance there's hope...

 

[Foley]

That feels like a tough gig for anyone right. Inheriting a demoralised squad, injuries everywhere, no solid coaching staff who have a clue now Mous has left.
Even with a new manager I struggle to see where our next point is coming from, thanks to the absolute state Karl left us in.
We are lucky not to be in the relegation places after we fluked a win at Fleetwood and the fog vs Ipswich.

KR is one of the worst managers in our history due to the way he has left our football club in tatters.

We are not lucky to not be in the relegation places.
We have had good luck and some bad luck. After 34 games you are where you deserve to be
I am absolutely convinced that Wider would comfortably keep us up. Look at what he did with Pattersons far far worse squad. I appreciate that the fan base is divided over him, so not a good move ( he would be the way to get to a Top 30 club quickest in my view).
We have decent players ( we are comparing with Morecambe, Accrington, FGR, Cambridge)
If we appoint a manager to get us promoted in a couple of years , I can't see why they can't get a point a game to keep us up.

 

[Orkney Islands Yellow]

Wilder is a top quality manager and older, calmer and wiser since he kept us. With the budget we apparently have these days there's less chance of him leaving how he did previously which was a falling out with Leneghan over a new contract I believe.

 

[Upthecowboys]

I'd really like to see an interim boss appointed. I know a recruitment process could be carried out in a fortnight, but if we could just get to the end of the season with an interim then we might be able to see a fuller recruitment process completed.

However the problem with an interim appointment is the candidate pool is reduced.

If there is anyway MAPP would take it on an initial interim basis then that would be ideal. It may be that he is a good long-term option, but I think he could steady the ship in the short term and get buy in from the fans from day 1. An interim appointment works 2 ways, he could also check out the board and make sure it is the right option for him.

I'm not sure comparing how he started with us last time is that relevant this time around. It's a different scenario, and he is more experienced. More long-term someone like MAPP with an up and coming coach like Buckingham as a number 2 feels like a dream ticket. If MAPP does well again and moves on then someone like Buckingham can step up. I appreciate that someone like Buckingham may feel he is ready for a Div 1 role so that may be an issue. I think we need not only to replace Robinson, but we need a new number 2 with built in succession planning.

Maybe its the inner child in me but the chance for MAPP to become a long lasting hero of OUFC does appeal to me; he is up there already but could you imagine the love in if he got us to the Championship!!

 

[yellowbow]

I’m worried about the Murty rumours and that his odds are creeping down by the day… sacked after a very brief go at Rangers after being handed his a**e on a plate twice by Celtic - 4:0 & 5:0. No other real experience apart from youth academy work. A quick search on YouTube and he seems a bigger clown than our last incumbent . (Just google headstand…)

What worries me is, considering TW’s performance as CEO so far, can we trust him to get this right or are we in for another train wreck?

 

[IsleofWightYellow]

Are you 100% sure on Eastwood's position being a priority?

The only reason Oxford haven't been on the wrong end more 3-0 this season is thanks to Eastwood's saves.

If I had to pick my player of the season right now it would probably be from Bate, Brown, Eastwood and Goodrham

Don't get me wrong, every position needs to be changed in the mid-term just not sure about making Eastwood's position the priority ?

Eastwood would be nowhere near the running for POTS for me. He’s made multiple errors, letting in some pretty soft goals and barely saving a long range effort. There was a period where if the opposition shot from outside the area and it was low and anywhere near either corner, it was a goal.