From Hero to Zero, The Manager Cauldron

With the evolution of the English Premier league, expectations are at an all time high. Wealthy investors expect nothing but the best from their team and quite often fabricate erratic and instantneous decisions. The euphoria and prospects of garnering silverware can often cloud judgment and project a directors desires into a far from plausible stratosphere. The monumental stakes have also never been higher with next years’ mouth-watering £5.4bn TV deal up for grabs. An estimated £99million will be won by the last place team and £150million for the winners. However, it isn’t just the players who come and go, more often than not, it’s managers too. Managers often get blamed for the teams’ failings but the players take the honours of winning. The managers take the major brunt of their teams results and it seems they can never win. An owners’ fixation in elevating their reputation in this elite Billionaire Club means they have no qualms in paying for the extermination of a contract. To them it’s merely status and the team is just their toy to dissipate excess cash.

 

In total, the premier league amasses an average of 9 managerial changes a season. The 2014/15 season has already accumulated 9 changes and there is still a fifth of the season remaining. Thus far, there have been 4 firings, 3 resignations and 2 mutual consents. Perhaps even more startling are the figures for England as a whole and their other leagues. There has been whopping 49 managerial changes in all divisions. Remarkably, at the beginning of this season Mark Robins was sacked from Huddersfield Town after the very first game. It is also a common occurrence that after a team is promoted to the Premier League, expectations sky rocket and the managers frequently can’t live up to the conjecture and are dismissed.

 

The instability and mistreatment of mangers is a huge deterrent to other prospective & elite managers. Top managers don’t want to tarnishes their immaculate records and many desire time so they can teach and implement their philosophies to gel the team into one. Often, a manager’s arms are tied behind their back as they inherit a previously failing team. Furthermore, without a transfer window or sufficient transfer funds it’s a monumental task.

Mentally, a new manager provides some respite for the players as they can start afresh. We often see interim managers garner some big wins at first and then old trends prevail once again. Equally, the mental aspect and disapproval of a manager can likewise ruin a team, as was the case with David Moyes.

Managers should be given a time period that effectively allows them too settle in and build their empire to how they want it. Teams can reap huge rewards by acclaiming stability as we have seen in the Sir Alex Furguson era and the current Arsene Wenger realm.

But how can rules be implemented to protect managers and prolong their careers when financial burdens are not a deterrent? It’s merely wins in the short term that many overseas owners desire.