THE CHAMPIONSHIP 2019-20

[theo29]

yesterday while we were loitering at Craven Cottage all the Championship 'news' concerned at least 5 managers with new appointments at WBA and Swansea, resignation at Hull, renewal at Leeds and the probability of Woodgate starting at Boro.
Now just down the road who will be going to Chelsea to replace Sarri ? Must see what the bookies reckon on this but what will Rams do if FL gets the nod. Someone like Pulis, Hughes or Pardew spring to mind.
Meanwhile taking my launch down river to the Lions Den and Millwall. That completes the London scene for the season and is followed by the red rose trio.
Wigan, Blackburn & Preston.

[theo29]

down in the Lion's Den the longest serving Championship manager, Neil Harris, (,also their leading goal scorer) will be hoping to improve on last season's finish when they were next to the relegated trio. Their derby is with neighbours Charlton and this season there will be a pairing with Luton which produced crowd trouble a few seasons ago.
Then it is off to Euston heading North for Wigan, Blackburn and Preston plus the fixture list for the new season.
My paper tells me that Garry Monk has fallen out with Brum and will FL be returning to Stamford Bridge ?

[forestfan]

Must see what the bookies reckon on this but what will Rams do if FL gets the nod. Someone like Pulis, Hughes or Pardew spring to mind.

I’d be surprised if you went down that sort of route... those “old guard” managers seem to have just about had their day. All the three you mention are out of jobs, along with Moyes and Allardyce who haven’t been employed for a year, so nobody’s even picking them up for a short term rescue act.

There’s been a real shift towards either looking abroad or to someone who’s having success at a slightly lower level, and as with Lampard himself, the recently retired superstar player option is back on clubs’ radars as the “Golden Generation” make the step up. Hopefully we’ll find some quality British managers among them.

[theo29]

thanks to forestfan for his managerial thoughts. Who knows right now which way Mr Morris and Roman A will play it.
In the meantime I am at Wigan North Western (courtesy of Virgin) and will use their waiting room before touring the NW 3 and maybe Middlesbrough before the final lap in Yorkshire.
Am thinking Heinz 57 in Wigan but it is only about 47 days to kick-off. I guess there will be a Friday nighter on 2nd August.

[theo29]

all quiet in the Red Rose county this Monday morning. All 3 clubs have been winners of the FA Cup with Wigan being the most recent in 2013 v Man City. Blackburn won the Prem in its 3rd season with Alan Shearer as leading goalscorer. These days they all have average gates hovering around 14-15 thou although Blackburn's Ewood Park can accommodate 31000. What price any one of the 3 making it to the play-offs in the new season ?
The hot news is that Blackburn have a new catering outfit. What is Dave Whelan doing these days ?

[forestfan]

Lee Bowyer parts company with promoted Charlton after failing to agree terms, so will miss out on coming up against his old nightclub fight tag team partner Jonathan Woodgate in the dugout (though another club may come calling pretty soon?)

Seems Charlton are still a basket case club who might not stick around in the Championship for long.

[jimmy ching]

U-turn. Bowyers staying.

[theo29]

a cheap day train trip to Preston mainly to see the Tom Finney statue, The Spray at Stamford Bridge, which is outside Deepdale. The football museum used to be here but is now in Manchester.
Is a 'basket-case club' a permanent situation or can you grow out of it ? We have prime examples around here, Blackpool and Bolton seem the most obvious but are Blackburn, owned by the chicken combine, Venky's still perceived in this way ? It caused quite a stir a few seasons back. Local knowledge !. No late news on the Lampard scene but plenty of column inches plus 'arry thinks it is cut and dried.
My son tells me he saw Karanka, the ex Forest man in a Derby Sainsbury last week.
Off to the new Woodgate manor tomorrow. Have been promised a gentle car ride across Yorkshire with maybe a pint of Landlord thrown in.

[jimmy ching]

Gary Monk is now in to the mix.

[bluenosey]

Gary Monk is now in to the mix.

I was fuming yesterday

We've got some right to55ers running our club. Time for Dong and Co and the mysterious Chinese to face the music.

Gary Monk got Blues. The fans though he was brilliant. A transfer ban last season and a 9 point deduction and still finished comfortably above the relegation zone. What do the owners want under a transfer ban ?

Same thing happened to Rowett. Look at the clowns we've had in the middle - Zola and Cotterill. eff knows who the owners have got lined up

I'll always be Blues but this club tests you sometimes...

[jimmy ching]

Gary Monk is now in to the mix.

I was fuming yesterday

We've got some right to55ers running our club. Time for Dong and Co and the mysterious Chinese to face the music.

Gary Monk got Blues. The fans though he was brilliant. A transfer ban last season and a 9 point deduction and still finished comfortably above the relegation zone. What do the owners want under a transfer ban ?

Same thing happened to Rowett. Look at the clowns we've had in the middle - Zola and Cotterill. eff knows who the owners have got lined up

I'll always be Blues but this club tests you sometimes...

I wasn't happy when he decided to leave Leeds. He is a very competent manager. He taught Bielsa a couple of lessons last season.
So, to speculate and getting my wooden spoon out, he could be a blessing for Derby because from what I've seen he's much more up on the game than Frankie.

[theo29]

oveernight in Middlesbrough after a pleasant trip from Blackburn via Harrogate. The 2019-20 fixtures are out tomorrow morning and the new team of Woodgate and Keane are settling into their seats. Will they be front-runners this time round ? Sunderland sadly are not there for local opposition in the new season so it is up to Leeds and Huddersfield as the nearest neighbours.
Owner Steve Gibson has a fairly high profile so his name will almost certainly be heard especially about financial matters. Certainly not overjoyed about Derby declaring a big profit for selling Pride Park to Master Morris. No new news on the FL scene.

[bluenosey]

Gary Monk is now in to the mix.

I was fuming yesterday

We've got some right to55ers running our club. Time for Dong and Co and the mysterious Chinese to face the music.

Gary Monk got Blues. The fans though he was brilliant. A transfer ban last season and a 9 point deduction and still finished comfortably above the relegation zone. What do the owners want under a transfer ban ?

Same thing happened to Rowett. Look at the clowns we've had in the middle - Zola and Cotterill. eff knows who the owners have got lined up

I'll always be Blues but this club tests you sometimes...

I wasn't happy when he decided to leave Leeds. He is a very competent manager. He taught Bielsa a couple of lessons last season.
So, to speculate and getting my wooden spoon out, he could be a blessing for Derby because from what I've seen he's much more up on the game than Frankie.

I wish Monky all the very best. He'll do well somewhere where the owners appreciate him.

Apparently the odds on favourite is some bloke named Xavier Calm - whoooo ? Did well in the Spanish third tier with the mighty UE Cornella. I thought that was part of an eyeball.

[theo29]

it looks likely that Maldini's post late yesterday evening means there will not be a Championship version this season. Is it too late to make a plea to Tele Towers to retain it ? Has my tour of the country been in vain ?

[jimmy ching]

Fixtures are out, as Sky give Middlesbrough and Luton an extra three days over Huddersfield and Derby to complete their fixtures.

First weekend.

Friday, August 2, 2019

Luton Town vs Middlesbrough

Saturday, August 3, 2019

Barnsley vs Fulham
Blackburn Rovers vs Charlton Athletic
Brentford vs Birmingham City
Millwall vs Preston North End
Nottingham Forest vs West Bromwich Albion
Reading vs Sheffield Wednesday
Stoke City vs Queens Park Rangers
Swansea City vs Hull City
Wigan Athletic vs Cardiff City

Sunday, August 4, 2019

Bristol City vs Leeds United

Monday, August 5, 2019

Huddersfield Town vs Derby County

[theo29]

thanks to JC for setting out the first weekend of the new season. Boro head for Luton who they last played 24 years ago in the final game at Ayresome Park. Think I will make my way South to Eastern Yorkshire and Hull City. A short sea voyage would be pleasant but the train is the most practical. By the time I arrive there they will probably have acquired a new head coach. We shall see.

[theo29]

The Hull 'Tigers' have got their new manager, Grant McCann from div 1 Doncaster Rovers so I can move into the Yorkshire heartland to complete the circuit of 24. This Saturday morning sees Brum without a leader while the FL scenario is yet to be resolved. Whispers around Nottingham are that Karanka might be the replacement if FL goes back to the Bridge. I wonder what forestfan thinks !
If there is a mini Championship championship in Yorkshire this season, how will it go ? There are no 'derbies' in the opening weekend fixtures and the opening Carabao cup games start on 12th August.

[forestfan]

Well, Karanka would join an exclusive club including Brian Clough, Billy Davies and Steve McClaren (any others? Certainly a fair few have played for one and managed the other...) Always adds a bit of spice to El Cloughico anyway!

[theo29]

meanwhile back by the Trent, RK departs ! A suitable vacancy at St Andrews perhaps ?

[Zimmerman]

Not a thread I normally read... what’s the story with Frank Lampard. What’s the inside track from
championship officianados;

Pundits and press absolute love him (to the point that the team has been renamed).

But they finished 6th when he took over, they finished 6th this season.

They scored 1 point less.
They still finished 15 points short of automatic promotion.

W20 D14 L12 F69 A54 GD+15 PTS74 (18/19)
W20 D15 L11 F70 A48 GD+22 PTS75 (17/18)

Did they play radically different football
Did they have a much different playing staff (a lot has been made of his use of youth)?

[jimmy ching]

So Leeds United's Jack Clarke is following the foot steps of Aaron Lennon and Danny Rose with joining Spurs. I wish him the best of luck. Players of the Leeds squad are of the opinion that he's very skillful. Yet to see it consistently, in real competitive matches. He's young but has enormous potential. Here is hoping he's not another Steve Daley.

[jimmy ching]

Rennes reject at Forest. As Lamouchi replaces O'Niell . He did OK in his first season at Rennes. The best Rennes had done for a while. He started badly in his second season, so Rennes went in to panic.
I must say, this has surprised me and I'm sure I'm not alone.

[morganb]

Forest sack O’Neill:

Sabri Lamouchi: Nottingham Forest appoint Frenchman after sacking Martin O'Neill - http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/48800839

[forestfan]

Things never quite seemed right since O’Neill came in and there was perhaps a realisation he was yesterday’s man... no idea about the new man except I remember the last time we appointed a French manager with no background in English football, which was an absolute disaster, so on that basis I predict we’ll struggle. I’d rather we went with someone from the lower leagues here who has had success playing good football.

Of course, that previous French farce was at the back end of the Fawaz regime, and although things seem more stable and structured behind the scenes now since the takeover, the pattern of scattergun managerial appointments given no time to build anything continues. There’s no hint of a footballing strategy, just lurching between wildly different managers every season. We haven’t kept a manager for a full calendar year since 2010, and Billy Davies’s second spell of about 14 months was the longest in that time - and that’s under three different ownerships.

Anyway, we’ve now crossed off two of the three obvious “sentimental” appointments, and tossed them in the box marked “failure” along with the Pratts and Wallys of this world. Just Nigel Clough left on that list then, only a matter of time...

[forestfan]

Lamouchi is our 20th “permanent” manager since Cloughie’s retirement. That’s 20 in 26 years. Alternatively, 19 in 22.5 years since Frank Clark.

Billy Davies had two spells in charge, and is only counted once in that total. We’ve also, according to the records, had 12 caretaker management spells that included at least one competitive game (some lasted longer than a few of the permanent appointments!)

[jimmy ching]

Bielsabub Babes 93

Jack is Jack,
Bielsa wants him back,
White is White,
‘Cos our defence was light.

Harrison returns after a bog standard season. He did what he was told. Bielsa likes that. Loan extension given by his manager mate, Guardiola.
Diaz has left, (to my disappointment) and Halme looks like he’s off on loan. Struijk, from the latest cohort of good Ajax youngsters, looks like Marcelo's youth choice back up.
Bielsa is adding Ben White, from Brighton, via Peterborough, to reinforce the centre back position.
I don’t think he wants to put Phillips there again, like he had to when the defence injury crisis built up last season.

Our routine seasonal player sacrifice, is Jack Clarke this summer. Off to Spurs he goes.
Vierra left for Italy last season allowing for the growth of Phillips.
This time though, Bielsa has chosen to reinforce the wing position from outside.
Helda Costa seems to fit the bill. Clarke has time on his side to develop yet Leeds need the nearly end product now. Overall, it seems a sensible business decision.

Bielsa’s squad set up doesn’t allow for any seasonal sleepers.
Clarke created a few chances last season, unfortunately for him there was no Kane at the end of them.
Bamford had a poor season. Some Leeds fans are pointing at Chris Wood’s first season, grasping for some sort of second season hope. I’m on the fence with this one.
I also have the feeling the position doesn’t suit Roofe either.
Where is our Gayle, Pukki or Adams?
It’s down to 2nd season hope, isn’t it?
Will we have an ‘Arise Sir Edmondson’ or a ‘Tyler on for Roofe’ season?
We will have Allioski juggling potato’s on the wing again.
Hopefully Douglas will find his promotion season form. We know he can do it.
Still a few weeks to go, so plenty more time for my wild speculations to take twists and turns.

Overall, reasonably happy with the way the summer market is working.

[theo29]

it looks very likely that FL will not be on the plane to the US on Thursday.

[theo29]

it is official ! FL no longer part of the Championship. Derby already have their new man and he gets the Florida flight before the week 1 delights against Huddersfield, 5th August.
Can complete my circuit over the next few days, Barnsley, Sheffield Wed, Hudderfield and Leeds. Think there is a full manager complement (who will be first to go ?)
Do we have a FISO Barnsley supporter ? Parky does not live there these days.

[morganb]

Reading have just announced a pre-season game against Peterborough at 4pm on a Wednesday afternoon in mid-July! We've also got Frank Lampard's Chelsea FC at home on a Saturday. The team are also on a tour of Spain (with most matches behind closed doors).

Does your team have any interesting pre-season fixtures? And are you likely to make the effort to go and watch any pre-season games?

[theo29]

just spent a few minutes looking at pre season for the Yorkshire clubs. Portugal, Germany and France, probably some others are all destinations before weekend of 4th August. Guess it will be the same for all the other clubs in the league. Injuries to follow ?