Is Wilko going to be our

[Sonny]

Yep, I can't see there being the usual month long panic after we've sacked the manager without a clue who we're going to replace him with. Straight out then in, I think.

Assuming he goes. He's got to go. His replacement is absolutely crucial too, we can't afford to shuffle deck chairs anymore. It's a defining point.

[since59owe]

Going on his last two managerial posts, he would do nothing to change our fortunes. Certainly there's no evidence to suggest he'd "steady the ship."

he managed to transform Peter Taylor's unbeaten formidable England Under 21s side, into a shambles within half a dozen games and then went on to become a manager to oversee one of the most disastrous seasons in Premier League history at Sunderland.

I hope MM is currently tying up any loose ends on Gianfranco Zola's contract.

The last thing we need is Wilko in charge for any length of time.

Agree, but would go for Chris Houghton.

[Beholder]

You're assuming we'll need a caretaker?I bet as soon as Irvine is gone there'll be a replacement lined up.

Bet it's Megson.

Would suit wilko down to the ground and he left MM at leicester to go to bigger and better things.

It would be horrible and boring and defensive but it couldn't be any worse than this....he would probably get us results..

[frastheowl]

Agree, but would go for Chris Houghton.

Why?!

I'm hoping and praying that Mandaric has already sounded Zola out.

He would be loved here. Sheffield Wednesday fans have always loved class and quality. The morons down the road who crave passion, steel and grit. We want more than that.

Zola would become an instant hero. Can you imagine a better pairing to lead us into the new era than two characters like Mandaric and Zola?!

If Zola is serious about management, and then he won't a better opportunity to build himself a rock solid reputation. A chance to rescue a potential giant from the abyss...but this time, we have the resources and the Chairman to make it happen. This is no longer a "difficult" job. We have proved that we are amongst the most apathetic and patience fans in the country. If we had the get up and go of our less fortunate neighbours, Irvine would have been hounded out months ago.

For a manager wanting to solidify a reputation...this is the easiest, and biggest club to do it at. There would be no serious pressure to get promotion this season...most fans have wrote it off now. But just like when Sturrock achieved it, if it was to happen, we'd have a manager who instantly became a hero...but this time, there's a realistic chance to build a future.

C'mon Gianfranco (he reads Owlstalk regularly, you know!) you know this is the job for you.

[frastheowl]

Bet it's Megson.

Would suit wilko down to the ground and he left MM at leicester to go to bigger and better things.

It would be horrible and boring and defensive but it couldn't be any worse than this....he would probably get us results..

Would Mandaric work with Megson again?

He wasn't best pleased with the way Megson up sticks just weeks after appointing him.

[scram]

Would Mandaric work with Megson again?

He wasn't best pleased with the way Megson up sticks just weeks after appointing him.

TBH it's be great if we don't just drag the next nonentity off the same merry-go-round that we've just blandly and ignorantly visited every time before

We need a new direction - totally and right through the club - maybe it was unrealistic for it to happen previously but there are no reasons why not now.

I'd be getting a proven quality youth development coach with a wide remit and setting targets for starters - hopefully within 5 years or so this would bear fruit and start to produce and this structure would serve us going on into the more distant future and would survive different managers

As for 1st team then it'd be somebody to fire imaginations and galvanise the club in a way that probably only BFR has done since (probably including) Big Jack

"Modern" doesn't mean running everything by a comoputer in a parody of Little Britain - it doesn't mean analysing data sets that would have made extra shifts at Bletchley Park - it doesn't mean taking blood and lactate from players and seeing an improvement in speed endurance - V02 max and any other reams of meaningless guff

Modern means embracing the new styles - utilising players in innovative ways - i keep saying it but the bedrock of Barca's game is NOTHING that other teams can't copy - and increasingly more teams are trying to be adventurous and build their game around their own abilities - and being braver basically

Look around and "modern" is far more about a philosophy and ethos than it is about technology and science - thise are adjuncts to a really solid foundation - they are hanging baskets after you've built the house - maybe add a small embellishment but nobody notices if they're not there

This club really needs stripping back to basics and make it about football once again - not embellishments and add-ons that are intangible and unquantifiable then framing that under the guise of "modern and progressive"

Not grandiose statements about what we're getting - but a manager who can build football teams from players and somebody who fans can relate to (and vice versa)

All Milan needs to do is think about one of his greatest football relationships - Old Arry - breaks the mould and gets excting teams that win games

[nevthelodgemoorowl]

Wilkinson either needs to go with Irvine or completely take a back seat in relation to the football side. It looks like Wilkinson is heavily involved in the scouting of players which is worrying.

Why on earth would you find that worrying......I don't understand

[frastheowl]

Why on earth would you find that worrying......I don't understand

Maybe because since the minute he came back to the club in an "advisory" role, the performances and results on the result have deteriorated rapidly.

I'm not saying he is solely responsible, but it certainly can't be a coincidence can it. I personally find it worrying someone so out of touch with modern football, is currently part of our scouting team.

Wilkinson HAS to shoulder some of the blame...whether it's his decision to appoint Irvine, to back him despite the fact he's fookin' useless or whether it's his involvement in the football side of things generally. Wilkinson has to take some of the flak.