After a spirited, yet disappointing Premier League campaign, Cardiff City were a club still in the spotlight at the beginning of last season, hoping for an immediate return to the top echelons of English football. After a very poor start to last season, the spotlight dimmed, faded and then, ultimately, burnt out, leaving the club in a dark shadow of its own expectation.
Russell Slade: A Man Under Pressure
First Season at Cardiff
After Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s dismissal, there was only one man the Cardiff faithful wanted to succeed as club manager; that was Welshman and Cardiff fan, Tony Pulis.
No approach was made to Pulis – who joined West Bromwich Albion on January 1st – and, in the two months since Solskjær’s successor was appointed, fans were already dissatisfied and critical of Slade’s footballing approach. Although he guided the club to a perceived, respectable mid-table finish, which would have been deemed a failure at the start of the season, the jury is still hesitant and the fans divided on his future. The 2015-2016 campaign surely will prove a period where the scrutiny will either make or break the 54-year-old.
Managerial Career
He has amassed an adequate lower league record, with five years’ worth of caretaker spells, including with Notts County, Armitage, and two at Sheffield United. His first permanent managerial position came at Scarborough in 2001, where he saved the club from relegation with an impressive run of 39 points in 19 matches, which saw them move from the relegation zone to achieving a 12th place finish.
He moved to Grimsby Town in 2003 after the club was relegated from League One, and delivered a fourth place finish in his third season and consequent play-off final, where they were defeated by Cheltenham Town. With his stock increasing, League One side, Yeovil Town, appointed Slade as manager; in his three seasons, he turned the financially stricken club from relegation favourites into play-off finalists, and left discontented with the club’s lack of ambition, despite four successive league wins.
Brighton & Hove Albion employed Slade to assist the Seagulls in avoiding relegation to League Two, which was deemed a significant triumph considering the club’s off field distractions. In 2010, he joined Leyton Orient where he had his most prominent and lengthy spell at a club, with 242 matches and the highest win percentage of any Leyton Orient manager: 42.56%. His final full season resulted in a play-off final penalty shoot-out defeat against Rotherham, despite leading 2-0 at half time.
A disastrous season followed where long-standing chairman, Barry Hearn, relieved his ownership duties to incoming chairman, Francesco Becchetti, who oversaw four managers in his first season as owner, as Russell Slade left for Cardiff early in the season.
Here and Now
His attitude is calm and collected; he does not exaggerate or make excuses for poor performances. He takes defeat on the chin and moves on to the next match in his usual methodical fashion, which is a trait that has to be valued in a man under so much pressure. His record as a manager is quite fascinating; he has moved from non-league football to Championship football without ever getting a club promoted, and has only been sacked once, when at Brighton. His promotions for his own portfolio have come at the right time, taking teams with limited resources to over-achievers, and then moving to the next club generally at a higher level.
As an outsider, I have always thought he was a good, hard-grafting manager who will deliver on his promises, suited to saving small clubs from relegation using the free transfer market, than being a well-budgeted promotion chaser. He’s never been a favourite amongst the fans of most clubs; Grimsby supporters called for his head in only his second season, despite a play-off final coming in his last. At Brighton, he was sacked and, at Yeovil, he only lasted for three seasons before moving to Leyton Orient. It does beg the questions, though: why isn’t he well respected amongst supporters, and why is he disliked?
Now, at Cardiff, it has become clear that Slade is out of his depth at this level, assisting the deconstruction of a play-off-chasing team into mid-table warmers. After 10 years of effort in moving steadily up the table from lower league survivors to eventual promotion contenders, in two unsuccessful seasons under Solskjær and Slade, Cardiff are at the point they were in 2005 prior to Dave Jones’ appointment. That is the game of football, though; one season you can be hailed favourites, and the next relegation fodder. You only have to look at Wigan and Sheffield United as recent examples.
Squad
His approach to transfers would be impressive at lower league clubs, signing free agents and utilising the loan markets, but you have to sign talent and grow it in players at Championship level; Bournemouth being a fine example. Perhaps Tan has decided that the free spending era’s prior did not work out and that a safe bet was needed in terms of the club’s direction. This would be seen as quite a turnaround for someone demanding Premier League football upon his arrival.
Looking at the squad there are definitely questionable acquisitions since Slade’s tenure; journeyman, Alex Revell, previously with Slade at Leyton Orient and midfielder, Stuart O’Keefe, who is yet to feature regularly for Cardiff, despite joining in January.
His signings so far have not been star quality, but he should be applauded for the inclusion of youth products, Joe Ralls and Declan John, as well as bringing recent outcast, Joe Mason, back into the fold. It has been a plea from fans with the last three managers who have preferred to utilise the transfer market than their own youth products. Keeping hold of goalkeeper, David Marshall, will be his biggest challenge before the end of August, as well as how he operates the use of Peter Whittingham, who has not been the man he once was.
Prediction
Already one game into the season, it is difficult seeing Russell Slade surviving the full season in charge of Cardiff City. I expect the fans feel the same, with only 15,429 attending the normally eagerly anticipated Championship opener.
The football has become boring and contains a severe lack of style, which, in its own irony, is the opposite reason as to why Solskjær was replaced last season – demonstrating too much flair and panache, but not delivering results.
If replaced, MK Dons manager, Karl Robinson, would be the prime candidate with an excellent record at the helm, who turned the club from League One relegation favourites to promotion contenders in each of his years in charge, never finishing outside the top 10. He has an excellent development record of young players, with Dele Alli being the brightest prospect. Robinson’s record is impeccable, boasting nearly a 50% win ratio; for a manager at League One, that’s a stand out figure.
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