Former Sheffield Wednesday boss on the S6 ‘risk’ and what the next manager will need
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Brian Laws, who presided over 154 Wednesday matches in his spell as manager between 2006 and 2009, also said that clear and constant communication between the next man and owner Dejphon Chansiri will be vital for whoever comes in.
Chansiri and his advisors are on the lookout for a replacement for Tony Pulis, who was sacked after just 10 matches in the Hillsborough hotseat with communications issues cited as one reason for the failure of his tenure.
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Hide Ad“Quite clearly whoever comes in has to come in and have a good working relationship with the owner,” said Laws, who worked under controversial former chairman Dave Allen during his time at the club. “They have to sing from the same hymn book.
“That’s the most important thing to get some longevity into the football club and generally that would be created by open communication, regular meetings and chats. But it has to be open and honest.
“The manager has to be given the opportunity to manager whether it’s good, bad or sometimes ugly.
“They’re the ingredients that create a relationship between a chairman and a manager. At the moment I have to say, looking from the outside in, I’m not sure any manager has got to the point where they had that confidence and trust from the chairman.”
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Hide AdAsked whether any new managers might be put off by the whirlwind nature of two high-profile sackings in as many months, Laws admitted that while Wednesday might be seen as a ‘career risk’ by some, it still provides an opportunity many will not be able to resist.
“Every manager will do their own research on a football club, on it’s players, management and hierarchy,” he said.
“The size of the football club is always an attraction and that will always appeal to managers. It encourages you to take more of a risk because of the size and potential of the club.
“Looking from the outside at some of the things that have happened in the past, it might be a career risk. But many will still want to take that risk. It’s a big football club.”