How the February revolving door circuit could be shorted with clear heads

FEBRUARY is both the best of times and the worst of times to be a football manager. While it is the time of year when the phones of unemployed members of this profession start ringing, it is also a period where a strange kind of madness can take hold in boardrooms around the country.

Sir Alex Ferguson once coined the phrase “squeaky bum time” in reference to an exciting part of a sporting event – particularly the final minutes of a close game or season. But when it comes down to boardroom politics, it is usually far earlier than that – round about now in fact – when supporters get most angst-ridden and trigger-happy directors are at their most twitchy. This is last-chance-saloon time when it comes to salvaging a season and it is a time for cool heads.

This time the Chinese whispers all started with Philippe Montanier’s sacking by Nottingham Forest in mid-January. A court of law may yet decide the rights and wrongs of it all, but it was at least a plausible escape route for Mark Warburton from a Rangers scenario which wasn’t unfolding in the way the manager or the club had hoped. Soon he, too, was without a club and Rangers were without a manager.

The short-term upheaval in Govan may yet prove crucial to secure some long-term stability, but for now things are falling off badly at Ibrox, with just one win in seven league games while losing valuable ground in the battle for second place. Their supporters now face the prospect of an Old Firm visit to Celtic Park on March 12 with dread.

Such upheaval is par for the course at some clubs. This is the third successive February where Kilmarnock have had a change of manager, but still they manage to keep their head above water as a Premiership club – even their supporters would surely desire a more stable long-term environment. Now Motherwell too have bitten the bullet with Mark McGhee, although it is hardly surprising if the board felt remedial action was required after four straight defeats, scoring three goals and conceding 17 in the process.

In most other businesses a senior manager would be tasked with achieving certain aims and goals then is appraised at the end of a season. This doesn’t wash in football, though, where directors feel that they can’t take the risk. Instead they use all available evidence before taking a punt on whether the club’s chances are better with their man in place or not. The only conclusion that can be drawn from McGhee’s departure is that Motherwell felt more exposed to the risk of relegation with him in post than

In most other businesses a senior manager would be tasked with achieving goals then is appraised at the end of a season