OVER AND OUT
Chris Dunlavy analyses Paul Scholes’ shortlived Oldham reign
EARLY last month, Paul Scholes ended a pre-match Press briefing by joking that he was off to get a coffee before the machine was repossessed.
It would prove a prescient quip; just a fortnight later, the man from Lavazza did indeed pull the plug.
Now Scholes is gone too, sensationally resigning after just one month and seven games at the helm of his boyhood club.
Rumours that owner Abdallah Lemsagam, a former agent, was meddling in signings and selection had long swirled around Boundary Park. In a typically blunt statement, Scholes all but confirmed they were true.
“It is with great regret that I have decided to leave with immediate effect,” said the 44-yearold, who replaced childhood idol Frankie Bunn in February.
“The fans, the players and my friends and family all knew how proud I was to take this job, and I hoped at the very least to see out my initial term of 18 months.
“But in the short period since I took on the role it unfortunately became clear I would not be able to operate as I intended and was led to believe.”
It is a car crash conclusion that many saw coming from the outset, not least Oldham’s former players.
Responding to a tweet from Courtney Duffus that Scholes’ departure was ‘inevitable’, Tope Obedayi said ‘You’re not wrong’. Both men played at Boundary Park last season and, like Craig Davies, were allegedly forced out for criticising the owner.
Scholes had been warned by friends, supporters and even his predecessors in the dugout that Lemsagam – who bought the club in January 2018 – was hands-on.
Players complained of him barging into the dressing room. Managers, meanwhile, were allegedly forced to sign and play a string of sub-standard players dredged from the French lower leagues.
Imports
One such import – Queensy Menig – was paid £11,500-a-week yet played just four games before leaving the club.
“There’d literally be ten lads with suitcases sitting in the players lounge,” said one former Oldham player. “The manager would ask what
was going on and they’d say ‘Oh, we’re here for a trial’.
“Nobody knows who they are. Nobody knows where they’re from. It’s not the kids’ fault – they’re just trying to make a career.
“But none of them were anywhere near the level required. The manager would go and tell the chairman that they weren’t good enough but Abdellah had already given them two- or three-year deals.
“So these kids end up on the books. The existing players know they’re useless. And they’re thinking ‘How come ‘I’m not getting a twoyear contract?’ It completely undermined the whole team.”
Both Bunn and his predecessor Richie Wellens were frequently summoned to Lemsagam’s offfice and told that certain players had to play. Blazing rows often ensued.
Scholes, aware of the allegations, insisted on an ‘autonomy’ clause in his contract and was initially left in peace.
Precipice
However, old tendencies soon re-emerged and in recent weeks the former England midfielder received emails
‘urging’ him to select
Spanish striker Urko
Vera.
Meanwhile, bit-part defender Alex Iacovitti was offered a two-year deal without Scholes’ knowledge.
If such issues tipped Scholes over the edge, Lemsagam’s chronic underinvestment in facilities had already pushed him to the precipice. Oldham’s Chapel Road training ground has no working showers. The main building has fallen into such disrepair that players now get changed at home, while the pitches are almost permanently flooded. Privately, Scholes called the situation ‘a joke’.
At Boundary Park, bailiffs removed the gas main in one stand due to unpaid bills, meaning players have to wash their own kit. Now, staff – frequently paid late and departing the club in droves – can’t even warm up with a latte.
For his part, Lemsagam has denied attempting to influence Scholes and rejected the accusations in his statement.
“Oldham Athletic are disappointed by Paul’s decision to resign and surprised by the reasons he has given,” said the Moroccan.
“The club gave Paul all the support and autonomy that he asked for. He did not raise his concerns at all, informally or formally, prior to his resignation. He gave no opportunity to address any issues at all, simply resigning by text and then refusing to discuss matters.
“Management is a difficult job and we would have worked with Paul to find solutions, had we been given the chance.”
Perhaps, but the perception remains that Lemsagam is an owner who blurs the boundaries between boardroom and dressing room.
As Edin Rahic discovered at Bradford, that is an ethos that rarely works in England’s lower leagues and will eventually repel even the most amenable coach.
The suspicion also lingers that Lemsagam – who claimed that he saw ‘potential’ in the club’s location – is simply another speculator in the mould of Roland Duchatelet, whose attempts to buy cheap players from continental backwaters and sell them for a profit in England turned Charlton into a basket case.
That is certainly what Oldham are now and the fears of all supporters were voiced by Anthony Gerrard, the former Latics defender who was spuriously sacked by the club in September.
“Everyone who has been involved with the club over the last 18 months can’t be wrong can they?” said the 33-year-old, now at Carlisle. “I really feel for the 3,500 fans that turn up every game. If they’re not careful, they could go the way of Stockport.”
For a club that helped found the Premier League, it is a chastening – but not unthinkable – scenario.