Nigel Pearson and Joey Barton set to shake up Bristol
ALEX Rodman says he has “no doubt” that Joey Barton is the man to finally lead Bristol Rovers into the Championship.
Barton, 38, arrived at the Memorial Stadium on Monday and took charge of a club fourth from bottom with one win in their last 11 matches.
But whilst survival is the immediate priority, winger Rodman believes the former Manchester City and Burnley midfielder - who led Fleetwood into the play-offs last season has loftier long-term goals.
“I’ve been in the game a long time now and I’ve seen a lot,” says Rodman, 34. “And I’ve got no doubt that Joey will be successful here.
“From his first meeting with us, I’ve been hugely impressed. His ideas, his messages to the boys, the way he wants things done. He’s been there, he’s done it and he knows what needs to happen - daily, on the training ground - to be an elite club.
“For now, we’re not looking beyond staying up. But there’s no doubt that Bristol Rovers should be knocking on the door of the Championship and somebody has got to be the manager who makes it happen.
“Is that Joey? You can never say anything for certain but I’m extremely confident that he’ll take us where we want to go.”
Barton, who was sacked by Fleetwood in January after 128 games at the helm, is Rovers’ third manager of the season after Ben Garner and Paul Tisdale, who clocked up just 82 days in the dugout.
And the ex-England man made an immediate impression on the Rovers’ squad with his encyclopaedic knowledge of the club.
“He’d done his due diligence on the squad, the performances, individual players,” adds Rodman, who joined the Gas from Shrewsbury in 2018.
“He literally knew every player’s name, their stats, what was needed to make both them and the team better. It was very impressive, and the mark of someone who’s played at the highest level.
“The other thing that really struck me is how genuinely excited he is to work with us. We’ve got an inexperienced squad but you can tell he sees potential.
“Seeing someone with that kind of enthusiasm really rubs off on the lads and it’s certainly rubbed off on me. If anyone had doubts before Joey came in the door then they shouldn’t have any now.”
And Rodman did some due diligence of his own, listening to Barton interviewing his mentor and former Burnley boss Sean Dyche for The Edge Podcast in 2018.
“I was very impressed by his methodology and how he wants to do things. Having spoken to him over the last few days, the similarity in their thought processes is very evident, and that can only be a positive,” he said.
“The way he wants things done is the way - I think anyway - that things should be done.”