Last Manager Standing

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It's amazing to ponder that twelve months after the proverbial curtain came down on the 2011/12 season, there are just a small amount of clubs left in the Premiership who are being managed by the same man. 

Arsenal, Wigan, Fulham, West Ham and Newcastle are the only teams left from the 23 clubs (if you include last seasons relegated sides) that have the same manager they had at the end of a season that had a spectacular finish to live long in the memory. 

Some separations were inevitable, Steve Kean, Mark Hughes, Martin O'Neil and slanderously Roberto Di Matteo, who won more significant trophies in three months at Chelsea than 90 percent of the other managers in the Premiership had procured over their entire managerial careers. 

Other managers were unfortunate to lose their posts Kenny Daglish won the League Cup, Nigel Adkins did little to deserve his sacking (How dare he achieve consecutive promotions!) and to an extent neither did Harry Redknapp at Tottenham, although there was an end of an era feeling around White Hart Lane when he was sacked. Andre Villas-Boas has certainly redeemed himself after what was a rather inept performance at Chelsea, with a strong season (aided significantly by a dozen or so wonder-goals from Gareth Bale).

Jobs becoming available at bigger clubs led to Swansea and Norwich looking for a new man and both teams enjoyed more fruitful seasons than their departing managers did at their new destinations. 

Now in the past few weeks a managerial merry-go-round has begun with the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson prompting David Moyes to depart Everton, which possibly looks to end Roberto Martinez's tenure at Wigan which would leave just four teams with the same manager, not including the speculation surrounding the job security of Martin Jol and Alan Pardew who both oversaw below average seasons. 

Of course Manchester City were unable to take a leaf out of Manchester United and (to a lesser extent in terms of silverware) Arsenal's book that continuity breeds continued success, as they take a more Abramovichesque approach to hiring and firing. And given that until the upcoming UCL Final Chelsea hold both Europeans cups who could argue that this approach is incorrect. 

I was alarmed by just how many teams have changed managers in the last twelve months, I think if you look at how those changes have affected each club it's difficult to say whether this era of constant change is having a positive or negative influence on clubs progression. 

Constant reform only seems to be viable to clubs with wealthy owners and its forcing smaller clubs into rehabilitation as they lose their top up and coming manager and are forced to take an educated gamble on a new chief.

Each club provides a different shade of grey, with Swansea forced into appointing a new manager, being fortunate to wind up with an even more impressive leader and the success that duly followed this season, they'll spend the summer inevitably trying to keep him. And at the opposite end of the spectrum QPR and Blackburn forcing managerial departures and yet still continuing a worrying downward spiral. 

I personally think that the introduction of a managerial transfer window, perhaps two weeks prior to the January transfer window and in the close season, would at least help to stem the constant flow of changing managers and perhaps give owners a little bit more perspective on their options.