Sounds to all intents and purposes Venus is already doing that job - negotiating contracts etc.

Another tale of Venkys apparently wanting or being able to spend substantial amounts but then circumstances ensure that they don't. We've had these stories since the day they arrived about warchests and huge money. In the end they'll trot out every excuse going to ensure it doesn't get spent. Waggott is at it still, claiming Ffp rules are stopping owners like Venkys from spending. Sounds great but then when you ask questions such as why they don't think outside the box like Derby or spend anything tidying up Ewood which doesn't come under Ffp calculations Waggott has no answer.

He thinks they are a 'huge club' and implies we are doing well to just try and compete with them so probably yeah.

You would think Hughes, with his vast Premier League experience, playing days at Barcelona and Bayern, and international management experience, would be able to get a job abroad somewhere in Spain or Germany. I always thought that would be his next step in his career rather than dropping down to the Championship. Hughes never really struck me as someone who lived for management and couldn't stop. People like Hodgson and Warnock come across as types who just love the job and lifestyle of management and carry on as long as they can whereas Hughes I never got that impression. The bloke who less than 10 years ago was the next big thing, tipped to replace Ferguson at United now linked with backwaters like Reading in the Championship. Bet that hurts. He walked out on Rovers and Fulham claiming he was ambitious.

Would expect Eddie Niedzwicki. Glyn Hodges usually follows him around but he's managing Wimbledon at the moment. With Bowen being Director of Football at Reading Hughes was always going to be heavily linked to that job when it came available. Don't see there being much more to it than people joining the dots. The fact Bowen took a job on his own at Reading suggests to me that he wasnt expecting to be assisting Hughes again any time soon. In the past he's waited and kept himself unemployed until Hughes was back managing. Personally would be surprised if Hughes took the Reading job. Would be a come down for a bloke who has nearly 15 years of continuous Premier League management behind him. Never managed in the Championship either. Suspect they'd have to pay him very well to put what is left of his damaged reputation on the line at a struggling Championship side. I think he'd keep them up no problem but not sure he'd have enough to get them promoted.

I agree. Shame our manager doesn't. He thinks Middlesbrough and Stoke are 'huge clubs' so small wonder there's an air of mediocrity around the place.

Yes, but only if done properly - e.g. we appoint a competent individual who has been sourced on the basis of a track record elsewhere who is empowered to make decisions with a budget handed down - not if it is another agent, pundit, family friend or other snake oil salesmen who can talk the talk but not deliver like we've had doing it before.

Most importantly if results deteriorate a change can quickly be made without needing to completely rip up the entire operation. That's why Watford and Brentford have done well on relatively limited funds - because when changes come either in player turnover or managers - they are well placed to deal with it in a smooth manner.

Couldn't find the more up to date thread but looks like Sunderland have sacked Jack Ross and also that their takeover to Michael Dell's group might be off.

I've no idea who they have lined up but I'd expect them to move quickly to appoint a replacement, probably someone relatively unknown using their network abroad, rather than another run of the mill appointment. A quick look at Barnsley's owners and the very fact they took over Barnsley in the Championship suggests they have a plan and idea about what they are doing. A bit like Watford or Brentford you just know that whilst their decisions appear premature or bizarre in the end they turn out to be right.

Sounds like Gomes about to get the boot at Reading too.

A club that has a plan. No room for sentiment or emotion. He did his job, got them up, now it's clearly not working so replace. It is unusual for us sitting here to see such ruthlessness and forward planning. When it was at Rovers we sat in the relegation zone until March then made a change when it was too late. The people running Barnsley have too much sense just to sit back and do nothing.

In this day and age with all the responsibilities of management a manager needs help. He needs to be able to focus his time and energy on coaching, training and management. He shouldn't be the glue that holds it all together and shouldn't be the central figure who leads the operation. He is an employee. A very important one, but not the only one with influence and power. It seems to me we are back to the days of the manager being effectively manager of the club rather than manager of the first team. Venkys seem to like that. Good for them. It's their money. But I don't believe it is really workable in the 21st century when you look around and see how other clubs operate. We are miles behind that.

He was also the only active board member at the time. Why would he go on holiday before a manager was appointed.

Preston and Burnley unfortunately two clubs with some forward thinking and foresight. Grayson and Howe both did decent jobs there and delivered mid table Championship football without really threatening the top end. Both were poached and enticed away by bigger clubs. Rather than allow that misfortune to send them into decline they used the opportunity to progress and go one better by finding, unfortunately, gems who were both unemployed and on the scrap heap after being sacked from Norwich and Watford. A bit of patience, honesty, proper organisation and support for the manager working under a traditional no nonsense board of directors and the results are there for all to see. They didn't spend their lives bullshitting fans about unrealistic targets or hiding behind every excuse going. Just got on with it. Can you imagine the people running this club having the gumption to appoint a gem of a manager. Last time round they stumbled across Mowbray who to be fair rebuilt his reputation and helped the owners out massively with overall good results. Prior to that they entrusted a managerial search to Mike Cheston and Suhail Pasha who between them turned Neil Warnock down and opted for Owen Coyle after interviewing the likes of Neil Redfearn, Russell Slade and Warren Joyce. Frightening. At least we've now got Steve Waggott who of course was nothing at all to do with Mowbray being here and being popular with the owners.

I think for a period of about 10 minutes he had Bennett-Tosin-Evans-Williams-Bell as a back 5 with Evans as the central one yes.

He's been afforded time and opportunities that most other managers could only dream of. He's been in position now longer than all but 2 rival managers and well above the average tenure for a manager at this level. He's had a +£15 million net transfer budget in two summers, apparently been in control of recruitment, not lost anyone he didn't want to sell, had complete autonomy over the football operation and has even been able to bring in his own Chief Executive. The only problem that he might have had is working in a vacuum under Venkys and being given a set of criteria when spending their money e.g. the mysterious appearance of £7 million for Brereton on transfer deadline day and likely strings attached to that money before they allowed it to be spent. There's no indication of any progress of any nature. We're still leaking goals in pitiful fashion, still far too easy to score against, too easy to beat, still boring to watch, still chopping and changing teams and formations on a regular basis. I long since realised that this manager is either unwilling or unable to change his ways, and delve back into his previous at other clubs it was all very similar. He'll likely keep us up. That isn't an achievement for this club but given the people running it and what happened before Mowbray it could be worse. So that's where we are at. If you are satisfied to tread water in this division and be told we're 'trying' to 'compete' with 'huge clubs' like Middlesbrough whilst Preston challenge for promotion and Burnley perform in the top division then great, if you are scared stiff at what the imbeciles upstairs will come up with next then Tony can carry on and I'm sure we will achieve a bare minimum each year for the next couple of seasons (Until the inevitable sales begin). We aren't going to get promoted or even come close to it under a manager that doesn't know his best team or system, has no plan B, has shown since day 1 he can't set a team up to defend and be hard to score against and thinks he is cleverer than he is with his fancy formations and systems. In the end he's going nowhere. Coyle got 8 months of relegation form, protesting fans and plummeting gates before he was sacked.

Unfortunately for Mowbray he hasn't got the ready made excuse of playing a side with loads of money, big squad of proven players or 30,000 fans on. QPR have nothing we don't but dismantled us with ease. Difference is a manager who knows what he is doing. If we can be swept away by a side like QPR and be beaten at home with ease by Charlton and Luton then relegation has to be a concern. I said at the start of the season that I'd shake hands on 21st. That doesn't mean I think the manager is doing well if we do better than that, but that his management and recruitment has resulted in that. Bigger concern is that Mowbray's sides tend to collapse in the 2nd half of seasons.

There are however huge clubs like Stoke and Middlesbrough who we have to look forward to trying to compete against. If the attitude above is reflected by the manager towards the players we will never get anywhere. It's the perfect excuse for mediocrity.

Doubt Jack Walker would have left Mowbray to set his own target of 'aiming for a play off push'

Who on earth aims for a 'play off push'? What constitutes success under that 'target'? Talk about setting the bar low on targets and expectations. All to be expected here though. Serious managers target promotion and do everything they can to get it asap.

At that point he was protected by a good start to the season and promotion the season before. This time around he won't. I sense people are starting to realise that his talk is just that and are getting disillusioned with his management.

I think this could be the cliff edge for Mowbray with a lot of fans. Preston have a good home record, score goals, will be well up for this one. Another inept, clueless, half arsed muddled effort from Mowbray and his boys will likely see another thrashing like last season. With a large away following there I can see the fans turning.

Having no money but a plan and people who know what they are doing is better than having money but being run by people who haven't got a clue.

Contracted to Ireland until next summer's Euros are finished so would have to job share until then, can't see Ireland agreeing to share him.