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MacAnthony: Ipswich is a Dream Job For Someone
Thursday, 9th Dec 2021 11:24

Peterborough United chairman Darragh MacAnthony says the management vacancy at Town is a dream job which could attract bosses who otherwise wouldn’t consider dropping out of the Championship and ponders whether Derby's Wayne Rooney might potentially be a reasonable target.

Speaking on his The Hard Truth podcast, MacAnthony was asked whether he was surprised to see Paul Cook sacked by the Blues at the weekend.

“I’m not shocked, you’re getting up to Christmas now, they’re 11th, they struggled in the cup on Saturday,” he said.

“Obviously behind the scenes [CEO Mark] Ashton wants them to win the league, he wants them to win promotion. They’ve spent heavily, they’ve invested heavily.

“You know yourself how you’re playing, do you look like winning? Is it too inconsistent? What’s going on at the training ground? What are the vibes?

“But obviously Ashton’s under pressure, a big group have bought that club, they’re expecting to get out this year. How far are they away from the top two positions? All those things start coming in.

“January’s coming up, do you trust him again to go out and spend more money and bring more players in? What a job that is for somebody.”

He added: “I think because they brought so many players in in the summer, I don’t think it’ll be a case of going out and signing another 10 players.

“So what do you do? Who do you go after? Who’s out of work out there? Who’s been fired in the Championship that you think maybe can drop down and do a job and do well?

“I don’t know. It’s a big club and they’ve got deep pockets. Any of those clubs, Sunderland, Sheffield Wednesday and Ipswich, if any of them lose their manager, you’re going to have some top, top managers applying for those jobs.

“It will be interesting. Could you go and attract a John Terry for that job? Could you, I don’t know, go and get Wayne Rooney from Derby? He’s done really well at Derby, [could you] bring him to Ipswich? Could you be that ambitious. I can’t speak for them. I don’t know what he’s thinking.”

Dubliner McAnthony, 45, believes the job is attractive enough to interest bosses who otherwise wouldn’t look outside the Championship.

“There are not a lot of jobs,” he continued. “There are 72 jobs in the Football League. If you’re somebody who is out of work for a period of time, how long do you want to wait to get back into work? A club like Ipswich, it’s a dream job, it’s an absolutely unbelievable job. I don’t know.

“If my manager, say for example, if he was out of work and we were speaking and I had a manager who was doing really well, I’d be saying to my manager you’ve got to be in for that Ipswich job. That’s a helluva job, one of the biggest clubs in England as regards outside the Premier League.

“You look at their fanbase, you look at the size of them, you look at the new wealthy owners. It’s a dream project for somebody. You look at the squad and you think any good manager could go in there and get them going.

“As we know in League One, five or six wins on the spin and suddenly you’re flying. That’s a helluva job.”

Meanwhile, in the betting, former Millwall boss Neil Harris is now an evens favourite for the job ahead of ex-Waterford manager Marc Bircham at 7-4.

Frank Lampard, who we understand is unlikely to be interested in the role, is third-favourite at 4-1 but with no significant developments in the market.

Elsewhere, former Blues management target Jack Ross has been sacked by Hibernian after two years at Easter Road.

The 45-year-old Scot was a leading contender for the Portman Road job in the summer of 2018 but was named boss at Sunderland before then-owner Marcus Evans had made a decision with Paul Hurst eventually getting the role.


Photo: Action Images



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Mac2812 added 11:39 - Dec 9
Wayne Rooney? John Terry? Frank Lampard? Neil Lennon? Do we not remember the circus that was Roy Keane? And we want that again do we? Because that's what these names would bring.
2

Hamish1979 added 11:49 - Dec 9
Agreed. I'm not sure I would call Neil Lennon a big name. You could have put a child in charge of Celtic when he was there and they still would have won the league.
4

Europablue added 11:51 - Dec 9
Mac2812
I remember how the dark lord destroyed our club more than I remember the media circus. So as much as it is annoying to be [insert ex player here]'s Ipswich, it was worse to have Roy Keane associated with us in any way.
5

BlueBlood90 added 11:52 - Dec 9
Wayne Rooney has done a fantastic job at Derby under the circumstances. I'd get behind him 100% but I'm sure he could quite easily get another Championship job.
8

johnwarksshorts added 11:56 - Dec 9
Rooney really has no track record in football management. Would be too early for him although I respect what he's doing at Derby. Lampard for me, but not sure he'd drop down to lge 1.
2

rugbytomc added 11:59 - Dec 9
I'd love to get MacAnthony's view on if he thinks we sacked cook with someone else lined up already and what planning he does.
I can't help but think they have someone but won't announce until after the barrow game. If they started now they might lose to Wigan and then win against barrow and it's expected, lose and their reign would be off to a stinker! Before Sunderland and pack out Portman road would be a fan and mood booster so I expect the announcement then
2

Bazza8564 added 12:29 - Dec 9
One of these supposed big names ought to be our priority because they will be totally invested in doing a great job, simply because they are a the beginning of their managerial careers. They will approach it with "I cannot afford to fail" mentality.
Ashton will choose on ability and potential, not just on name. When we took Keane we thought we were getting a top name, that's all, and Jewell, an experienced journeyman.
Ipswich is now a much bigger club than 10-12 years ago, simply because of the footing we are now on with out new owners. That's changed the whole dynamic. It really is a Gamechanger for us, sorry I know the pun will irritate some.
Ashton is in a different league to anybody we've ever seen at this club, he gets people with him. I fully expect him to get his man and I expect that to be a marquee name. People talking about the Warnocks and Lennons of the world are, I hope, massively underestimating Ashtons ability. We signed 19 players in teh summer, all bar three came as complete shocks, he doesn't do his business publicly, expect big, the Peterborough guy knows the game, lots of really big people will want this job
7

masetheace added 12:36 - Dec 9
What the hell has it got to do with him !!
2

chepstowblue added 12:36 - Dec 9
Other than Guardiola, I'm not going to be enthused by whoever is appointed. The thought of Rooney alarms me. I think we have to go down the route of someone who can string a coherent sentence together.Communicating with the fans is also important, and Wayne still sounds like a struggling 14yr old. There is nobody, that is currently linked, who I'd be overjoyed with, but several who have caused me to choke on food. We'll have to accept who we're given, and hope he has the ability to keep us up. Personally I'd be happy'ish with Hughton or Lampard, but unfortunately at present I'd imagine they're out of our league and capable of bigger things. Sad but true. Harris, if we're looking for something more steely, would certainly give us a backbone. My indifference to it all will cause me to offer no more than a shoulder shrug whoever.
-1

Suffolkboy added 12:36 - Dec 9
Let's hope they're careful what they wish for ! Can't imagine it'll be blindfolds and pins ,we do not need any more donkeys ;thoroughbreds with ambition and a knowledge of coaching and man management success would be ideal !
If DM thinks it's a real prize , let's hope all the right people are thinking along the same lines !
Meantime every good wish to JMcG who is nobody's fool ,but might be working with his hands slightly tied behind his back !
COYB
5

Bradleyblue89 added 12:39 - Dec 9
If we appoint a big name it won't be a repeat of Keane. Keane's managerial career stopped on the back of his stint at Ipswich. Any big name would know that they take that risk if they took the job- dropping down to League 1 and risking the embarrassment of doing poorly would be enough motivation for them to give their all. If they have reasonable salary expectations and are willing to drop down then we should give them a go. Of all that is going wrong at Derby, Wayne Rooney has managed to uphold a reputation, can't be all that bad. As long as he doesn't take out our players in training i'm not bothered.
5

austractor added 12:46 - Dec 9
Lets look at the options:

* Marc Bircham: My Dad (life long QPR fan) rates this guy very highly, thinks he would get us sorted out but like afew more on this list I think lacks experience
* Neil Harris: Polar opposite in playing style, no thanks
* Neil Lennon: Really hard to guage how good he is based on his record. Bolton was rough for him and Hibs didnt look wonderful (~47% win record)
* Lampard: doubt he would come, but like this one
* Terry: No thanks
* Rooney: Too early to tell
* Jack Ross: Nope, he had his chance and has been sprinting downhill ever since

And then the Ipswich connections (Kuqi, McGreal etc) no, I think we need something different. New blood.

One thing that concerns me is Ashton didnt hire the best managers in his time at Bristol City.
4

Bazza8564 added 12:48 - Dec 9
Bradleyblue89 Absolutely spot on, they will be as invested in us as we are in them. Oh how things have changed in 12 months, despite our current struggles, the future is still bright
1

Kitman added 12:50 - Dec 9
With our Mr Rooney you will always be waiting to read about which seedy hotel room he was coming out of, having spent the night in there with female company- not Mrs R, of course. Unless things have changed, there's a certain puritanical attitude by American employers to their employee's moral and social habits. Can't see this one getting sanctioned by the Three Lions Board somehow....
-2

TimmyH added 12:55 - Dec 9
Poison chalice of a job it seems going by recent history but by the law of averages it's now time for a manager to come in and do a good job! Not Rooney hopefully.
1

Rimsy added 13:20 - Dec 9
Very eloquently put. There's no reason why one of the big names, Terry, Lampard etc would'nt come here. Huge potential and a board willing and able to back the right man. Think big Town, no more of these lower league hopefuls.
2

Barty added 13:23 - Dec 9
Surely there are several things to tempt any potential manager to come to PR. Great club who are very well supported , Owners with plenty of money to spend and a very good squad. Getting our players motivated [ although for the life of me I cannot understand why they aren't ] will be a major factor.
0

Linkboy13 added 13:24 - Dec 9
Who ever is installed as the next manager it's going to be a gamble no matter what their CV is. We could install Pep but there's no guarantee he could succeed without being surrounded by world class players. I would go down the foreign manager route bearing in mind most of the successful managers are from abroad. They can also get good players that don't cost the earth on board. Farke didn't do to bad at Norwich did he. If i was to appointment a British manager i would gamble yes it's a gamble on Tony Mowbray don't know if he would be tempted away from Blackburn though.
0

keiths123 added 13:25 - Dec 9
Nobody's mentioned Leam Richardson the other half of the Cook /Richardson partnership. Currently top of League 1 and for my money , the brains behind the duo. Knows most of the current squad. Might be worth a look at!!
0

Karlosfandangal added 13:38 - Dec 9
Problem Town have is they want success now and I feel that Cook would not have been the new owners chosen manager.

Sir Bobby Robson said the 1981 side had good players and a system to suit them.

That what Town need a manager who can play a system that suits this group of good players, not try and teach the players to play a system.

It's about winning games at the moment and getting out of this league. We need a manager who can react to the game and change it when it's needed.

Play 5 at the back against Cambridge,or 1 up front against Burton or 442 against Morecombe.
We need a forward thinking manager.

We need to find the new Sir Booby (if only he was one of a kind) and they need to be given time, which in today's football is one thing they won't get.

0

miltonsnephew added 14:19 - Dec 9
I think Gus Poyet and Mauricio Taricco
1

Michael101 added 14:58 - Dec 9
You sort out Peterborough, gamechanger can sort itfc out.
3

SpiritOfJohn added 15:40 - Dec 9
Good idea MacAnthony, Darren Ferguson could do a job for us!
0

JewellintheTown added 15:50 - Dec 9
No decent UK managers available or likely to want to come to us that I'd currently go for at the moment. Need to look in Europe or further I'd say.
0

dirtydingusmagee added 16:06 - Dec 9
Ashton said if it was the right man they would pay compensationm also new manager will have money for transfer window. Plenty of applicants so im not having sleepless nights over the Bookies odds.
0


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