The Molineux faithful can be pleased with the efforts of their team last season on returning to the Premiership under Mick McCarthy. With plans afoot to increase the stadium to a 50,000 capacity, things are looking brighter for Wolves across the board. Now, McCarthy has begun to strengthen the side to continue progressing upwards and onwards. Two major signings have come in and I have to say I’m impressed with both of them.

Equalling the club record signing of the industrious Kevin Doyle, is Steven Fletcher from Burnley. I thought Fletcher had an excellent season for the Clarets, in what was a tough learning curve for both himself and the club. Wolves, for all the industry and opportunities they created, struggled for goals. With just 32 goals in the Premiership they were the lowest scorers in the league, which considering they finished 15th, is remarkable.

It was crucial that they strengthened the options they had upfront and with Fletcher already having one season under his belt, it made sense to go for someone who knows the league. Added to that, surely Sylvan Ebanks-Blake can’t have as disappointing a season as last year. It was surprising that he struggled so much in front of goals. I appreciate he missed pre-season, which can have a massive effect, but he still has a nose for goal.

The signing of Jelle Van Damme is an inspired signing in my opinion, he’s really looked a top quality player these last two or three seasons at Anderlecht. Belgium seem to have a crop of really talented players coming through again, which I’m pleased to see. They’ve really struggled internationally the last decade or so and European football is the duller for that. With Anderlecht and Standard Leige bringing a good crop of youngsters through, Van Damme is one of the more experienced of the crop.

He’s already played in the Premiership, all be it for Southampton, spent a year in the Bundesliga with Werder Bremen and has now been playing regular Champions League football with De Paars-Wit. He can only strengthen the Wolves defence across the board and Wolves fans should be pleased with this aquisition. McCarthy and Jez Moxey, the Chief Executive should be applauded for moving in to the transfer marker so quickly and quietly. No fuss, no messing about, they’ve chosen their targets and gone and signed them without playing fantasy football in the media.

With both players being signed nice and early they can get a full preseason under the belt with their new team-mates and ease the intergration in to a new side and set up. Since Steve Morgan took over at Wolves, they have continued to progress steadily and positively. No going mad and chasing a financial dream that weighs the club with debt here. The club simply go about business quietly and considerately.

It’s a long way since the days of Mark McGhee whining every week in the late 1990′s and a trail of big name managers that simply couldn’t cut the mustard. Liverpool fans must sometimes wonder what would have happened if Morgans attempt to invest in the club wasn’t blocked at every turn by David Moores. Moores clearly didn’t like Morgan, but for someone who claimed to only care about Liverpool’s future, Moores must take a large portion of the blame in regards to the chaos that surrounds Liverpool.

Wolves fans will not care one jot about Liverpool, the club is riding the crest of a positive wave and the things continue to move onwards and upwards for one of English footballs most famous names. Good luck to them and long may it continue.

Please leave  me your comments below and you can follow me at http://twitter.com/paulbestall

With the Premier League season now done and dusted, there is no better time to look at the winners and losers of one of the most open and un-predicable seasons in history.

Arsenal

Despite another trophy-less season there has been a considerable improvement with the Gunners, showing more fight and determination despite playing a majority of the season without any central strikers. However there are clear areas where key additions must be made, case 1: a goalkeeper, case 2: two central defenders, a central midfielder and a striker, which is more than likely to be Chamakh from Bordeaux.

Grade: B

Teacher’s Pet: Thomas Veremalen – without question the best buy of the season, at 8.5m from Ajax, has been solid in defence and knows where the back of the net is too.

Detention: Lucas Fabianski – in Arsene Wenger’s words, despite having talent lacks concentration.  Still will be there next season so Arsenal fans best get used to him.

Aston Villa

Without question one of the most improved teams in the Premier League yet another encouraging season after two Wembley visits and a solid 6th place finish. Have a strong nucleus of English players highlighted by the number of their internationals. Squad is still relatively small and could be bolstered by more firepower and extra protection in midfield.  They are very susceptible to the counter-attack because of the lack of protection given to Petrov due to their heavily attacking midfield of Downing, Milner and Young.

Grade: B

Teacher’s Pet: James Milner – fully deserved his Young Player of the Year award and is a definite for Fabio Capello’s squad if not starting 11.

Detention: Emile Heskey – Hasn’t started enough games or scored goals for Villa this season. In the World Cup squad largely due to his successful partnership with Wayne Rooney.

Birmingham City

Credit where credit is due, having been tipped to be one of the three teams to be relegated.  But with an unbeaten 15-game run and one of the most well organised defences in the country (with Scott Dann and Richard Johnson) The Blues more than deserve there highest finish in the Premier League. Cemented by picking up vital points at home against the original ‘big four’ of Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal.

Grade: A-

Teacher’s Pet: Joe Hart – fully deserves his call up to the England squad and if he had more full senior experience would be picked as the No. 1 keeper for the World Cup.

Detention: Christian Benitez – despite real effort and endeavour hasn’t set the Premier League alight and subsequently The Blues have decided not to purchase him.

Blackburn Rovers

Job done for Big Sam’s team, at the start of the season survival was very much the key for Blackburn.  They had a clear problem scoring goals but in the last few months of the season showed key wins against Arsenal and Aston Villa and draws against Man. United and Chelsea providing evidence that they have improved greatly.  Shopping List during the summer must be for a goal scoring striker.

Grade: C

Teacher’s pet: David Dunn – when he is fully fit, he is by far a class apart from any other at the club.  Special mention to Paul Robinson, who has proved his critics wrong with excellent performances this season. Should have been in the mix for a World Cup call-up.

Detention: The Blackburn Strike-force of Roberts, McCarthy (now at West Ham) and Di Santo has scored only 10 goals between them all season.

Bolton

I was one of the football public who originally questioned Owen Coyle’s decision to move from Burnley to Bolton. But it has clearly been the right decision finishing 14^th in the Premier League and never looking in any real relegation threat. Have tightened up defensively and next season expect Bolton to target a mid table place.

Grade: D

Teacher’s Pet: Gary Cahill, a huge cog in the defensive wheel who earned an England Call-up before getting injured.

Detention: Johan Elmander – no longer in the pecking order for playing up front alongside Davies, that honour goes to Ivan Klasnic.

Burnley

After a fantastic start to the season signs were starting to show that away form could be a problem if Burnley were to survive.   Losing Owen Coyle was undoubtedly a massive loss, but it’s defensively where Burnley has really struggled.  82 goals have been conceded by the Clarets and Blues this season, the most in the Premier League and the fewest away wins is a recipe that shows the trap door in any level of professional football.

Grade: F

Teacher’s Pet: Good individual season for Graham Alexander, who has been offered another one year contract extension at the age of 38.

Detention: Collectively the defence for conceding 82 goals.

Chelsea

Another season and more silverware in the cabinet! An historic double which wasn’t looking so likely after the defeat to Inter Milan in the Champions League: where Chelsea were out-thought and out-schooled.  From that point forward Chelsea were simply magnificent, scoring goals for fun, 7 past Stoke, 8 past Wigan, an easy victory against Liverpool at Anfield but the biggest result may have been the victory at Old Trafford.  Still concerns over the ‘age’ of the squad and whether they truly have the ability to be the best in the Champions League.

Grade: A+

Teacher’s Pet: Frank Lampard, 22 league goals from midfield is a fantastic achievement: if he has a good World Cup, England will have chance to cause a few upsets.  Other Chelsea personnel who have had excellent seasons include Didier Drogba (another 30+ goal season) and Florent Malouda who has provided Chelsea with more width and another attacking goal threat, 12 goals for him this season in the Premier League.

Detention: Jon Obi Mikel – I can’t see what he brings to the Chelsea team, when Essein is fit, he the man who makes room.

Everton

A quality side hit by key injuries to key players in the early part of the season including Arteta, Yakubu and Jagielka to name a few. Since the return of the core squad Everton form had improved greatly.  Just a little too much to do in order to secure a European spot.  With a full squad next season they will be in the fight again for an Europa League place.

Grade: D

Teacher’s Pet: Tim Howard – Established goal-keeper, another solid season, and rightfully USA’s number 1 choice, likes saving penalties from England players (take note!).

Detention: Marouane Fellaini – has taken up a more defensive role this season, but a player who really lit the blue touch paper in 08/09, but this season has been an enigma.

Stay tuned as the likes of Fulham, Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United are still to come.

There are green shoots of recovery around the Reebok Stadium, after several winters of discontent under Gary Megson. With Owen Coyle’s arrival, suddenly Bolton Wanderers are playing football again and trying to win games, rather than bore teams to death and hoof it skywards. Megson’s long ball banality has no place in modern football and I feel sorry for the next bunch of fans that have to suffer the tedium of his tactical ineptitude.

Thankfully, Phil Gartside realised that he preferred being the chairman of a Premiership club more than defending a manager who had lost the entire crowds respect. His own position was under threat and no matter how well a chairman and a manager get on, eventually it becomes a question of self preservation. Gartside made the selfish decision after two bad, bad managerial choices almost finished the club off. Now things are a whole lot rosier down Burnden Way and the club can look to a more positive future.

At the time when Coyle left, I was critical of the decision, mainly as I didn’t think Bolton could strike up the pace as quickly as they needed and Burnley seemed to be doing well. I didn’t understand it, but then again, not many people did other than Bolton Wanderers fans. The Green half of Glasgow were certainly left scratching their heads as they watched Tony Mowbray’s reign imploded in a series of bizarre transfer and selection issues and wondering how they couldn’t attract Burnley’s manager over the summer.

So Coyle kept his part of the bargain, he turned his back on devotion and demi-god status at Turf Moor, to ride to Boltons rescue and try and keep them in the Premiership. He did it and with points to spare, such was the dearth of quality shown by the bottom 3 sides for most of the season. Whilst the bottom 3 were nowhere near the worst the Premiership has seen, the lack of a consistent goalscorer in all three relegated sides was too much to bare.

Now Coyle has a few weeks off, and will look to pre-season training in July to begin to continue the good start he’s made to his 4th managerial position. Bolton fans came in for some criticism last season with their campaign to get rid of Gary Megson. “Ideas above their station” ” Spoilt by the Allardyce years” and “Small club punching above their weight” were just some of the delightful accusations levelled at the fans. Quite why wanting rid of a manager who messed up the biggest night in the clubs modern history and would send his teams out not to lose, rather than to try and win games is such a problem.

They pay money and are rightly entitled to their opinions, whether we agree with it or not. I’ve never understood how Gary Megson keeps getting jobs, his record other than at West Bromwich Albion is abysmal. Only Megson could unite Nottingham Forest and Leicester City fans in their hatred of him, such is the feeling of anger towards him from both sets of supporters. Now that takes some doing in anyone’s book, at least Coyle only has one clubs fans anger to deal with, probably for life. Bolton wasn’t a massive rescue job, he just needed to remind the players how to play football, as daft as that sounds.

He simply needed to get the core performers back in unison and on song. The spine of a decent Premiership side was always there, it just wasn’t allowed to be a football team. With Jaaskelainen, Davis, Elmander, Cahill, Taylor and Davies to call on, it simply needed the depressing air lifting from the place and things would soon settle down. The first 6 weeks were tough, but eventually, points started to come, performances started to come and the team began to climb the table.

Next season will be Coyle’s biggest test so far as a manager. He had nothing to lose at the other jobs he took, Burnley achieved more than even the most loyal fan could have imagined, but I doubt Bolton will be scraping around the relegation zone next season. Despite what their critics may say, Bolton have now been back in the top flight of football for ten years and are an established Premiership club. The troubles of the last 3 seasons should prove nothing more than a bad dream for the Wanderers fans, mid-table is more than realistic for next season.

As the 2009-10 season comes to a close, let us take a moment to honor a manager who set himself apart from his peers, achieving a rare and historic feat that deserves to be recognized.

Yes, congratulations are in order for Brian Laws, who managed to get TWO teams relegated this season.

Laws started the campaign with Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship.  In December, on the heels of three straight home losses that saw the Owls fall into to the league’s bottom three, Laws left the club by “mutual consent.”  The team’s record stood at a dismal 4-11-6.

Despite his “resignation” from Wednesday, Laws was surprisingly named manager of Burnley in January. The Premier League side selected their former player over a host of other (some could say better) candidates after Owen Coyle left for greener pastures at Bolton.

To say Laws picked up right where he left off at Wednesday would be an understatement.  In 17 league matches at the helm, Laws posted an unsightly record of 2-1-14.  In addition, he lost his only non-Premier League match to Championship side Reading in the FA Cup.

Burnley’s Championship pedigree was confirmed in embarrassing fashion on April 3^rd, when they conceded three times inside of the first eight minutes at home to Manchester City on their way to a 6-1 defeat.  Several fans were seen heading for the exits after the first ten minutes.

After the defeat, Burnley midfielder Joey Gudjonsson offered up this gem:

“He lost the dressing room long ago. I think all the players have lost faith in him, the performances say all that has to be said.”

Burnley were officially relegated from the Premier League on April 25^th, after the Turf Moor faithful endured another home shellacking, this time a 4-0 defeat at the hands of Liverpool.

If Laws were to somehow stay on at Burnley’s head man next season, he won’t have the opportunity to square off against his former side, because, like his new club, his old club is also heading down.  Sheffield Wednesday and their new gaffer Alan Irvine were unable to avoid the axe and will be playing their football in League 1 next season.

Laws’ achievement is certainly historical, but amazingly, it does have some precedent.  And in three consecutive seasons no less.

In the 1985-86 season, Ron Saunders left Birmingham City to take over fellow First Division strugglers West Bromwich Albion.  Both teams were relegated at season’s end.

The following year, Billy McNeill started the season with Manchester City, but departed early doors to take the helm at Aston Villa.  Neither team could avoid the drop from the First Division.

The very next season, Dave Bassett turned the trick as well, leaving Watford of the First Division in midseason to take over Sheffield United of the Second Division, with both clubs heading south at season’s end.

If Burnley had any sense, they’d add Laws’ name to another dubious group: managers who have been sacked by two teams in the same season.

Burnley’s survival in the Premier League this season is hanging on by a thread, but they did have time last week to unveil their new football kit for the 2010-11 season which is their 100 year centenary year. Whether they’ll be in the Premier League is another story which we’ll find out in the next few weeks.

The claret and blue shirt of Burnley will next season feature a revised team crest as well as a Puma design that features a modern v-neck in blue and white flashes on the shoulder.

What do you think of the new shirt design? Leave your feedback in the comments section below.

For the largest selection of Premier League shirts for all 20 clubs, visit the EPL Talk Shop.

It’s FA Cup semi-final weekend which means that for three teams the Premier League will cease to matter, at least for a few hours. Of course for Portsmouth the Premier League ceased to matter some time ago and as such, any manager who still has Pompey players in their side will likely be going the same way as poor Avram… backwards.

So in honour of the south coast sufferers, let’s forget about glitz and glamour for a week and concentrate on those players that should be avoided like a shady ‘billionaire’ businessman.

The sinkers

Some say Burnley’s relegation fate was sealed the moment they took the decision to hire Brian Laws as manager. Whilst I have sympathy for Brian, (it was rather like asking a boy on a push bike to go out and win a Moto GP) I completely agree with them.

The Clarets have been going backwards ever since they gave Mr Laws a route back into employment and have not won a solitary game since February 6th. A 6-1 home mauling at the hands of underachievers Man City will hardly have helped matters and it would be no surprise to see their winless streak continue until the end of the season.

Warning! Beware of the…

Burnley player

The crocks

Quite simply, you can be the best player in the world but if serious injury strikes, you become about as useful as a racing car with no wheels. Cesc Fabregas is a wonderful footballer but can he help Arsenal win the title? No. Can he score any fantasy football points? No. Can he help his wife with the housework? Probably not.

Here are a few of the key players that are likely to be spending the rest of the season planted firmly in front of the tele.

Warning! Beware of the…

Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal)

William Gallas (Arsenal)

Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal)

Michael Essien (Chelsea)

Dan Gosling (Everton)

Fabio Aurelio (Liverpool)

Martin Skrtel (Liverpool)

Joleon Lescott (Manchester City)

Michael Owen (Manchester United)

The holidaymakers

Let’s face it, Fulham are already on their holiday’s and have been for some time. They seem to be enjoying them too and in a traditional British manner have already upset their hosts in Ukraine, Italy and of course, Germany.

With Premier League safety secured some time ago, the Cottagers can be forgiven for putting all their efforts into the Europa League and if anything, should be commended, as too many teams kill themselves trying to get into Europe and then show a distinct lack of ambition when they finally make it (I’m looking at you O’Neil, Redknapp, Megson).

With this in mind it would perhaps be a tad foolish to pick any Fulham players and expect them to give it their all domestically between now and the end of the season. That is of course with one notable exception. Bobby Zamora has been in excellent form all term and is still desperately trying to impress Fabio Capello enough to secure a place in England’s World Cup squad. He’ll probably be rested in the remaining European weeks but may still be worth a second glance.

Warning! Beware of the…

Fulham player (excluding Bobby Zamora)

And for what it’s worth

My tip for the Grand National is Snowy Morning. Weight was a factor last season but if he makes it round the course, 2008′s third place finisher stands a great chance.

It’s incredible to think that this following collection of vintage videos, which were shot over 100 years ago at football grounds across England, would be added to YouTube and we’d be viewing on a computer via this thing called the World Wide Web. But no matter how much technology has changed in the hundred plus years, two things haven’t changed that much. People back then went in watch English football games in large numbers. And the game of football itself has changed hardly at all ever since then.

In the first video from the Mitchell and Kenyon Collection, pictured above, the cameras pan over the crowd before a 1902 match kicks off and then feature some highlights of the game between Sheffield United and Bury, including video of the legendary goalkeeper Fatty Foulkes. The film is narrated by the excellent Adrian Chiles.

In the second video, above, Mitchell and Kenyon visit Trent Bridge to film the world’s oldest professional football club, Notts County. There isn’t any football on display, but the crowd shots are incredible. Again it’s remarkable to think how things have changed from 1902 to now where the club was recently taken over by Middle East investors.

In addition to the above videos from 1902, here are an assortment of other unbelievable videos to view, such as:

The next video, above, features the most football action with Newcastle United at home against Liverpool in 1901 at a St James’s Park that looks quite different than the current monolith. The action is fast and furious.

Burnley against Manchester United from 1902 is featured above, which shows a small Turf Moor ground with a grass embankment in the corner. The video is believed to be the earliest video of Manchester United in action.

If you think controversial decisions by referees are a new phenomenon, you only have to watch the above video to see how a goal scored by Preston North End against Aston Villa was disallowed in controversial circumstances before Preston later scored in this game from 1905, which features flashier jerseys than the previous 1901-1902 videos.

Enjoyed watching these videos? There are several more to choose from the British Film Institute’s YouTube channel (just search for football to see the collection).

Tip: Footysphere.

Oh my gosh, what a mish-mosh of Premier League football we saw on television on Saturday. I’m still making my way through the matches I’ve recorded, but we’ve seen one of the scrappiest games in the league featuring Stoke City against Liverpool, followed by an unconvincing display by Manchester United in their tense match with Burnley, and a match that was so one-sided that it looked more like an exhibition friendly between Chelsea and Sunderland.

I’ve been dealing with one of my children being sick on Saturday morning so I wasn’t as attentive to the games as I usually am, but when I was watching the Stoke game this morning, it felt like I was watching Stoke City against Stoke City. Liverpool, desperate for a win, seemed to have an attitude of “If we can’t beat them, join them” in the way they played by matching Stoke City’s direct style of play that resulted in plenty of air-time for the ball and up ‘n unders into the box.

It was a game that was lacking in class at Britannia Stadium but full of drama and excitement. When Sotirios Kyrgiako scrambled in the opening goal of the game for Liverpool, it was one of the scrappiest goals you’ll ever see. The goal gave Liverpool a lift but with Stoke City continuing to push forward, I thought it was only a matter of time before a deserved equalizer came and it did in injury time when Robert Huth knocked the ball into the net from the far corner and sent the Stoke City supporters into hysterics.

At Stamford Bridge, the game between Chelsea and Sunderland was so one-sided that it looked more like an exhibition game to raise funds for charity than a competitive Premier League match. Sunderland’s defending was juvenile. Their team were extremely poor in marking Chelsea players and gave the Blues far too much time on the ball and allowed cross after cross to come swinging in from the wings.

The 7-2 scoreline to Chelsea was kind to Sunderland. Chelsea, playing like Premier League champions, could have easily scored a half dozen more goals but were denied by the woodwork, near misses and last-gasp clearances by the Sunderland defenders. Michael Ballack, especially, was pivotal in midfield and made the win look easy by threading through clinical passes to Nicolas Anelka, Joe Cole, Frank Lampard, Florent Malouda and others.

In the Manchester United game, the Red Devils made hard work of trying to beat Burnley. The lads from Turf Moor could have easily scored two or three goals but were unable to get the ball into the back of the net after their dangerous counter attacks. But Dimitar Berbatov finally got the decisive goal for Manchester United, Burnley crumbed and two additional late goals from United put the game out of Burnley’s reach.

A special note should be made about Mame Biram Diouf who opened his Premier League scoring for Manchester United with a beautifully taken header. Judging by the positional sense that Diouf has as well as his hunger and natural ability, don’t be surprised if you see Diouf being the preferred striker over Berbatov sometime soon.

What were your impressions from the early games on Saturday? Share your opinions by clicking the comments link below.

Now, I suppose some people out there are still scratching their heads over Burnley’s appointment of Brian Laws and I must admit I was a tad taken aback. Anyone without a knowledge of the game outside of the Premiership, and there are plenty of those fans in England, never mind outside the U.K., would be wondering where on earth he’s come from.

Yes, it is a bit of a left field choice, but Burnley’s board have long admired Laws’ qualities as a manager and at the third attempt to sign him, they have got their man. Burnley went for Laws before they appointed Steve Cotterill back in 2004 and again in 2007 before going for Owen Coyle. It seems a spiritual affair too, as Laws’ playing career started at Burnley, who spotted him playing for the legendary North East junior team, Wallsend Boys club.

Most of the surprise seems to be based on the fact that Laws was until two weeks ago, manager of Sheffield Wednesday. Now a quick look at the Championship League table will tell you all you need to know about why some people are shocked he’s landed at Turf Moor. Yet I don’t think that paints the full picture of his abilities and the achievements that he had whilst managing Scunthorpe should not be underestimated. Not least being sacked for 3 weeks before being re-instated back in 2004.

He achieved miracles on a shoestring whilst he was at Glanford Park and rightly earned the chance to have a crack at trying to deal with the poisoned chalice that Sheffield Wednesday now offer. 13 managers since 1st January 2000, including 5 caretakers, tells you all you need to know about a club with ideas very much above its station. In fact, quite a lot of people had a lot of sympathy for Laws when he was shown the door at Hillsborough, because they were aware of the financial constraints that he has had to work under, tallied with with an over demanding level of expectation. Leeds United they are not.

Yet it is that same ability to work within tightly controlled budgets that probably gave him the nod to take control at Turf Moor and as an ex-player he will know all about the history and pride that Burnley fans have. Some people may be underwhelmed by the appointment and I was surprised when I saw that he’d been approached in the first place, but in the cold light of day I can completely see where Barry Kilby and the Burnley board are going here.

They haven’t gone down the depressing route of looking to a foriegn manager or an ex-player with loads of badges but no ability. Yes, he got sacked from Sheffield Wednesday, but as with Paul Hart, it’s not as obvious as things can be made out on the surface. No-one has succeeded at Wednesday since the early 1990′s and when he took over at Hillsborough in November 2006, the club were in danger of being relegated back to Division One.

Laws is a prudent, honest and no-nonsense manager who could be a great success at Burnley, don’t be too hasty to chastise him. Survival would mean everything to those Clarets fans and after all the upheaval in recent weeks, Laws can offer a smooth and straight talking style immediately. He served under Brian Clough as a player for 5 years during Forest last heady days of success and was always on the fringes of the England squad at the time.Now if he can survive a baptism of fire at Old Trafford and avoid hitting his star player in the face with a plate of chicken wings, he’ll do just fine.

So it’s official then, Owen Coyle will be the new manager of Bolton Wanderers and Burnley now have to find the right man to replace him as they look to continue the good work this season has produced. It is crucial that the chairman, Barry Kilby, makes the right decision in who to appoint as Coyle’s successor at Turf Moor.

Without wanting to state the obvious, it is paramount to Burnley’s continued success this season that the right man is given the job. That means the chairman has to avoid being star struck when the same old names come calling for the vacancy. Get it right and Burnley’s home form should see them stay up. Make the wrong decision and the club could spiral to the foot of the table in weeks.

Whilst Kilby should be rightly lauded for appointing Coyle in the first place, I don’t think anyone could have predicted just how much of an effect he would have on the sleeping giant. Stabilising the club by keeping them in the Championship and slowly building, improving the side year on year would have been a wonderful achievement. He surpassed all that when they won the play off final with their highest finish to a season since 1976.

Yet, you only have to look back to the mid nineties to see the age old disease that afflicts certain chairman. They get star struck and with the tenures of Adrian Heath and Chris Waddle still in the minds of Burnley fans, the last thing the club needs is a ex-footballer who thinks he can manage in the Premiership. They need someone who knows the demands of Premiership football and what the club means to the fans. It is not an easy decision for the club to make but they have to keep their eye on the prize.

It also means avoiding such arch self publicists as Graham Souness, Ruud Guillit, Bryan Robson and Gianluca Vialli. Men who’s reputations are fanned by the hero worship dished out to them as pundits on Sky Sports. Ignore their failings as managers, they’ve won countless trophies as players, men such as Tony Cottee who took over a Barnet side flying high only to completely destroy them in less than 5 months. Star struck chairman should be banned.

So I had a look on the League Managers Association Website earlier, to see who was available on their list. Oddly, Souness, Vialli and Guillit are still touting their wares, but a couple of oddities appeared. Burnley’s two previous managers before Coyle, the overrated Steve Cotterill and the universally detested Stan Ternent are still on there.  In fact most of the list reads as a who not to give the job too, with John Barnes and Tony Adams still refusing to realise their limitations and the ever popular Gary Megson available if you want to alienate your entire fan base.

Yet there are some stand out candidates, firstly Alan Curbishley is there, as is Mark Hughes and Steve Coppell. Former Scotland manager George Burley and  Paul Jewell are still available. For me, those are the 5 top options of unemployed managers that the LMA are offering. Curbishley wouldn’t probably want to move so far North and probably Coppell is wrestling with the idea of returning to Reading no doubt.

It may be too soon for Mark Hughes to return to the game so quickly after his ignomious exit from Manchester City which leaves Burley and Jewell. Burley proved at Ipswich that he could work on a tight budget, play effective and attractive football and earn promotion whilst at Ipswich. What he has against him is his failure to deal with bigger name players and keep sides in the Premiership. Jewell also has proved an ability to make a purse out of a sows ear, as his spells at Bradford City and Wigan Athletic showed.

Jewell though is still tainted by his awful spell at Derby County and Burley proved in his third Premiership season with Ipswich and during his time as Scotland manager, he just can’t handle big name players. He was also tainted with a torrid spell at Pride Park, which begs the question, what happens to managers at Derby County?? So would going after a manager currently employed be the answer?

Looking outside the Premiership though only seems to point to one candidate who could cope with the job and the pressure of Premier League football. He’s managed an international side and took a team from non league to the cusp of promotion to the Championship. He then took over another sleeping giant and took them up before almost taking them to the Premiership in 2008. That man is Gary Johnson at Bristol City and I believe he’s the only man out there for the job at Burnley.

Now, don’t laugh but I honestly feel he’d be perfect for the job and would keep Burnley up. The only downside is that potentially, Bristol City are a bigger club, with a larger fan base. This season, they’re averaging 14,553 fans a game, whilst Burnley are almost at capacity with 20,344. Promotion for Bristol City would be a massive boost for the area, and with plans to move the club to a 30,000 seater stadium by 2011, with option to increase it to 42,000, would Johnson give all that up for a crack at the Premiership? It’d be a tough ask, but if they could get him, then they should bite his hand off. Just don’t give it to one of the usual suspects, it’d be curtains for Burnley.