Assuming that Westley is not going to get the push this week, which now seems plausible, what future can he have at PNE?
Firstly, let me say that he was not my preferred choice to replace Phil Brown (he probably wasn’t in my top 5), and I’ve been on the fence about his position for most of his tenure. Though obviously I have always wanted him to succeed.
The key thing with me for any manager is the ability to be able to learn and improve – basically that’s what should come with experience. You need to have made mistakes to be able to learn from them. The trick is to not repeat them.
Westley needs to learn primarily in three areas:-
Firstly, he needs to focus on the football. He’s relatively new to managing at this level. Is he a one trick pony that’s now been found out? Given what his done with his life thus far, I have to assume that he’s not a stupid man. Therefore, can he become more aware with his team selections and more astute with his tactics? Recent events show this not to be the case. Why? Is he really ignorant when it comes to football? Is he just stubborn? Is he trying to be a maverick? Whatever the answer, it’s not working. He needs to get back to basics; instil some belief in his players, give them confidence (especially at Deepdale) and keep things simple. He needs to play players in the right positions. And he needs to pick players who are in form. Then he can focus on the tactics. In this regard he seems to have gone backwards. PNE suit 4-4-2. Go back to this. It’s the simplest formation to turn to when things are against you, especially with the squad that we have.
Secondly, he needs to learn from his mistakes in the transfer market. I’m not going to go through all his signings here, but there’s been too many failures. Obviously managers don’t always get it right with signing new players but too many of GW’s signings have lacked one or more of the necessary requirements of ability, application, drive and bottle. I realise that he’s had to sign a lot of players so that makes it harder. What I want to see is, if he is allowed to bring loan players in, will they be an improvement on what he’s already brought to the club?
Finally he needs to work on his PR. He talks a good game. But that’s part of the problem. So far, he has over-promised and under-delivered. He really, really needs to learn when to say nothing. Keeping quiet apart from saying the bare minimum to keep the press happy is so much better than giving a long speech that can only come back to bite him on the arse. He leaves himself wide open to criticism and pressure, which in turn, infects the players. He also needs to win the fans back.
The way I see it, his only path to salvation is to show that he is still learning and that he is willing to admit that some things he has tried haven’t worked. He has to admit to himself when he gets things wrong and avoid repeating the mistakes. That is the only way he can take the club forward.
Finally, he also needs, along with his back room staff, to not bring the name of PNE in to disrepute. Far too many times under his tenure, he or Dino, and thus PNE, seem to have been involved in unsavoury incidents. We are a traditional, family club with a proud heritage. If he wants to keep his job, he needs to learn this too.
Whether or not he’ll get the time to learn, only one man can decide that.
Firstly, let me say that he was not my preferred choice to replace Phil Brown (he probably wasn’t in my top 5), and I’ve been on the fence about his position for most of his tenure. Though obviously I have always wanted him to succeed.
The key thing with me for any manager is the ability to be able to learn and improve – basically that’s what should come with experience. You need to have made mistakes to be able to learn from them. The trick is to not repeat them.
Westley needs to learn primarily in three areas:-
Firstly, he needs to focus on the football. He’s relatively new to managing at this level. Is he a one trick pony that’s now been found out? Given what his done with his life thus far, I have to assume that he’s not a stupid man. Therefore, can he become more aware with his team selections and more astute with his tactics? Recent events show this not to be the case. Why? Is he really ignorant when it comes to football? Is he just stubborn? Is he trying to be a maverick? Whatever the answer, it’s not working. He needs to get back to basics; instil some belief in his players, give them confidence (especially at Deepdale) and keep things simple. He needs to play players in the right positions. And he needs to pick players who are in form. Then he can focus on the tactics. In this regard he seems to have gone backwards. PNE suit 4-4-2. Go back to this. It’s the simplest formation to turn to when things are against you, especially with the squad that we have.
Secondly, he needs to learn from his mistakes in the transfer market. I’m not going to go through all his signings here, but there’s been too many failures. Obviously managers don’t always get it right with signing new players but too many of GW’s signings have lacked one or more of the necessary requirements of ability, application, drive and bottle. I realise that he’s had to sign a lot of players so that makes it harder. What I want to see is, if he is allowed to bring loan players in, will they be an improvement on what he’s already brought to the club?
Finally he needs to work on his PR. He talks a good game. But that’s part of the problem. So far, he has over-promised and under-delivered. He really, really needs to learn when to say nothing. Keeping quiet apart from saying the bare minimum to keep the press happy is so much better than giving a long speech that can only come back to bite him on the arse. He leaves himself wide open to criticism and pressure, which in turn, infects the players. He also needs to win the fans back.
The way I see it, his only path to salvation is to show that he is still learning and that he is willing to admit that some things he has tried haven’t worked. He has to admit to himself when he gets things wrong and avoid repeating the mistakes. That is the only way he can take the club forward.
Finally, he also needs, along with his back room staff, to not bring the name of PNE in to disrepute. Far too many times under his tenure, he or Dino, and thus PNE, seem to have been involved in unsavoury incidents. We are a traditional, family club with a proud heritage. If he wants to keep his job, he needs to learn this too.
Whether or not he’ll get the time to learn, only one man can decide that.
