The sacking of Sam Allardyce has caused widespread shock, both in Blackburn where it has been criticised in an editorial by the local evening paper, and in football more generally. Allardyce’s personal style may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but he should be judged primarily by results. He led them clear of relegation in the 2008-9 season before guiding them to an impressive tenth place last season.
The sacking of Sam Allardyce has caused widespread shock, both in Blackburn where it has been criticised in an editorial by the local evening paper, and in football more generally. Allardyce’s personal style may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but he should be judged primarily by results. He led them clear of relegation in the 2008-9 season before guiding them to an impressive tenth place last season.
According to Anuradha Desai, the chairwoman of Indian poultry firm Venky’s who now own the club, Allradyce had been sacked because his brand of football was not entertaining enough for their liking. She said they ‘wanted good football, wanted the games to be interesting’. Of course, that partly depends on how the other team plays. If the opposition goes for dour defensive tactics, it can kill off the game.
However, it is clear that the new owners have broader ambitions than entertainment on the pitch, seeing Blackburn as a top four club. It did, of course, win the Premiership title in 1995. In some respects, however, the gap between the leading clubs in the Premiership has widened since then, albeit that Liverpool have fallen back and will take three to five years to recover fully according to their chairman.
The club had a turnover of just £50.9m in the 2008-9 season, less than Hull City. In the teeth of the recession, they have had to come up with innovative ticketing policies to keep attendances between 23,000 and 26,000. That’s good, considering that the town’s population is 100,000. The area in which I live has a similar population and can only sustain a third tier non-league club.
Ambition is often called for in football, but it has to be realistic ambition. If the owners’ goals are not easily achieved, as seems likely, let’s hope that they don’t become disillusioned with their purchase.