Fox 4 Life Posted 26 January 2006 Posted 26 January 2006 http://www.football365.com/news/story_175278.shtml Craig Levein's exit from Coca-Cola Championship strugglers Leicester was hastened by pressure from the club's furious fans. The 41-year-old left the club on Wednesday along with coaches Peter Houston and Kenny Black after a sixth successive league defeat at Plymouth on Tuesday left the Foxes two points adrift of safety. Davies said: "I have received a lot of e-mails from fans saying they want something done. We have done something now and we are all in this together. We were trying to stick with Craig and work it through, but we are third from bottom with 16 games to go and decided it was time for a change." The Foxes have placed assistant manager and former Leicester midfielder Rob Kelly in charge for the FA Cup fourth-round clash with Southampton at the Walkers Stadium on Saturday and he will be assisted by goalkeeping coach Mike Stowell. Davies stressed that Kelly was in charge on a game by game basis and that it is too early to speculate about Levein's long-term successor. But the chief executive conceded that financial restricts had made Levein's job difficult. Last summer the Foxes released player-of-the-season Keith Gillespie and former England goalkeeper Ian Walker to keep the wage bill down. David Connolly left for Wigan last September after being leading scorer the previous season and Levein signings Mark De Vries, Elvis Hammond and Iain Hulme have been unable to replace him. Matt Fryatt joined from Walsall this month and was on target on his home debut against Cardiff last week, but it was not enough to prevent a 2-1 defeat in what proved to be Levein's penultimate game in charge. The Foxes have recorded just five wins in 29 games in the Championship this season and have taken only two points from their last 10 games.
Babylon Posted 26 January 2006 Posted 26 January 2006 I'd prefer it if the board were astute enough to make the correct decisions on their own without fan pressure.
Ric Flair Posted 26 January 2006 Posted 26 January 2006 I'd prefer it if the board were astute enough to make the correct decisions on their own without fan pressure. Fans are the customers though, it will always have a bearing on the decisions they make. I do know what your saying, but Davies always give me the impression he's abit of an amateur when it comes to making footballing decisions.
Babylon Posted 26 January 2006 Posted 26 January 2006 I do know what your saying, but Davies always give me the impression he's abit of an amateur when it comes to making footballing decisions. Exactly, that's what I mean.
holly Posted 26 January 2006 Posted 26 January 2006 i'm sure part of the decision came from him. just we have him an extra push! but its done now!!
ithuriel Posted 26 January 2006 Posted 26 January 2006 i never ever want to feel that i have to send an e-mail to the club again about the manager.
Phube Posted 26 January 2006 Posted 26 January 2006 But he always did say weeks ago, "we cannot go into League 1" when asked 'will you sack Craig?' I believe he left it until he was certain, a bit like me, that the situation with Craig was irreversable!!
Louise Posted 26 January 2006 Posted 26 January 2006 I'd prefer it if the board were astute enough to make the correct decisions on their own without fan pressure. I agree. I hope that the comments he made about emails were just as a thank-you for people taking the time, rather than a real indication that they'd made the decision for the board. To me its the sign of a very weak board that sways to fan pressure that much and can't make the decision by themselves. If that was the case I'd also worry that they'd panicked and had no proper plan for the future, which is what I'm starting to suspect now.
Babylon Posted 26 January 2006 Posted 26 January 2006 I agree. I hope that the comments he made about emails were just as a thank-you for people taking the time, rather than a real indication that they'd made the decision for the board. To me its the sign of a very weak board that sways to fan pressure that much and can't make the decision by themselves. If that was the case I'd also worry that they'd panicked and had no proper plan for the future, which is what I'm starting to suspect now. I thought it was rather amateurish to mention the emails at all. It seemed to me like he was saying it's what the fans wanted and we have done it. So if it goes tits up don't blame us. I'm also becoming increasingly worried about the lack of other people willing to show their face in times of trouble. I can't help but feel that Davies is being used as a bit of a patsy by the board and Chairman. Ie. if things go wrong he's the public face so he takes all the blame and would get the chop. While the board would still be sitting pretty at the top untouched.
Jon the Hat Posted 26 January 2006 Posted 26 January 2006 I agree. I hope that the comments he made about emails were just as a thank-you for people taking the time, rather than a real indication that they'd made the decision for the board. To me its the sign of a very weak board that sways to fan pressure that much and can't make the decision by themselves. If that was the case I'd also worry that they'd panicked and had no proper plan for the future, which is what I'm starting to suspect now. This is why I think the Chief Exec shouldn't be reading Fan's emails. They should be filtered by a PR person to get a general view, rather than specific extremes. A single email shouldn't be able to sway important decisions.
Ultra Posted 26 January 2006 Posted 26 January 2006 In most large organisations emails are usually filtered by PAs/Secretaries. I don't know why that doesn't apply to the FOXES. But TD, to his credit, recognised the strength of feeling among the fans, and eventually acted on it. If the need arises, we shouldn't be afraid to send him further emails in the future. Maybe he could tell us, for example, the outcome of the survey of fans that took place a few weeks ago.
Collymore Posted 26 January 2006 Posted 26 January 2006 Everyone send the emails again but Edit - Find and Replace -Craig levein with Rob Kelly
Anish Posted 26 January 2006 Posted 26 January 2006 At the end of the day the fans are the life and blood of the club. Without us, the club wouldn't survive. Although I agree with some that Davies should not have mentioned the emails in the conference, the decision was made taking all the factors into account, including fans' emails. I'm sure the emails was not the sole reason for dismissing Levein. And, the club need the fans on their side at this moment in time. They need as many people to come and support the team - which many fans (including myself to an extent) were not doing whilst Levein was in charge. I hope that there is a better attendance on Saturday and in the forthcoming home games to show that Davies made the right decision and that we are all behind the club.
Frenzied Posted 26 January 2006 Posted 26 January 2006 Fan pressure often isn't a good thing - Martin O'Neill anyone?
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.