Bowyer resigns
Lee Bowyer told his players this morning that he will be leaving the club. It is widely expected that he will take over at Birmingham City, who are looking for a new manager after they sacked Aitor Karanka over the weekend.
Rich Cawley has broken the news. The club are yet to make an announcement. More to follow I suspect.
Update: Confirmed on OS.
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Chicago Addick 
Why am I not surprised. The season has not gone well from a supporters point of view. Too many unbalanced performances because the team was changed far too frequently. Im aware we had a lot of injuries which made team selection a nightmare. But I’m referring too, there were far too many changes how could the team gel and play as a team. In my opinion, leave while he still has some credibility on good work done in the past. Am I upset, not in the slightest. New season ahead, this season a washout, new blood new ideas a fresh approach. Sent from my Huawei phone
I agree with grumpy Addick, makes me wonder was he given an ultimatum by Sandgarrd, which Bowyer decided to get out now on his own terms, rather than being pushed! As it seems that from his comments, Sandgaard already has someone lined up as a replacement by the end of the week! Lets face it Sandgarrd is no fool he has seen how badly we have been playing all season apart from the first few games and it hasn’t improved, so I am sure with also advice from others, he was ready with some future plans.
Anyway I wish Bowyer all the best, as he has done us proud in the past, but don’t think there would be much of a future ongoing with him still at the helm, as he has been really struggling.
Lets just hope we now get someone in, who can take us forwards and upwards whilst also bringing back some creative and entertaining play, so we can actually enjoy watching our team again!
Personally, very sad news! We will never know how far LB might have taken our club, lets remember what he achieved when he had little or no support from the now departed Board/Owner. During that time he produced teams that could dominate games, play exciting football and win matches. We should also consider he did this with a succession of some of our best players allowed to leave………Ezri Konsa, Patrick Bauer, Tom Lockyer, Josh Cullen, Karlan Grant, Lyle Taylor, Joe Aribo, Anfernee Dijksteel……….not to mention Nabby Sarr, Dillon Philips and Alfie Doughty In fact from the team that lined up for the play-off final less than 2 years ago, only Pratley and Purrington remain!!!
What happened this season must be every managers nightmare, it’s all been well documented…relegation, 12 players departing during the close season, a transfer embargo, a take-over that was………then wasn’t and then was again, a wage cap imposed during the transfer window and then shortly after the window closed, it was lifted.
If anyone had seen all this in a TV soap they would’ve turned it off after minutes, on the basis that you couldn’t make this up and was simply too unbelievable.
But LB soldiered on through all this, putting a team/squad together of effectively free transfer targets, on minimum salaries and with more than his fair share of team injuries. So is being just outside the play-off zone at this stage of the season such a terrible position………personally I don’t think so.
I would’ve liked to see LB stay, see out the season and allow him the time over the summer to seriously start building his own squad, whether for League One or the Championship we will now never know.
Yes he has lost his way a bit recently but I believe as a team we’re turning that corner now and he’s a young, inexperienced manager, so he’s entitled to have these periods. Lets just hope he doesn’t go to Birmingham and take the coaching team with him.
Anyway………good luck LB, wishing you all the best with a club that can support their manager.
Lampard ?
Pep, Jurgen? š¤£
Well said Trevor – some people have very short memories. I’m not upset given what we have had to watch this season – but just a little sad that he didn’t back himself to sort it out – clearly from his statement he was always going to Birmingham. I wish him every success – except when they play us of course.
How easily people forgive Bowyer for publicly shaming players, idiotic formations, playing people out of position, failing to strengthen at central defence, constant tinkering and never accepting he might actually be the problem.
Goodbye thanks, but he should have gone in December.
You have your wish Daggs. I assume you have been thinking about this for a while – who would you appoint?
I think a caretaker to the end of the season. Curbs would be fantastic, but JJ is more realistic.
Next season we need to start with a top class manager. TS has got the money, he’s got the plan. All he has to do is persuade someone that League one is the first step to the Premier league.
Quite possibly a foreign manager (Danish would be no surprise)