Echo News Comment: Lack of communication led to Sol Campbell's downfall at Southend United

[Evening Echo]

AFTER just three managers in the space of 15 years, Southend United are now on the look-out for their fourth permanent boss since the start of 2018.

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[jaffa1]

Figures, I was told he was still calling out squad numbers on the training pitch, rather than player's names, well after his arrival.

 

[KiwiRob]

Sol Campbell inherited a really tough situation at Southend and I think he felt understandably shafted by the Chairman. After all, the Chairman promised he would be able to bring in five players during the January Window but Sol was not permitted bring in one new face because we were embargoed and still are apparently.

Sol may not be the greatest communicator but the record suggests the Chairnan is not particularly good on that front either. I think Sol Campbell will be a successful manager at another club, but he should have been given the chance at Southend to bring in the two Macclesfield lads. In some ways, one could argue Campbell had even less support at Southend than he did at Macclesfield.

Whoever comes into the hotseat now must be able to run the team on a shoestring, and it is no good the Chairman claiming it will be a big club in Division 2 when the club clearly cannot pay its way at the moment. It would good if the Chairman was straight with supporters and acknowledged the club was subject to a transfer embargo and explained how the Board was going to get it lifted to support the incoming manager.

 

[CaptainSmudger]

Sol Campbell inherited a really tough situation at Southend and I think he felt understandably shafted by the Chairman. After all, the Chairman promised he would be able to bring in five players during the January Window but Sol was not permitted bring in one new face because we were embargoed and still are apparently.

Sol may not be the greatest communicator but the record suggests the Chairnan is not particularly good on that front either. I think Sol Campbell will be a successful manager at another club, but he should have been given the chance at Southend to bring in the two Macclesfield lads. In some ways, one could argue Campbell had even less support at Southend than he did at Macclesfield.

Whoever comes into the hotseat now must be able to run the team on a shoestring, and it is no good the Chairman claiming it will be a big club in Division 2 when the club clearly cannot pay its way at the moment. It would good if the Chairman was straight with supporters and acknowledged the club was subject to a transfer embargo and explained how the Board was going to get it lifted to support the incoming manager.

Spot on KiwiRob ?

 

[Supershrimper]

Sol communicated. It was just via cryptic instagram posts that noone could decipher

 

[rlb999]

Am I the only one who doesn't give a monkeys if the players did or didn't like Sol? My gut instinct is we're better off with a manager who they don't like - because when we have one they do (Powell?) they take liberties.
Whether they liked him or not, he took a team that regularly shipped 3 or 4 goals, cleared out the senior pros, brought in kids, and left us with a team that ships 1 or 2 goals and is improving. He left us in a better placed than he found us (even in the context of our dire season) which is something that most managers do not achieve.

 

[Medway Blue]

Am I the only one who doesn't give a monkeys if the players did or didn't like Sol? My gut instinct is we're better off with a manager who they don't like - because when we have one they do (Powell?) they take liberties.
Whether they liked him or not, he took a team that regularly shipped 3 or 4 goals, cleared out the senior pros, brought in kids, and left us with a team that ships 1 or 2 goals and is improving. He left us in a better placed than he found us (even in the context of our dire season) which is something that most managers do not achieve.

Too many people equating players not being close personally with their manager, with openly and actively disliking him. It's not a black or white thing and there are important differences between the two. I would suggest that the vast majority of football players won't be overly chummy, close personally or socialising regularly outside of football with their manager - as long as they respect them and support them professionally, that's all you really need.

When you have players actively hating their manager on every level like we did (and with good cause), then respect goes out of the window. That's the situation you don't want.

 

[GBJ]

Too many people equating players not being close personally with their manager, with openly and actively disliking him. It's not a black or white thing and there are important differences between the two. I would suggest that the vast majority of football players won't be overly chummy, close personally or socialising regularly outside of football with their manager - as long as they respect them and support them professionally, that's all you really need.

When you have players actively hating their manager on every level like we did (and with good cause), then respect goes out of the window. That's the situation you don't want.

Precisely. There’s a fine line between liking someone and respecting someone.

You can respect someone without liking them, but once that respect is gone, you’re onto a slippery slope, that will inevitably end in tears.

 

[KiwiRob]

Precisely. There’s a fine line between liking someone and respecting someone.

You can respect someone without liking them, but once that respect is gone, you’re onto a slippery slope, that will inevitably end in tears.

GBJ, I absolutely agree with you. Indeed, it is essential for a manager to be respected rather than liked because he will sometimes have to make demands that are unpopular with certain players but necessary for the team as a whole. And many football managers weaken their authority in relation to their players by having favourites in the squad or trying to be overly familiar with certain players or their partners.

From what I can read and see, Craig Fagan comes across as being professional and accessible but is clearly a demanding and organised coach. In short, Fagan's sense of commitment and judgement on playing matters are things that win respect from players rather than trying 'to be one of the lads'.

 

[OldBlueLady]

Respect has to be earned, and I don't think he did anything to earn players' respect. Common decency means people are given a chance initially, but he seemed to purposefully set out to negate that chance by belittling (or trying to) some players - in one case, to his certain detriment.

 

[Chris Powell's mate]

Sol was never a good fit for Southend - or Macclesfield, for that matter.
I agree there are far too few BAME managers in the Football League, but one never got the idea a man used to the good life with Arsenal and Spurs was going to serve the tea at a League 1 training ground, or whatever humble task suits the analogy.
As CP writes, it was often more about what he didn't have, than making better use of what he did.

 

[camden shrimper]

Quite frankly, he was a gamble, an expensive one, that didn't pay off. The fractured nature of the season and relationships absolutely didn't help.
Let's get a manager to coach and manage not based off of what they've achieved as a player but what they are capable of now as a coach.

 

[Ricey]

Respect has to be earned, and I don't think he did anything to earn players' respect. Common decency means people are given a chance initially, but he seemed to purposefully set out to negate that chance by belittling (or trying to) some players - in one case, to his certain detriment.

I never understood why he didn’t give Hutchinson a proper run out.

 

[rlb999]

I never understood why he didn’t give Hutchinson a proper run out.

Agreed about Hutchinson. But I still don't understand the signings of Dieng, Mantom, Lennon, Shaughnessy, Ralph, Milligan, Hyam - so there's lot's more I don't understand about Powell & Bond's management than about Campbell's.

 

[Rayleigh boy]

Figures, I was told he was still calling out squad numbers on the training pitch, rather than player's names, well after his arrival.

this is interesting .... sounds like good high tempo - hands on training

 

[Rayleigh boy]

AFTER just three managers in the space of 15 years, Southend United are now on the look-out for their fourth permanent boss since the start of 2018.

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Comment: Lack of communication led to Sol Campbell's downfall at Southend United


an interesting spin on the situation .....

:: Not the non payment of wages

:: Not the embargo

:: Not the false promises (Macc lads etc)

:: Not the selling of our best player

:: Not a bunch of unfit demoralised players

:: Not a toxic culture in the dressing room ...

:: Not an inabilty to coach and improve players

:: Not a chairman with a strong agenda outside football

:: Not the inabilty to make a squad of kids competitiive

:: Not because he stood like a lemon in the touchline (he always coached for the 90)

:: Not because he did not keep club engagements -

:: Not because he did all the pre-match an post match press


.... its all because he did not "communicate"...


Very Puzzling article,,,,

 

[GBJ]

Figures, I was told he was still calling out squad numbers on the training pitch, rather than player's names, well after his arrival.

For a long time he thought Milligan was called Mulligan

He also thought Rob Kiernan’s name was Kieran.

 

[KiwiRob]

Comment: Lack of communication led to Sol Campbell's downfall at Southend United


an interesting spin on the situation .....

:: Not the non payment of wages

:: Not the embargo

:: Not the false promises (Macc lads etc)

:: Not the selling of our best player

:: Not a bunch of unfit demoralised players

:: Not a toxic culture in the dressing room ...

:: Not an inabilty to coach and improve players

:: Not a chairman with a strong agenda outside football

:: Not the inabilty to make a squad of kids competitiive

:: Not because he stood like a lemon in the touchline (he always coached for the 90)

:: Not because he did not keep club engagements -

:: Not because he did all the pre-match an post match press


.... its all because he did not "communicate"...


Very Puzzling article,,,,

Rayleigh boy, you make some important points. Sol Campbell inherited a very tough situation, which was worsened by the fact the Chairman taking so long to replace Bond. I do not understand the relationship between the Chairman and the Board at Southend. Everything seems to depend on the Chairman and that is certainly not the case at all clubs.

Sol Campbell is the first Southend manager I can recall that was not allowed to bring in a single new player on his watch. Talk about having your arms tied behind your back!

One of the communication problems that Chris Phillips did not mention was the fact that Sol Campbell refused to lie about why he was unable to bring in new players. He basically told the media that they would have to direct this question to the Chairman, and I am sure the Chairman was not amused by that frankness.

I am disappointed that Sol Campbell left. There were signs he was definitely improving the team. I was hoping Sol was going to announce after relegation he was cutting his management team to two (from four people) and was prepared to take a pay cut himself in order to get the job done at Southend.

But Sol did not appear willing to adapt to the ways of the basement football environment and probably did not trust the Chairman. So it is probably best for all concerned that he departed.

It is time the Chairman stopped this infatuation with big names, and I think the club needs realism and a clear sense of direction in a footballing sense now. A good move, I believe, would be to appoint Craig Fagan as caretaker manager immediately and see how things shape up. Paying compensation to Millwall or Bristol Rovers for the release of Adam Barrett or Kevin Maher is probably not wise given the current financial plight of Southend.

 

[Rayleigh boy]

Definitely best he left ....

 

[Chris Powell's mate]

Rayleigh boy, you make some important points. Sol Campbell inherited a very tough situation, which was worsened by the fact the Chairman taking so long to replace Bond. I do not understand the relationship between the Chairman and the Board at Southend. Everything seems to depend on the Chairman and that is certainly not the case at all clubs.

Sol Campbell is the first Southend manager I can recall that was not allowed to bring in a single new player on his watch. Talk about having your arms tied behind your back!

One of the communication problems that Chris Phillips did not mention was the fact that Sol Campbell refused to lie about why he was unable to bring in new players. He basically told the media that they would have to direct this question to the Chairman, and I am sure the Chairman was not amused by that frankness.

I am disappointed that Sol Campbell left. There were signs he was definitely improving the team. I was hoping Sol was going to announce after relegation he was cutting his management team to two (from four people) and was prepared to take a pay cut himself in order to get the job done at Southend.

But Sol did not appear willing to adapt to the ways of the basement football environment and probably did not trust the Chairman. So it is probably best for all concerned that he departed.

It is time the Chairman stopped this infatuation with big names, and I think the club needs realism and a clear sense of direction in a footballing sense now. A good move, I believe, would be to appoint Craig Fagan as caretaker manager immediately and see how things shape up. Paying compensation to Millwall or Bristol Rovers for the release of Adam Barrett or Kevin Maher is probably not wise given the current financial plight of Southend.

Head, nail on... ?