Schteve McClaren's Managerial Rollercoaster

Steve McClaren became the latest manager this weekend to admit defeat in his attempts to revive Nottingham Forest into a footballing force to be reckoned with. Nigel Doughty, who himself handed in his notice amid the chaos, described the decision to appoint the ex-England manager as "very poor". We must ask ourselves why this is the case? Surely, being able to attract a manager of McClaren's calibre deserves some credit, despite the poor results that followed?

In fact, the opposite is true. McClaren took the job on the understanding that he would be allowed funds to strengthen a squad that was ill-equipped to meet expectations of a promotion push. While 5 players were signed under Steve's stewardship, including Jonathan Greening and George Boateng, a further 9 were let go. That kind of mathematical equation is one that sheds some light on some of his major concerns. He was even refused the opportunity to sign 2 Premier League players on loan. The well-travelled Yorkshireman probably sees himself as someone who is above such a thankless scrap, and does he have a point? While the 'wally with a brolly' had an admittedly miserable time with the English national side, he did provide Middlesbrough with their only ever major trophy. Perhaps even more impressively, he guided the Dutch side FC Twente to a league title, and there is a lot to be said for British managers making names of themselves abroad.

However, at Wolfsburg, he could not repeat the trick, leaving in February earlier this year with the Bundesliga outfit struggling in the bottom half of the table. When you add that to a failure with Nottingham Forest, where does he go from here? Back to Twente? What looked like the potential for a sparkling comeback in his homeland has now turned into another black mark in Steve McClaren's increasingly blotted copybook. I would certainly not put any money on him managing in the Premier League again, as his days were numbered at the City Ground the moment the transfer window closed. He probably wishes he had acted on his original threat to resign, before results took a turn for the worse.

To end on a light note, while his managerial abilities are clearly open to question, I would like him to coach Newcastle for at least one day, give one press conference, and attempt a Geordie accent like he did at Twente. That particular YouTube clip will be forever in my favourite videos collection. Sadly for him, that is probably what I will remember him most for.

Gerard Walton