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A LONG TYNE COMING

by Andy Gray

1st April 2009

Lack of experience means nothing, says Andy

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't surprised by the news that Alan Shearer is to take over at Newcastle for the remaining eight games of the season.

Like many people I felt there have been times in the past when Alan might step forward and have a go, but from his point of view the circumstances have not been right until now.

I suppose the anticipated departure of Dennis Wise means that everything is in place for Alan - and although they are saying it is only eight games, I would tend to think this will be a much longer-term appointment, as long as he and Mike Ashley get on with each other.
Shearer: lack of experience means nothing

Shearer: lack of experience means nothing

I'm pleased that somebody with Alan's profile has decided to put his head above the parapet and take this job.

A lot of people have said this is a situation where he can't lose and I would agree with that. If he keeps Newcastle up it will enhance his reputation even more (not that it needs much enhancing in the North East) and if they get relegated then people will say he didn't have enough time to save them.

Like Alan, I spend a lot of my time sat in a TV studio, but if I suddenly felt I wanted to get back into coaching tomorrow I think I could. It doesn't take long to slip back into a football club and to start working with players on a day-to-day basis.

From his point of view this is a clever move if he is planning to stay long-term. He will get the chance to put his feet under the table and spend a couple of months looking at the staff and players before going into the close season knowing exactly who he wants to keep.

This is also a clever move by the club - as long as they give him something that only Bobby Robson and Kevin Keegan have been afforded in the recent past - and that's time.

Because of his name, I think he will be given time to succeed. If they were looking for one name to bring the fans and the club together then they couldn't have picked a better person.

Perhaps things won't turn out smelling of roses, there's no certainty that Alan will make a great manager, but from Mike Ashley's point of view this is an inspired appointment.
Respect

It does not matter at all that he has not managed a club before. Alan Shearer will command instant respect from the players because of what he achieved as a footballer and he knows enough about the game to do a good job.

I don't agree with the idea that you need managerial experience to do a job like this. He's only going to get experience by going there, coaching the players and picking the team.

Of course, you never know how a great player will make the transition to manager. We saw Roy Keane take Sunderland from the bottom of the Championship into the Premier League, but then he struggled in the top flight and decided to resign.

But Jurgen Klinsmann didn't need any experience before he took Germany to a World Cup semi-final, Franz Beckenbauer didn't manage a club before he took over the national side and Marco van Basten was in a similar position when he took the Holland job.

Kenny Dalglish stepped out of playing and straight into management and he led Liverpool to the double, so there are plenty of great examples of great players making a success of a job - as long as he is given the tools he needs.

Issue

I also don't think the fact he hasn't been involved with the day-to-day running of a football club is an issue.

Like Alan, I spend a lot of my time sat in a TV studio, but if I suddenly felt I wanted to get back into coaching tomorrow I think I could. It doesn't take long to slip back into a football club and to start working with players on a day-to-day basis.

He's watched plenty of football, like I have. In fact, we've probably watched more football than most managers and coaches have so I don't think the fact he's spent most of the season doing TV work is a disadvantage at all.

Alan will bounce into that training ground ready to get to work. He'll probably say to his missus: 'You probably won't see much of me for the next two or three months darling', but that's the nature of the job he's taken.

On the face of things I believe he has all the tools to do a good job, but we'll have to wait and see.

Survive

The good thing for Alan is that Newcastle are only two points away from getting out of the bottom three. It's not as if they are West Brom trying to make up eight points from the last eight games.

This is a club that might only need to win three games to survive and I don't think Newcastle are in as dire a situation as some people would like to paint.

It will be difficult for him to drastically change the tactics in a short period of time, but he will have an idea of the way he wants to play.

He played in a 4-4-2 at Blackburn and played in the same formation at Newcastle for many years, so I'd be surprised if he doesn't adopt a 4-4-2 system.

But whatever his footballing principles are, if the players respond to him, and they should, then we should see an improvement in the next four or five games.

There are plenty of games left where they have a possibility of picking up points. Chelsea on Saturday will not be the easiest game in the world, but Newcastle should be much harder to beat under Alan.

On the face of things, Newcastle have a better chance of staying up now than they did 48 hours ago.