Dear Russell...

Dear Russell,

Now you’ve penned your Leyton Orient resignation letter, I thought it best to write a quick note just before you take the plunge with Cardiff City.

After all, forewarned is forearmed and all that.

Because while there had been much sympathy of the situation you were placed in having done a tremendous job with the O’s, don’t think life is suddenly going to get any less complicated.

In many ways, it’s a good job you don’t have any hair left to lose or tear out for that matter.

Because while you may see this as a deserved opportunity to make the leap up a division – and after two League One manager of the Year awards, it probably is – don’t let us pretend the hard work is over.

Perhaps you have been stung a little by the criticism you have received before even stepping one foot over the Severn, with plenty questioning your credentials to take charge of a team looking for a return to the Premier League given you have never steered a team to promotion nor even tasted life outside the bottom tiers.

But whether that’s fair or not for a man with 20 years in the game, that’s the reality of what you’re facing by taking over from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

That’s what is going to be in the heads of the players from a bloated Bluebirds squad you are now in charge of, just as it is in the minds of fans who still aren’t quite sure what to make of the past fortnight’s events.

Which means you have no option but to start proving people wrong from minute one.

And it is the first group that are the most important. Get that right and the rest will follow.

It won’t be the first time a manager has stepped foot in a club with a need to win over players. For all Brendan Rodgers had achieved with Swansea, the Northern Irishman had the immediate task of proving to Liverpool’s stars whether he was worthy of being the main man at Anfield.

Rodgers, like you and unlike the last manager at Cardiff who could easily answer the old demand to ‘show us your medals’, had no playing pedigree of note to fall back on and so had to rely on his coaching methods to convince. He did that, the results came and the fans and patience followed.

Get players to buy into what you’re doing – as Solskjaer seemed to fail to do – and you’re on your way.

Football is the same whether in the Sunday League or in the Championship but players who were playing top-flight football just a few months ago will need to see that you know what you’re talking about, that the changes you have to make has a chance of success.

Because let’s not kid ourselves, success will only mean promotion.

You have a fine track record of fighting fires and there’s plenty to put out at Cardiff City Stadium. But even if expectation levels have rightly or wrongly dropped because you’re not the big name appointment Cardiff fans were preparing themselves for, you can’t imagine owner Vincent Tan will happily take a plucky push for the top spots. Without going into too much detail about the owner, it’s safe to say he’s not exactly the type to tolerate failure.

Steering sides away from trouble as you have done is admirable, but the room for error in gaining promotion is far less than simply staying out of the relegation spots.

It may seem that much is being asked of you but, again, that’s the reality.

The squad is good enough so it’s no longer a case of gaining credit for taking a plucky underdog to the play-offs. You’re among the big boys now, deal with it.

Because that’s what supporters will want to see. Don’t be fooled into thinking that steadying the ship will be enough. Given you are now the man in charge of their team, you will get the backing of fans.

But there are plenty among them that are expecting you to fail and won’t be shy in letting you know if their fears look like being confirmed. The work you did in establishing a relationship with Orient fans starved of success counts for very little here I’m afraid.

There are more simple, if no less important, football matters to deal with. Like getting a playing identity and a settled structure that has been lacking, like improving fitness that has been appeared to have been missing, like forming a team spirit that has been lacking after months of losing games. Indeed, the reputation for man-management you have gained will need to be shown as much as a tactical nous that you have what it takes to turn under-achievers into achievers.

Players have been signed as first-team players yet you have to make the calls on who you trust in your team and stick to it, all done without upsetting a morale that can’t be much higher than just off the dressing room floor.

And it all has to be done very, very quickly indeed if you are to give yourself any chance of making this work long-term. Or even mid-term.

No doubt you are relishing the chance of making many eat their words and you feel you are ready to test yourself at this level to make sure the name of Russell Slade is taken a little more seriously than it has in recent days.

In that we wish you well – but let’s not pretend you haven’t got your work cut out.

It is a challenge any manager might be wary of, but also an opportunity.

Here’s to you taking it.

Yours in sport,

Chris Wathan (Football Correspondent)

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/copy-liverpool-fc-boss-brendan-7831409

 

All the best Russ, you'll need it!...........................

 

I'd be more concerned with the fact that Glenn Rodent is being lined up as your director of football, God help you you gonna need it. That man ripped the heart and soul out of our club and although he kept us up when he first arrived he is without doubt the man responsible for our drop to the third tier of English football for the first time in FIFTY years. He is depised with such venom in Norwich that you would not believe, notwithstanding the fact that he once said that our current manager "couldn't manage a team of kids", he is a nasty pig of a man. His treatment of the legend that is Darren Huckerby was dispicable and he even sacked the kit man FFS !
Put it this way, I very much doubt he'd show his face at Carrow Road in our return fixture later this season.

 

It does make my skin crawl that he has weasled his way into our club.
Don't know if Slade can do a job for us but I'm guessing that if it wasn't for Roeder he wouldn't have been considered.
And so it starts.

 

I do feel we, the people from Norwich,owe you an apology .It seems that spanking you the other week at home, has started off this chain of events which has led to you looking to employ that vile Rodent as your director of football.
I personally am very sorry that this has happened and hope you can find forgiveness for the people of Norfolk. Our thoughts and prayers are with you all.

 

He's a nasty vindictive man. Shouldn't be allowed anywhere near a good club like Cardiff.

 

We are used to it. The amount of muppets we've had associated with the club over the years is ridiculous. Nothing shocks us anymore.

I'm not even pissed off about things now. I just shake my head nowadays and roll my eyes. It can only get worse

 

Big fans of Roeder then?

You did us a favour by pushing Ole to the brink. He was totally f**ing clueless from the minute he got here.

 

At this rate George Bush Jnr will be given a job at Cardiff .

 

Man that's one hell of an exaggeration if you ask me!....................

 

We didn't

 

Pack it in Phil.

 

First job, 24/7 drone surveillance of the caravans....

 

What is the thinking behind such a lowly manager in slade by tan.?? He would not figure in any other championships mind in a million years as he dont have a track record that suggests he is the right manager, He was going to be sacked two weeks ago for being crap so this appointment pending by tan don't make any sense at all...

 

As usual Tan is being badly advised, he has no football sense and relies on others.
I smell Sam hamman, Jones and Roeder in the backround, anyone of them could be causing us untold problems.

 

He wan manager of the year last year and is loved by the orient fans, do some research all of you and imo he's a good appointment a man manager for the players and fans

 

For the last few days I've done nothing but read up on him.
As for the orient fans, there are quite a number who are happy he has gone

http://leytonorientforum.co.uk/topic3425.html


And this sounds alarmingly familiar

Taken from their board:


Re: Slades home record since September 2013

PostPosted by PoundhillO » Thu Sep 25, 2014 6:24 pm

jamie9456 wrote:It'll pick up.

I would be far more concerned if we couldn't win away. Home form is more easily rectified.




Slade wasn't capable of doing it, playing players out of position and the team playing negative boring football .
Bring on our new Manager, he can't do any worse at home than Slade in a year.





Still we wait and see, but this shouldn't be a first choice manager for us, we have to hope he can do something with the shambles we have.

 

Gawd help us - he'd even try to read out the team sheet upside down. However, would rather a bush managing the club than some of the dix we've had in the past.

 

Have Orient accepted his resignation?

I would have expected them to refuse it and then try and screw as much compensation out of VT as is possible?

 

Same old few swans trying to derail, 1 more and I'm gone from this forum.