Is Russell Slade Cardiff City's most underachieving manager?

" Is Russell Slade Cardiff City's most underachieving manager? "
By Terry Phillips

Friday 23rd January 2015

Is Russell Slade Cardiff City's most underachieving manager in the last 20 years? No. Dave Jones is, says Terry Phillips

Terry Phillips has been covering Cardiff City for more than 20 years - and saw 15 managers come and go before Russell Slade took charge. But of them all, Terry says Dave Jones underachieved the most

Bookies' favourites to win the League at the start of the season, Cardiff City, it’s fair to say, are the big under-achievers of the Championship.

Given the millions Vincent Tan has ploughed into funding the so-called ‘biggest and best squad in Championship history’, it’s fair to say the Bluebirds are punching well below their weight.

Under first Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, then Russell Slade, Cardiff have had a plethora of playing talent the fans believe their managers have not got the best out of.

In fact, some may argue Slade leads the way when it comes to under-achieving Bluebirds’ managers?

Is the City boss missing the point when it comes to style of football and sheer entertainment?

Should results not be infinitely better than they are, given the depth of talent available to him?

Has he always picked the right players? Has he ignored the ones he should have been picking, Mats Daehli the player the fans keep citing most?

What everyone can surely agree upon is that the squad Slade took over after Solskjaer’s departure was too big, unbalanced and costs were huge.

He was owner Vincent Tan’s personal choice as manager and, as such, will probably be given time to show what he can achieve, even though a swathe of fans are calling for his head.

My personal view is that it’s too early to make judgements that Slade is out of his depth in the Cardiff job and won’t turn this around.

There is an argument for saying Slade must be given time to finish the current phase of his job - and that means to the end of this transfer window and through to the end of this season.

The Bluebirds won’t go up automatically and have only an outside chance of challenging for a top six finish, but they certainly won’t be relegated in my view.

But the fact that they are not challenging for promotion, of course, lends itself to the argument of the sum of the parts not matching up. And it’s up to the manager to make that equation right, which results suggest he isn’t at the moment.

Is Slade the right man? Many fans believe not. Personally I’d say that’s an impossible question to answer right at this moment, but we will know over the next few months.

He has to withstand the intense pressures, which will be tough, and use his experience to see the current situation through to calmer waters.

City fans, though, want to see progress - and fast. Given the talent available to Slade, can you really blame them for wanting a better fare from their team?

It’s clear to me that Slade must have help, either from a director of football at board level, which is badly needed by the club anyhow, or a technical director working closely with the manager.

Craig Bellamy is coaching at Academy level, has a vast knowledge of football at a high level. Would Bellamy slot in, working next to Slade, Scott Young and Tan?

What about Andy Legg, who, like Bellamy, has worked hard on his professional coaching qualifications?

Slade is the current Bluebirds manager under fire, but there have been many under-achieving City managers over the years.

Tan clearly has a big affection for Dave Jones and believes the former City manager would have achieved the same success as Malky Mackay in winning the title if he had been handed similar sums of money.

When I told Tan that Jones had tried and failed to earn promotion six times, the Bluebirds owner said: “He would have taken Cardiff to the Premier League if he had been working with me.”

Slade is facing a tough time. Tan will back his man, but the fans want to see style and better football.

Right at the moment it’s not happening. Anything but, in fact.

Slade is inexperienced at Championship level and has a coaching team which also lacks in-depth knowledge of football at the top level.

But he does have vast knowledge of football and must use every bit of that wisdom as he fights to bring the best out of his Bluebirds.

He has been in charge for 17 matches and the Bluebirds have earned seven wins, seven defeats and three draws.

The next two fixtures, at home against Reading in the FA Cup and then title-chasing Derby, are crucial in the quest to win minds.

Win them and Slade will be offered a little more latitude. Lose, and the vultures will gather even more.

I only started reading the first bit untill he says Dave Jones is then scrolled down to post. How can do be yet he never had a pot to piss in and having to sell are best players when he was here plus he compares to slade who's been here hardly anytime to even get his own team silly media story imo.

We've had so many underachieving managers its hard to say. I dozed off Terry Phillips spouts tosh like there being so much talent at Slades disposal. NO THERES NOT! And, he wouldn't recognize it if we had it anyway. Full stop!

Terry, first of all is talking NONSENSE as Russell Slade has only been in charge for 17 games and your not going to believe this but I cant compare Slade with Dave Jones due to the length of time, 5 years in charge.

Everyone knows he not up to the task. Slade only came because he was on a cheap. I guess nobody did their homework on him properly.

Slade is bargain basement but it's Ole who was a complete disaster.

Millions and millions to spend and one of the least competitive City teams I've ever seen.

Slade deserves some criticism but Ole is the root of our current mess on the pitch (along with Tan's mismanagement of course).