Garry Birtles: Billy Davies would return to Nottingham Forest with a point to prove
NOTTINGHAM Forest have just parted company with Alex McLeish because they did not see eye to eye.
There was a suggestion that there were similar issues before they sacked Sean O'Driscoll, on Boxing Day.
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Billy Davies
The Al Hasawi family have not been on the same wavelength as their last two managers, when it came to their future plans for the club.
And it played a decisive part in two men exiting the City Ground in the space of less than two months.
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They even parted company with Steve Cotterill, within days of their arrival, because they did not feel he fitted their plans for the future.
Given these thoughts, is it wrong of me to have a few reservations about the potential return of Billy Davies?
At a time when the Al Hasawis are desperate to find somebody who can work with them; who can share their vision for the future, does the Scotsman really tick all of those important boxes?
Davies – who seems to be leading the race ahead of Nigel Adkins and Paolo Di Canio, among others – is many things.
When it comes to working with his team, he is an outstanding football manager.
He knows how to get the best from his players, he understands tactics, he knows how to make a team successful.
Players seem to want to play for him. He can turn a dressing room of players into a team. He proved that three seasons running, by guiding Forest away from the relegation zone and then to two consecutive top-six finishes.
That is no mean feat, as many managers, particularly at Forest, have found out since. On that front, he is as well equipped as anyone.
If it was just about that and nothing else, he would be my first choice. He would be an outstanding appointment. But it isn't.
There is a reason why, despite having finished in the play-off places for the second year running, Davies was still subsequently sacked the following summer.
It was because of his relationship with the previous club hierarchy.
That had become so fractious that it actually became more important than his unquestioned abilities as a manager.
Yes, I realise that works two ways. Davies could justifiably claim that he alone was not automatically to blame for that.
But, even before he came to Forest, he had a reputation for being combative, confrontational and demanding.
He certainly left Preston and Derby with similar allegations having been thrown at him.
And, by the end of his tenure at Forest, it was almost all consuming. It certainly threatened to overshadow Forest's play-off clash with Swansea.
It had become a circus. Forest, to be fair, do not currently need any assistance on that front. They have managed to achieve that all on their own, so far.
Fawaz Al Hasawi admitted this week that the last seven months have been "difficult".
I can think of a few stronger words to describe it.
But, it seems their next die has already been cast.
Davies, barring any last minute hitches or twists in the tale, seems close to securing a return to the City Ground.
And, given he is making a fresh start, it is only fair that he is allowed to do so with a clean slate.
You hope the Al Hasawi family are learning from the mistakes they are making in the first months of their tenure.
In their defence, they were always likely to make a few, as they came to terms with the significant demands of English football.
Yes, the ones they have made have been pretty spectacular. Sacking O'Driscoll was the first one.
And things obviously went awry on a number of fronts during January.
But it was always going to take time for them to acclimatise, because Championship football, with respect, is bound to be very different to the game in Kuwait.
But, while they have been on a learning curve, let's not discount another thought.
Maybe Davies has been too.
Who is to say he has not learned from his previous spell in charge?
Who is to say he will not come back with a fresh perspective?
He is clearly a man with a point to prove.
He was offered the job at Blackpool, but turned it down – while telling their chairman that he wanted to pursue another opportunity.
So it seems he might want to come back to Forest.
And the majority of the fans would welcome him back, with open arms, because of what he achieved on the pitch.
But there is also still a fairly large group of supporters who do remain skeptical. I include myself in that group.
I am, however, also ready to be proved wrong. In fact, nothing would please me more.
As the Al Hasawi family look for a manager who will fit in with their own very specific blueprint for the future, Davies would not be at the top of my list of potential targets.
But following a few nasty surprises in the past few months, perhaps it is time for a positive one.
If it does, as most of us expect, end up being a second coming for Davies at the City Ground, perhaps his qualities as a football manager can come to the fore.
And rather than being remembered as a man who talked his way out of a job, he could yet cement a place in history as being the man who took Forest back into the Premier League.
15 Comments
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by Alankwood
Friday, February 08 2013, 5:26PM
“I hope Billy keeps Pembo this time !He is a winner and his heart is with Forest ! Big mistake last time. I hope he has leart his lesson !”
by trickygaz
Thursday, February 07 2013, 8:30PM
“Birtles changes his opinions like the wind.Fawaz has no option but to back Billy,he's publically
stated as much.Now is the time for ALL reds to get behind Billy & the club.”
by tfaulkner
Thursday, February 07 2013, 6:36PM
“Look if Davies gets Forest up will anyone carp about the lack of Academy graduates? Unlikely. If he gets Forest relegated will anyone say but arent the Academy kids in the team doing well? No. Lets get in the play-offs and let the rest take care of itself.”
by farcall2
Thursday, February 07 2013, 11:39AM
“Oldref, will take all comments on board, if Billy is coming,(dont count out someone else), and what you've seen so far, will this be a marriage made in heaven, or a recipe for disaster, WILD BILL couldn't stand the laid back attitude of the previous regime, now will two men come together to.. either push us up, or drag us down, its a roller coaster ride, but will it reach a happy ending.. I wait with bated breath.al”
by oldref
Thursday, February 07 2013, 11:10AM
“farcall2
"Huey, was scraping the reserves a myth
Farcall............. before any scraping could be done by any manager it has to be sanctioned by The Owner, the CEO and in Forests case Pleat as well.
So fans continuously go on that everything that was scraped was Davies with out Doughty, Arthur and Pleat being involved is total nonsense..
If some fans think big changes at any club or work place can be done with out the rubber stamp of the owner are deluding themselves..
On another note.......With the things that have gone off at Forest so far......we should be glad any manager wants to come here for a job.....”
by M15t3rT
Thursday, February 07 2013, 11:09AM
“Huey, you're a deluded mate.
Under BD, the reserves/ development squad were scrapped and the academy was left rotting away. We had only just set up a development squad 6 months ago and this is plain for all to see. These are facts so there's no myths or mouthpieces needed.”
by richardw11
Thursday, February 07 2013, 10:23AM
“Nigel Pearson - returned to Leicester with unfinished business, and he look like taking them up. Tony Pulis was sacked by Stoke 7 years ago - but returned under new owners 12 months later and took them up. Returning to a club can certinly be good for all, as Billy has unfinished business, and the terrible start of 2011-12 can IMO certainly be put down to many players being shocked and peed off that Billy wasn't still there. I can imagine several players walking a bit taller under Billy - and hopefully, he will be given the budget to clear some of the underperfomers out (Collins, Ayala, Gillett, Moussi, McGugan, Derbyshire, Miller, Greening) and get some youth, pace AND WORK ETHIC into the side. And maybe Billy will be the man to turn McLoughlin into a speedy left winger - something we've missed since Tyson left. I know he didnt score goals, but his presence made the pitch bigger - something we've lacked for the past 18 months.”
by farcall2
Thursday, February 07 2013, 10:15AM
“Huey, was scraping the reserves a myth, pray, tell me who sanctioned that. the youth teams I believe have at least 8or 9 internationals, poorly run mate, I dont think so, no reserves no youth, recipe for spending millions on 30 odd year old has beens.. I respect your comment, but it wont cloud my thoughts on what's going to happen very soon..al”
by HueyTheNoose
Thursday, February 07 2013, 9:55AM
“psycho33 Why would the Academy players worry about Davies? Terms like ' Billy scrapping the Academy' obviously come from people that are either ignorant of the facts or were/are Arthur and Pleats mouthpieces. People have jumped on the 'Billy ruined our Academy' rubbish spouted by his opponents. It's a myth. Pemberton left by mutual consent, The club had been in league one for 3 years. Billy wouldn't play Academy players (like every manager since him, and most before) because he was either in a relegation dog fight or a promotion push. What Davies did was tell it like it was. ie. The players in the Academy were just not good enough for the first team. Pemberton, Pleat and Marthur wanted Davies to play kids that were not up to a relegation or promotion fight. And Billy, being Billy said no, and it didn't go down well. In fact, the Academy has been poorly run since Paul Hart left. There's hardly been a long list of talent coming through has there? Doughty (RIP) actually invested 1.5 million in the Academy under Davies. So he obviously did not believe this myth.
As for Garry. You had better start sucking up to Billy mate. Or you will be banished from the CG just like Clark, LIoyd and Burns before you!”
by RobtheRed
Thursday, February 07 2013, 9:46AM
“Usual tripe from Bulsh*t Birtles. The article is the ramblings of a confused, senile old man who says one thing one day and forgets the whole thing the next day says something completely different.
The last manager we need at Forest is a yes man who will be forced to sign 10 kuwaiti unknowns so Fawaz can tweet how proud he is that for the first time in history an English team has fielded a full team of Kuwaiti nationals. We need a manager to stand up to the 'naive' owners who are still learning about the english game, we need a manager who knows the club, knows the division and knows the english game and knows what's best for NFFC, we need a manager who can recommend and advise and get the 'stellar' signings on board needed for promotion. Yes you guessed it we need Gary Megson...
Only kidding, don't get excited Mexico Mart, come home and save us King Billy BUT please don't sack Pemberton and disband the academy, it's our lifeblood.
COYR”