Steven Schumacher special

Reaction – and what to expect from the new manager search

Well who saw that coming? Less than a week after the gruelling battle at QPR, and hours after the heroics of Rotherham, the Schumacher era was over.

It’s a kick to the gut. Just a week before Schumacher was telling the Green Army that he was in a great place to learn and grow. He wasn’t in a rush to go anywhere. A few days later, he’s the manager of Stoke City.

We’re certainly moving rapidly through the stages of grief: denial, anger, depression, acceptance. And everyone handles grief differently. But like a failed marriage, we are the innocent, jilted party.

Schuey’s legacy

To some, Schumacher is a snake. A rat who jumped ship just as the going got tough.

Others lament that he deserves our gratitude and best wishes for last season’s heroics. After all, they say, who could blame him for taking higher salary, and perhaps the recognition and status that comes with managing an unarguably bigger team?

I don’t begrudge Schuey his next step. But you better believe that I will be checking Stoke City’s results every week and hoping that they lose.

I also do believe that his reluctance to see out his first year in the Championship tarnishes his legacy as an Argyle great. And my judgement of him as a manager and a man is also diminished, as I feel he leaves unfinished business.

Yes, football is his job and who wouldn’t accept 3x the salary to do their job elsewhere? But football is not a normal job.

It’s also worrying that Schumacher felt that his standing as a Championship manager was at risk – that it was a now-or-never moment to secure his status. If not, why not stay the course of the season before jumping ship?

Just like a post-breakup social media post, it was hard to watch his first interview as a Stoke City manager. It was a reminder that Lowe and Schumacher arrived at Argyle as the ultimate PR men; they know what makes fans tick, and they can ladle it out on demand. He was in full flow.

It naturally makes you wonder how real any of his words were. Who is this Schuey talking up Stoke City’s supposed values? Gone without a word of sorrow or thanks. Our club made him and his reputation, and now it’s one in the eye for us. Deserted at the worst possible time.

How bad is this?

Schumacher’s departure will disrupt the togetherness of the squad. And with the January window about to open, one has to wonder whether any of the squad will receive lucrative offers from Stoke. The likes of Azaz and Cundle, who aren’t under contract at Argyle, could be on their list.

But I can’t help but feel this is a huge opportunity to move the club forward.

The timing is clearly appalling – and that’s a big part of why I’m internally hating Schumacher right now. The Christmas period makes it harder to move quickly, and we have more fixtures. A two week window could theoretically mean just one or two games – we have four.

Schumacher gave Argyle fans some of our greatest memories – but he also came with significant shortcomings.

The away form is an obvious start. Argyle haven’t won an away 3pm kick-off for 14 months. That’s a stat that was starting to become quite worrying.

Then there’s the general quality of defending. While we are an attack-minded team that will always concede plenty of goals, the manner of defending has been concerning. The two goals conceded against Rotherham, particularly the second, should pose serious question of a coach. And those questions could never be asked of Schumacher.

A new manager has the potential to solve some of these problems.

Who might succeed Schumacher?

I am absolutely fascinated to see how the club manages this crucial net step.

There’s a dizzying array of names in the betting, and it seems clear that right now (or at the time of writing) there’s no clear front-runner.

The club is well-run and a contingency for Schumacher’s departure will have been drawn up. That will mean a shortlist of pre-determined candidates from across the footballing spectrum, and I’d expect some left field names to appear, probably from the far-flung corners of European football. See Dick Schreuder.

Naturally, the club will also screen potential candidates that are unemployed that fit the Argyle way.

But here are some expectations it would be prudent to keep in mind:

• It’s unlikely Argyle will pay significant compensation

While Argyle may pay a small fee to get pre-scouted candidates, it seems unlikely we would buy managers out of long contracts at even League 1/2 level.

• The Argyle way

Argyle have a philosophy laid down by the Director of Football Neil Dewsnip, to whom the manager reports.

We have an attacking style, and possess a plethora of wide players, both wingbacks and wingers.

While adaptations will be made for the right manager, the new candidate will need to play attack-minded football either with 3-4-3 or 4-2-3-1/4-3-3, as this fits our personnel.

• Championship experience is unlikely

One sentiment I’ve seen a lot on social media is the need for experience at this level.

It’s highly unlikely that Argyle will pay the wages of an established manager at Championship level. The likes of Tony Mowbray will be on salaries of around £20,000 a week. From the compensation paid, it seems Schuey would have been around £5,000 a week.

Simon Hallett has made it clear that we are an organisation that will develop personnel. That means a development salary – and benefiting from future compensation.

The idea that Argyle would move to appoint Mowbray or (laughably) Steve Cooper is not realistic. Nathan Jones has historically worked on tight budgets and could be affordable, but still could be out of our price bracket.

All I know is that it will be a fascinating week to watch this unfold, and it will be a huge insight into the workings of Argyle, and a huge litmus test of our status, draw, finances and ambition.