The Tanner Report: Kit or not?
Saturday’s game against Norwich will be crucial for the appointment or not of Kit Symons. Should we beat high flying Norwich the the job is surely his; if we lose the deliberations will continue, but what happens if it’s a draw?
The momentum is with Kit, very much the popular choice. The criticism is rightly made that owner Shahid Khan is insufficiently attuned to the ethos of our club hence the disastrous appointment of Magath. Kit also has worked with the academy players who are our future. We have suffered 2 defeats under his stewardship but there has beeen consistency of selection, and clearly a much happier vibe off and on the pitch. Yet there is still a residual concern that other candidates notably Chris Hughton have more promotions on their CV. To correct Kit’s lack of experience there is talk of a football director. These rarely work. The lines of management become unclear; it may suit such a person, when the manager is doing badly, to undermine him in the boardroom in the hope that the director gets the job if he is sacked and I can’t think of single club where it has worked and quite a few – like Spurs and Newcastle – where it has not.
It’s a huge decision and Khan’s credibility with the fans is at stake but he must be thinking that if Fulham – like Bolton, Middlesbrough, Blackburn and Leeds -do not get back to the Premier quickly with the parachute payments we will not get back at all in which case the chairman would have lost rather a lot of his money. Yes 4-55 next Saturday is going to be interesting.
We have to appoint Kit. It is the only logical thing to do-especially after the appalling appointment of Magath. If Kit is passed over now, we will not return to him. If we appoint him and it goes badly there will always be someone like Hughton or Steve Clarke waiting in the wings, journeymen managers abound. But to hire a loyal, Fulham centric manager with experience and nouse can only be done now-because the new manager if it is not Kit-will boot him out pronto.