MelvinBragg

Short term, I can see the appeal. I wasn't a massive fan first time round but he got the best out of some players and we were fit. Downside? Need someone to commit 100% not commute twice a week. And he had more quality at his disposal last time. For me, it's a no but I wasn't a fan to start with so probably not the one to ask...

Not suggesting Pressley'll get the job or even that he's favourite but he's certainly in the board's thinking. Track record of working with and developing young players, knowledge of the English market and Scottish football... Former team mate of McManus, McDonald and Pearson. Good thing or bad thing, not entirely sure...

With the talk of Lambert, I find myself wondering how much damage his spell at Villa did to his reputation. I'd have thought he'd have better offers than Dundee United...

Better beard than Baraclough, at least...

I'm told Steven Pressley is a strong candidate... EDIT Easy Target beat me to the punch there. Heard that the board think he fits the profile we're looking for...

Assuming that's who you want as manager? Sadly for us, Lambert (like Billy Davies) still has enough of a reputation down south that he'll be nowhere near the Motherwell job...

Yes, and as you point out, these senior players are all nearing the end of their careers. We need someone with the courage to phase them out gradually and the ability to do so while not affecting team spirit and still picking up results. No one appreciates more than me what the likes of Lasley and Hammell have done for our club, but we have to address the fact that they're not getting any younger and their performances reflect that. Should be looking at bedding in replacements over the course of a season rather than having to replace the heart of the team in a single transfer window next summer...

I think my concern would be that a manager who knows the Scottish game would be too blinded by reputations/status and base his selections on that. We need someone to look at things with a fresh set of eyes and not be afraid to drop the senior players. A sane version of Jim Gannon...

I actually think Moult and Fletcher will work as a pairing. Could have brought Fletcher on for McDonald and Moult could have played a bit deeper where McDonald was playing. Unlike McDonald, he seems to be finding a Motherwell man with a pass from time to time...

Even if that's true, don't want to rush into an appointment simply in case Dundee United are after the same person (and have to figure with his history with them, Paataleinen will feature in their thinking). Let's take (some) time and make the right appointment...

Really like the look of big Kennedy at the back and continue to be impressed by Ainsworth and his improved attitude and work rate. Grimshaw was decent if unspectacular at right back. Pearson makes a huge difference. Now the negatives. Defence was all over the place in terms of organisation in the first half. Keeper was very suspect at the goal. Ball retention could have been better. But it's a win and we scored twice in a league game so not going to be too picky...

If we're playing 352 with Johnson and Ainsworth as wing backs, that is insane...

I suspect that it's 442 with Grisham at right back.. Who's on the bench..?

That struck me as well...

Because...?

Had heard Simo's name mentioned by a couple of people. Get the impression that the club see his appointment as too "left field"...

Could be out of a job soon, then...

Even if he were interested (and after being messed around last year, why would he be?), can't see the club going for Van Der Gaag. Be like an admission they got it wrong last time. Of all the names mentioned here or in the media, those that appeal the most are those that we'd be least likely to attract. Billy Davies or Billy McKinlay would be decent appointments but can't see them coming here. The likes of Allan Johnston and Danny Lennon are probably attainable but would leave me unconvinced. With the international break coming up, reckon we'll have Craigan for the next two games anyway. I reckon we'll make a quicker appointment than last season but will take at least a couple of weeks...

Anyone thinking that Hartley, Hughes or any other SPL manager will leave their post to come to Fir Park is deluding themselves...

For me, when both McCall and Baraclough were appointed, I had no idea who I wanted as manager. Not all the names mentioned horrify me, but none leap out and say "Aye, he's the one I want". I don't follow the lower leagues closely enough to know if Fowler, Aitkem or Naysmith would do a good job or play the style of football we're needing right now. I don't think we're in a position where we're appealing enough that another SPL manager will want to leave their club to come to us. So we're looking at someone out of work just now or a lower league candidate. The thing is, despite results so far this season, I think the raw materials are there for any manager coming in. Properly motivated and organised, I believe we have the players to be comfortably mid table. We have strikers that are scoring goals (maybe not enough thus far but the likes of Moult and Fletcher have a good goals per minutes ratio). Ainsworth has 20 goals and 20 assists in his first two seasons with us, he clearly has the ability to be a weapon at this level. The defence as a unit has been unreliable but individually there are qualities in each of them that suggest that there could be a solid defence there with the right organisation. Midfield is more of an issue, but looking at those players as individuals, are they any worse than those at Dundee, Partick Thistle, Hamilton or Kilmarnock? Not noticeably. For me, we're looking for someone who is a motivator and organiser rather than someone with contacts who'll want to bring in his own players. Who that person is, I have no idea...

With Baraclough, it always seemed a matter of when rather than if he'd go. Beating Rangers twice (irrespective of where they were as a team at the time), should have cemented any Motherwell manager's place with the fans. But it felt as if it was like "Ok, now prove yourself..". For whatever reason, it never felt as if he was going to last. Someone posted stats a couple of weeks ago suggesting that his points percentage was comparable with the likes of Killie, Partick and Dundee United since he came in. So it wasn't simply down to results. Perhaps the abject nature of the performances in games we lost? I bear the guy no ill will. As the phrase goes, no one sets out to do a bad job at their work. Like Gannon and Kampman before him, he was just the wrong guy at the wrong time...

To be fair, probably the reason Lasley hasn't been mentioned as much is that on the face of it, he's been giving it his all this season irrespective of what he thinks of the manager...

Tonight Giles Coke is squaring up against Bastian Schweinsteiger. In what world does that make sense..?

Even first time around, it struck me that McDonald was unlikely to be a positive influence in the dressing room. I had hoped, as he had come across as a bit more mature in his interviews, that it might be different this time around. Sadly not...

Anyone got a link to bookies offering odds on the new manager? Just had Rab McKinnon on the phone with a tip for me...