A harsh assessment of Mark Robins’ tenure at Coventry City is delivered by Nigel Pearson.
CoventryLive provides Coventry City opposition news as we examine the statements made by Bristol City manager Nigel Pearson in the lead-up to Saturday’s matchup with the Sky Blues.
In spite of the “tolerance of crap” he has had to put up with during his six and a half years back with the Sky Blues, Nigel Pearson has expressed his appreciation for Coventry City manager Mark Robins.
The longest-serving managers in the Championship are Robins and the Bristol City manager. However, Robins has been in charge of Coventry for six years and two hundred and twenty-six days, which is fifth longest tenure among all four divisions. This weekend, Robins will be facing his rival in the dugouts at Ashton Gate.
“Whoa. Doesn’t it simply highlight how fleeting life is? remarked Pearson at his news conference for the rematch after being shown the statistics.
The effort Robins has done to properly rebuild Coventry from the ground up is evident in the team’s performance and progress on the pitch. The 53-year-old has also shown patience in leading the team’s comeback despite significant turmoil and challenging circumstances off the pitch.
Since 2017, they’ve been banished to Birmingham City’s St Andrew’s for protracted periods of time, faced numerous problems with their own stadium (the Ricoh then CBS Arena), and changed owners from the agonising Sisu hedge fund to the powerful Doug King. Despite all of this, Robins and his reliable and powerful deputy Adi Viveash have remained a constant. For Pearson, that is just as noteworthy as the outcomes and advancements he has sparked on the pitch.
“I recall him from Rotherham, and he had a difficult job there,” Pearson remarked prior to Saturday’s match. And when they play at Coventry, sometimes it doesn’t feel like their home because of the rather chilly atmosphere; when you venture beneath the stands, there isn’t much “this is about us,” it’s all very corporate. He has also worked at three different divisions and spent time at (other) “home” grounds.
“They believe in what he’s doing, and he’s tolerated the crap that goes along with it, but there have also been significant challenges off the pitch for him, the staff and the players. He’s had six and a half years, which is a very long time in managerial stints.
As someone who has to deal with the reconstruction of an operation or ensure that there is some clarity on how individuals operate within the organisation, I have a lot more respect for managers in general than for coaches. The management aspect is for teams that are heading in a different path; the coaching aspect is one thing.
Leave a Reply