“to the end of the season…….no pressure there then.” Vale fans react to Askey appointment

John Askey is the new manager of Port Vale.

The Club unveiled the fifty-four-year-old former Macclesfield and Shrewsbury boss this afternoon.

Askey will take charge until the end of the season and will be joined at Vale Park by his assistant Dave Kevan. He becomes the Valiants fifth manager since 2016, following the spells of Rob Page, Bruno Ribeiro, Michael Brown and Neil Aspin.

He inherits a team eighteenth in League Two, six points clear of Macclesfield Town in the final relegation place. The current campaign is the third season in a row the Valiants have found themselves in trouble at the wrong end of the table.

With the appointment coming less than a week after the transfer window closed, Askey will have to work entirely with the players already at the club unless he can bring in any free agents.

Fans soon took to social media to react to the appointment and the news decidedly underwhelmed many supporters. Others questioned the wisdom of such a short term deal. An undercurrent of relegation fear and hostility towards the owner was also apparent. Here is a selection of their responses to the news on Twitter.

to the end of the season…….no pressure there then

— Rich (@RichyW61) February 4, 2019

Got to get behind the guy I know but why wasn’t this done in December to give him a transfer window and a chance to reshape the squad? 🤨 #PVFC

— Matthew Meakin (@SirMattyboy) February 4, 2019

https://twitter.com/Jubz_Almighty/status/1092452403067138053

Cheap and unimaginative option. Also virtually no football league experience so fits Smurfthwaite’s bill perfectly.

— Joeyw. (@JoeyPVFCwilshaw) February 4, 2019

https://twitter.com/PetejPjvale/status/1092439289319903232

He's as dull & inspiring as dishwater.

— SugarSpunMr (@SugarSpunMr) February 4, 2019

Not the appointment I was hoping for, but we must unite behind the manager and players. #PVFC

— Wayne Fraser (@fraser_fraggle) February 4, 2019

https://twitter.com/chrispearl82/status/1092413961134329856

Not sure I understand the logic of a 6 month contract. Where’s the stability? Asking miracles for him to turn around one of the worst Vale seasons in living memory and then cart him off at the end. He may keep us in the league and then lose his job.

— Video Game Rate (@supfootballers) February 4, 2019