Walsall fans could have been forgiven for thinking their luck was in this season; following relegation from League One they bagged a manager with a great record at Bristol Rovers.
With eight games of the new season gone, the pressure is already increasing on Darrell Clarke and he’s admitted to the Express and Star that he’s failing in his job.
The Saddlers have not won a game since the opening day of the season in all competitions and are just three points off the bottom of the table, with only two points the difference between them and the relegation spots.
Following a 1-0 defeat against Bradford City this weekend, their sixth game in seven without a goal, Clarke admitted that both he and his side were failing in their task.
“At the minute we’re failing miserably, I’m failing miserably, I lead the troops and we have to do a lot, lot, lot better than we have been,” he said.
“I know it’s boring and fans will be sick of hearing it but you have to keep working with it and working with the players and changing the mindset of the players in that final third, you keep doing that and eventually it’ll turn.”
The lack of goals is a real concern, the Saddlers have only scored three in the league this season after having lost Andy Cook and Morgan Ferrier over the summer.
“I’m sick of saying it, five, six weeks we’ve hammered our forward play, we’ve hammered our work and in training the ball is hitting the back of the net but in matches it’s not going anywhere near it, so we’ve got to keep working and drilling it.”
The next two matches are crucial to Clarke’s future at the Bescot. His side travel to Morecambe this evening, the side directly below them in the table, before hosting Scunthorpe United on Saturday, the side currently second from bottom.
Our View
‘Eventually, it’ll turn’ – that’s all well and good but Clarke might not get time to see that happen. If he doesn’t get at least three points from the next two fixtures, his position is going to become untenable. Even at this early stage, there has to be signs of worry.
How often do teams suffer successive relegations? Chesterfield did, Tranmere did, Leyton Orient did too. The lack of morale is a real problem and unless they get things right quickly, they’ll be embroiled in a battle against the drop.
That means games that are more like a war, solid sides aiming not to get beaten at the Bescot and a desperate need for one commodity Clarke’s side don’t have; goals.
We like Clarke here at the Real EFL, he did a great job with the Gas over a number of seasons, but right now he’s on very dangerous ground indeed.
