Under-fire Carlisle United boss Steven Pressley has issued an emotional battle cry to his underperforming players following Saturday’s 4-2 home defeat at the hands of high-flying Crewe Alexandra.
.@officialcufc manager Steven Pressley says he'll fight on and turn around the club's fortunes after his side lost again on Saturday. pic.twitter.com/Oz2suc8gnH
— ITV News Border (@ITVborder) October 14, 2019
The former Celtic defender was angry at his side’s display and hinted at a lack of determination amongst his players in his comments, but he promised to show the necessary resilience to turn around the club’s fortunes after a poor start to the campaign. He said: ‘I think in time we’ll turn the corners. But when you’re going through difficult periods, it’s normal.’
‘This is part of it. I’ll tell you this; we need to fight, that’s what we need to do, show some resilience, show some fight. That’s what the world needs.’
‘Nobody is more disappointed than me. I’ll continue to work hard with these players, and I’ve seen this all before.’
‘I’ve been through this all before. This is football. And football these days, the moment there’s disappointment everybody wants change. Everybody wants the answers that way.’
‘No! Show a bit of fight. Show the fight. Show the determination. This is football. You don’t get to where you want in life by, you know, putting down the tools on the first sign of disappointment. No, you fight, and that’s a big part of it.’
The former Coventry City and Fleetwood Town boss has been in charge of the Cumbrians since January, but they’ve struggled in League Two this season and sit twentieth after just four wins in their first thirteen games. This follows a disappointing campaign last season which did show much early promise. The club was challenging for promotion at Christmas until the sudden resignation of John Sheridan to manage National League Chesterfield led to a dramatic drop in form in the new year.
Pressley and his troops make the long journey south to Plymouth on Saturday and the forty-six-year-old knows another defeat will see further questions asked by fans over his future at the club.
Our View
Oh dear, Pressley is starting to look increasingly like a manager who has lost his way.
It is a shame, but it just doesn’t seem to be working at the moment, and the squad appears to lack the necessary fight to pick up points in League Two regularly.
Indeed, local pundit Chris Lumsdon recently questioned the player’s attitude in the press.
There are many problems at Carlisle and changing the manager is not necessarily the answer, but Pressley’s position is looking increasingly untenable, and it would be a surprise if he is still at the helm by the time the transfer window opens in January.
We hope for his and for the sake of the club’s long-suffering supporters he can turn it around, but the omens do not look good.
