bigmick wrote:I agree with Nanny to be perfectly honest here, it really is the case with managers that you have to wait until they've proved themselves on the way up and then actually in the top flight. This applies unless you go for a big name player who has turned to management, they seem to be occasionally able to get round the problem of motivating big name players by "putting the medals on the table".
All that said, the success of Johnson is startling both in it's magnitude given the rescources at his disposal, and the time it has taken him at each club. There is no doubt that many clubs below the top six or seven in the Premiership will be watching his progress very closely from here on in. Usually what finds some of these blokes out is the Aidy Bothroyd scenario where the percentage route oneish game simply doesn't work in the Premiership. Even Bolton under Allardyce had game breaking quality players and every team needs them in the Premiership if they are to survive.
The bloke who isn't my first choice should Rafa not be here next season but IMHO gets dismissed far too readily is Martin O Neill. Successful at Wycombe, a trophy winner at Leicester (incredible achievement when you think about it) bringing them European football, breaking of the Rangers dominance in Scotland and winning Celtics first title for years, taking Celtic to a European final where they were absolutely robbed by Mourinho's Porto (who of course went on to become European Champions the following season). At Villa he has rebuilt and revamped on a relative shoestring, taking them to the brink of European football and building a team who can give the very best a game on their day. Whenever his name gets mentioned whoever does the mentioning is laughed out of court which amazes me to be perfectly honest.
Mick and Nanny I agree Johnson must prove himself at this level before we can seriously take a look at him, but Everton took a gamble on Moyes and he's doing well considering.
Also Mick, I'm one of these who laughs at O'Neill. I've never rated him personally, but the more and more I watch Villa the more and more I think he knows what he's doing. I'm starting to see why people rave about him so highly. He's invested alot of money and time in young British players. He's taken a pretty average Villa side into a fight for fourth in just two years. But his football method isn't what I'm looking for and is why I don't want him as our manager. He's a longball merchant, like Mourinho. I'm looking for Liverpool to get back to playing football, which is why I'm so keen on Jol taking over. Also Gary Johnson gets his teams playing football, if you'll remember we were taken close by Johnson's Yeovil side in the FA Cup a few years back where we only progressed thanks to a penalty won by a DIVE by Harry Kewell. I want a footballing manager in charge.
OK scrap the international level bit 
His biggest error it would seem to me was in taking the Newcastle job in the first place. That he wasn't given four months there never mind four seasons says probably more about that club than it does about his managerial ability, but the fact remains that if he were to ever prosper at a big club he would have to get his teams to play more football than Bolton did. 
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