Presumably Coates was passed a list of available managers and plumped for the only one he'd heard of. There's no other explanation.
Apparently Pardew was Albion's 8th choice manager. I wonder how far down Stoke's initial list of managers Lambert was?Mind bogglingly lazy appointment. And none of this contract til the end of the season stuff, the lucky chancer gets a 2.5 year deal!
I like the bit in the club statement where the chairman says he does well in stable clubs with local ownership. AHA! Neatly sidesteps his record managing us then ...
It's not often that I feel sympathy for Stoke City.My thoughts are with them at this very sad time.