Welcome Roberto Di Matteo and Steve Clarke

[N'ZMAV]

Very happy with Clarke joining us. His experience should be invaluable.

People said the same about Ray Wilkins.

[brian green]

Wilkins has problems Clarke does not have.

[Ian.]

It seems on paper we have a fantastic team behind the scenes. Hopefully they all work well together. It's going to be a very interesting summer with lots of comings and goings. This is actually far better than I would have hoped for at the end of last season.

I'm looking forward to see what evolves.

[Dave]

Wilkins has problems Clarke does not have.

His point is still relevant though.

This isn't the first time in the last five years that we've said "at last we are putting a proper coaching structure in place".

[damon loves JT]

I hope we find a position for Ray Wilkins, maybe locked in a remote barn with half-a-dozen fierce dogs somewhere, with plenty of water but no food

[Risso]

Wilkins has problems Clarke does not have.

His point is still relevant though.

This isn't the first time in the last five years that we've said "at last we are putting a proper coaching structure in place".

Anybody who said it with a straight face in the last few years needed sectioning though, to be fair.

[Dave]

Wilkins has problems Clarke does not have.

His point is still relevant though.

This isn't the first time in the last five years that we've said "at last we are putting a proper coaching structure in place".

Anybody who said it with a straight face in the last few years needed sectioning though, to be fair.

Well, the reason why Clarke is such a great appointment is that he is "regarded as a really good coach" and Chelsea happened to win some trophies while he was coaching there.

Which is precisely the same justification as why Wilkins was a great appointment.

Don't get me wrong, I'm more than happy with how things have panned out on the management side. But all of this "at last, we're finally doing things the right way" has been brought out for each of the last three management teams.

[brian green]

My point remains that when it was said that Wilkins was a great appointment, everything being considered, it was not.  I feel the same way about the appointment of Houllier.

[ChicagoLion]

The football industry all bestow praise on each other, you never hear them say that Paul Lambert is a complete wanker even though we all know he is.

[Dave]

My point remains that when it was said that Wilkins was a great appointment, everything being considered, it was not.

I don't think anybody is really going to dispute that Brian.

But the reasons given for why Clarke is a great appointment, it's not the first time that those exact same reasons have been presented about a new second-in-command on these pages.

[brian green]

Agree Dave.  We, collectively have been too lavish in our expectations in the past and have finished up in tears under the table.  I will settle for the immediate future not being as bad as the immediate past.  Anything more will be a bonus.

[Dave]

I will settle for the immediate future not being as bad as the immediate past.  Anything more will be a bonus.

A solid "amen" to that Brian.

[Clampy]

It's interesting that one of things that put people off Nigel Pearson coming was the fact he'd most likely have to come without his tried and trusted backroom staff, whereas Di Matteo and Steve Clarke have never worked together before.

[supertom]

As far as our managerial and backroom team, the appointments made certainly give me more confidence than I've had in most of the previous set ups we've had in Lerner's time. Hopefully they'll live up to the potential.

[SoccerHQ]

It's interesting that one of things that put people off Nigel Pearson coming was the fact he'd most likely have to come without his tried and trusted backroom staff, whereas Di Matteo and Steve Clarke have never worked together before.

Have to be honest aside from Eddie Newton (surprised he hasn't been tempted to come for now) I have no idea who RDM's actual backroom staff are. Who did  he work with at WBA and Schalke for example.

Kevin Bond seems more of a strange choice but again vastly experienced at least.