BEVERLY HILLS, May 09, (THEWILL) – For the first time in his managerial career, the English coach Sam Allardyce will be relegated as English Premier League club Arsenal bundled out his West Bromwich Albion side with a 3-1 at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday with goals from Emile Smith-Rowe, Nicolas Pepe and Willian.
Big Sam, as he is fondly known, was brought in on an 18-month contract in December last year, after Slaven Bilic was sacked with the club second from bottom in the standings, specifically to embark on keeping them from relegation, what was considered Mission Impossible even for Allardyce’s renown of always surviving the drop with his previous teams. This was a bridge too far.
He may have managed Bolton avoid relegation with a final day win over Middlesbrough in the 2002/2003 season with Nigerian playmaker Austin “Jay Jay” Okocha in his squad, he may have successfully led Sunderland to safety from relegation after beating Everton 3-0 in May of the 2015/2016 campaign, he may have helped Crystal Palace confirm their safety from relegation in the penultimate game the following season with a 4-0 victory over Hull City at Selhurst Park, but he could not do another.
A Smith-Rowe volley on the half-hour mark, Pepe’s unstoppable drive from the edge of the box and a converted free kick from William confirmed beyond all doubt that West Brom would be playing Championship football again next season as Matheus Pereira’s goal for the visitors was scant consolation.
Ahead of the match, when Allardyce was asked if he felt sorry for Arsenal boss, Mikel Arteta over the troubles the Gunners’ Manager was facing after being knocked out of the UEFA Europa League, Allardyce was brutally direct: “Do I feel sorry for him? No, we don’t feel sorry for ourselves, we all feel the pressure, we all want to win.
“It’s difficult when you experience it for the first time and how he comes out of it will determine his career going forward.
“It’s how good his backroom staff is now, how well he’s lifted by what he or his staff believe in and continuing to plough forward irrespective of what criticism he may be getting.”
He stated the fact about coaching in modern day Football: “It’s a lonely job, it’s even lonelier when you’re facing the sort of criticism he’s facing at the moment and because it’s his first job that may have a deeper, underlying effect on him.
“But if he’s worth his salt he’ll use that in a positive way and come fighting back like we all have to do if we’re going to succeed.
“In the manager’s role we have to take the good with the bad and when the bad arrives we have to be able to cope with it. Hopefully he then gets better for it, learns by that experience and moves on.”
THEWILL hopes Allardyce can take some of his own wise counsel, especially now that it will apply to him too going down to the second tier of English football in the championship.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
