As is nearly always the case in the football world, once results and performances begin and continue to go badly it is the manager who has to suffer the consequences.
Sheffield Wednesday and Brian Laws parted company by mutual consent this morning and many Owls fans would confess that this was seemingly inevitable. Results and more recently performances had deteriorated alarmingly, the team seemed uninspired and unsure of themselves tactically and errors were becoming prevalent all over the pitch.
The defence has struggled to keep clean sheets, the midfield has provided little defensive or offensive support and the goals have dried up completely. Some recent team selections and substitutions have been baffling and it has been frustrating to see loan signings arrive in a bid to freshen things up only to see this resource not fully utilised as they have spent most of the time on the bench.
Most of these problems can be labelled at the manager but the very least that the club and fans should expect from the players in each game is 100% endeavour and work rate. It is hard not to let your head drop when things are going badly but the situation will only get worse if the effort and application is not maintained.
Sometimes players are accused of trying to oust a manager by not performing to their full potential but the confusing thing with the Owls of late was the Doncaster performance. Following the lacklustre displays against Reading and WBA is appeared as though Brian Laws was no longer able to command the full support of his players. The performance at Doncaster belied this as although the Owls didn’t play anywhere near their best they did at least show a level of fight and commitment that suggested everyone was pulling in the same direction. Saturday’s display at Leicester however lacked the heart and effort that was evident on Tuesday and the Owls were blown away in the first half an hour by a side that had lost two in succession and had conceded 8 goals in a week.
Brian Laws has paid the ultimate price for Wednesday’s dire run of form but the players must not escape without criticism as very few can be anywhere near satisfied with their own work over the past couple of months.