Dead man walking ?

Yep

Hope not.

Henry Irving said:

If RD already had someone in mind then Powell would already be gone and the new man or woman in place.

One massive LOL!

When Slater and Co came in, we lost at home to Swindon in the next game and Parky was gone.

I really do not want Powell to go, but would not be surprised to see a new man in charge by the end of the month, especially if we lose to Donny.

Up until the takeover I think Chris Powell was the best available manager we could hope to have and IMHO he's done as well as could be expected with finances as they were.
But if the new owners can afford someone who they think is a better manager then I don't have a problem if they decide to make a change. Chris Powell has done a good job since he's been here but as with any player no one is bigger than the club and if possible the club should always look to get better and improve the team/management if they have the resources available. If they think he's still the best man for the job then all well and good, lets hope whatever they decide (or not) we can start to move forward.

Correct me if I'm wrong here, but have we actually been in the relegation places yet this season? I don't think we have.

We were bottom at one point last season, but finished 9th.

Not saying for one second we can expect that kind of turnaround in the second half of this season but I do think how bad this season is going is getting exaggerated somewhat. The way everyone is talking we are certain for relegation and if you read Charlton Life before you'd seen the league table you'd expect to find us cut a drift in rock bottom last place, but no there we are in a 'safe' position, albeit by the narrowest of margins.

Yes we need an improvement in our form if we are going to stay up, yes we need some new players to help us do it and yes CP needs to take his share of the blame and find a way to get his old and new players playing better but we don't need any miracles, just a few small but significant improvements.

None of this will be lost on or beyond the management (on and off the pitch) so can we please at least give it another couple of months before we all throw in the towel and leave off with threads like this that, however innocently, undermine CP's position and just heap pressure on a squad which no one, even its biggest critics, seem to be accusing of not trying their hardest to get out of 'this mess'?

Be quite surprised if Powell was sacked.

We obviously have no idea what Duchatelet has in mind, how much he knows about football (though not much if we are to believe our Belgian friends) and, more importantly, whether he's one of those successful people who thinks he knows best, nothwithstanding advice to the contrary from experienced "experts". However, let's take the optimistic view and assume that he's sensible. What's his biggest challenge?

I'd suggest its figuring out what needs to be done and how much needs to be spent to make each of his Clubs successful and, in turn, how to leverage the potential synergies from owning a network of Clubs. In particular, whose advice can he trust? Given this, a much more logical move than firing Chris Powell would be to appoint a network wide Director of Football to oversee all Managers within the network, to ensure "optimal" player recruitment and development and to advise him (Duchatelet) on football matters.

With such an appointment in place (or lined up), Chris Powell would be left to coach the side and, most importantly, to retain the fantastic esprit de corps he has developed and which will be essential in the fight against relegation.

In the medium term, Chris Powell's relationship with this Director of Football would be critical and if it didn't work he may well get moved on in the summer, whether the Club retains its Championship status or not.

All complete speculation obviously, but a knee jerk reaction to fire Chris Powell would not auger well. Its always possible that Duchatelet might make an inspired choice of replacement, à la Mauricio Pochettino, but for every Pochettino there are many Mike Bassetts.

Anyway, fingers crossed.

Good point se9. I can't think of any available managers I would consider better either though. If RD can then I agree it is sadly for the good of the club.

Saying that - and given powells record with us, if I was a Belgian millionaire and had just bought us I'd extend Powell's contract until 2015. Fund a couple short term fix transfers to keep us safe and then let him rebuild in the summer like he did in league1 with the stale squad he inherited. If we were still cack this time next season then would get rid and if not would tie him down longer.

The more I think about it, the more I fear for Powell. It's clear the club needs fresh impetus and RD isn't known for splashing the cash.

They'll see bringing in a new man with fresh ideas as a more cost effective option to signing the players we need.

It's not often I'm pessimistic but this is how I see it playing out.

I'm in the camp that says that unless RD has already lined up a new manager I think SIr Chris will be safe until at least the end of the season.

Have'nt Standard got a spare manager they could loan us till the emd of the season?

Exactly how I see it, razil.