Exclusive: Finances agreed on Powell contract but football issues remain
Thursday, 06 March 2014
By Richard Cawley
CHARLTON boss Chris Powell has revealed he has agreed terms on a contract extension - but that there is still discussions to take place over footballing issues.
The Addicks manager is out of contract in the summer - along with his backroom team.
Powell said: "We've agreed all the financial side of the contract - that didn't take long - but we have to agree the football side, players and recruitment moving forward.
"That's where we are at."
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Comments
Powell I want to decide who I bring in and who plays.
Roland Fine, as long as they are my players!!!!
VIP Q+A with RM, KM and CP.
Leaks the news that it's not money as "that didn't take long".
So the spin/story/truth is he's not being greedy or holding out for more money but he wants reassurances on the football side.
Puts him a positive light.
Not slagging him off and I want him to stay, just commenting
Your move Roland.
Did anyone mention Powell is a very good friend of Malkey McKay?
It is why he's said it, to Cawley, that's interesting.
Henry, what are you thinking is the relevance of that ?
For what it's worth I think there's a balance to be struck, and I hope CP is astute enough to be making good friends with KM. He would be foolish to ignore the potential opportunities the network has to offer - and indeed that Charlton has to offer the network - but at the same time he knows the league, he knows how the English game works and RD giving him his head would seem the most sensible way forward.
Except RD is from a different football culture where head coaches are not managers, and work with the tools they are given. So if I was Powell I would be working closely with KM to get her to understand why and where English football operates differently to RD's experiences. And to persuade her that he's trustworthy with the club's funds, with which I think he has a fair track record. Because if RD trusts KM, and KM trusts CP, then RD trusts CP by proxy at the very least. Or perhaps she can present a message that she's in control of Powell's decisions, even if she's giving CP a different level of freedom.
January has gone some way to showing RD's approach to the transfer market is, to be generous, a touch naive. He seems to have overlooked the importance in a team game of the right balance of personalities and characters in the squad - and just as remiss of the importance of timing of recruitment. Of the imports, only Adjarevic seems to have made any real impact, and of course he has some familiarity with the English game. Although Reza clearly has some promise, Thuram has been a disaster, and Peter Parsley clearly isn't ready. Now that's hardly handling the club's funds well. The one player Powell seems to have brought in, Marcus Tudgay, looks likely to make a very telling contribution indeed.
The Championship is one of the toughest leagues in the world, certainly the highest quality second level and very probably comparable to the Belgian league if not higher. Maybe RD is learning this, KM I'm sure is very much becoming aware, and perhaps RD has underestimated what he bought. What they both desperately need is someone both passionate about the club and very knowledgeable about English football and particularly the Championship to make the most of the investment. They have that. If they don't recognise its value, particularly as financial negotiations aren't getting in the way, then I fear this will be a very costly learning curve indeed.
What I would want to know if I was CP - Will I have funds available to spend only if I buy a network player or will I have funds available to choose between the transfer market and the network.
If RD is closing off access to the traditional transfer market can't see many managers willingly working like that.