Why Mick McCarthy is to blame for Ipswich Town’s current strugglesTo most outside IP1, the accepted theory is that Ipswich Town’s early-season blues are down to the exit of Mick McCarthy.
The Yorkshireman maximized a limited squad and Paul Hurst, who has this week lost his job as Tractor Boys boss with just one win to his name, was unable to match his predecessor’s ability to perform on a low budget.
Of course, the off-field issues do not help any
Ipswich Manager.
The club are continuously selling key assets and not spending anything like the same amount of money on their replacements.
And yet, that is also the case for Swansea, Bristol City, Brentford and – forgive me Ipswich fans – Norwich.
Those four clubs had been challenging in the top half under Graham Potter, Lee Johnson, Dean Smith and Daniel Farke – even if Smith left the Bees recently.
What those four head coaches have done is trust in young players and, over a long period, introduce a modern brand of football that fans can buy into.
This is what McCarthy has failed to do...
Firstly, he generally favoured experienced performers.
Eight Ipswich players made more than 35 appearances last season and of them, only Jonas Knudsen and Grant Ward were under 28; one could ask the question as to whether Knudsen or Ward have the potential to improve beyond the level they are currently at.
Old players tend to be cheaper in the short-term, they are often more vocal in the changing rooms and can be more predictable in terms of performance levels.
It is understandable, in some ways, that a manager without much spending power who has the brief of survival looks at this profile of player.