“Bleeds blue and white”: Former player
“Bleeds blue and white”: Former player responds to coach passing up a Bristol Rovers job offer.
The Gas administration was considering Ian Holloway, a cult icon at Memorial Stadium, but in the end they decided on Matt Taylor.
Many seasoned managers have been placed on the bench in search of other possibilities as a result of the EFL’s relatively recent tendency of hiring youthful head coaches.
And one of them is the charming Ian Holloway, who left League Two team Grimsby Town in December 2020 and hasn’t had a job in football since.
Holloway began his managerial career in 1996 as a player-manager at Bristol Rovers. He has since advanced to positions with Queens Park Rangers, Blackpool, and Crystal Palace.
Although Holloway stated in 2021 that his desire to manage had somewhat waned, it appears from his interview earlier this year for the Motherwell position that he wants to return to the game, and Bristol Rovers, his favorite team, has been keeping an eye on him.
Was Ian Holloway’s return to Bristol Rovers being considered?
Although Holloway was one of the first names associated with the position, Rovers looked at a number of applicants before selecting Matt Taylor, the former manager of Rotherham United and Exeter City.
Bristol Live reported at the beginning of November that Holloway piqued the interest of both the Gas board and fellow unemployed boss Garry Monk, despite the fact that the former did not satisfy owner Hussain AlSaaed’s initial requirements for a young manager with experience moving clubs from League One to the Championship.
Holloway, who is 60 years old, is currently waiting for his next career move. However, it wasn’t going to be a second spell as a manager at Memorial Stadium because Taylor was hired last week.
In response to Ian Holloway’s rejection from the Bristol Rovers position, Brett Ormerod
Although the Gas eventually went in a different direction, Brett Ormerod, who managed Holloway during a successful stint at Blackpool where the Tangerines made it to the Premier League for the first time, thinks that a return to Bristol Rovers would have been beneficial for Holloway to get his managerial career back on track.
In football, there’s been a shift. Nowadays, younger managers are preferred by owners. It’s incredible that Lee Johnson, who is younger than me, has managed more than 500 league games, Ormerod remarked.
“At 47 years old, I believe I am older than the majority of average managers that enter the field.
“I’d want to see Ian Holloway return to the field because, like Gordon Strachan, football needs Ian Holloway. They were both as excited about the game and eager to improve your skills as a player.
“Ian did let me know that he was still hunting for work, but football is currently heading in a different route. Ian adds a rush and exciting element to football that isn’t usually present, so I’d love to see him back in the dugout.
Ian’s team is Bristol Rovers. He’s from Bristol and has visited the area a few times. He bleeds white and blue when you cut him in two.
“Holloway would be entering a fierce rivalry and has a solid rapport with the supporters. Before I met him, I had no idea how big of an issue they were; he used to talk about them all the time. It would have been nice to see him at Bristol Rovers.”
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