Good piece from Sean McGinley
In a move that has stunned all associated with Blackpool, Neil Critchley has walked out on the Head Coach role to become Steven Gerrard's assistant at Aston Villa.
The Seasiders took a leap of faith when they appointed the former Liverpool academy coach as their new number one in March 2020 and that faith was rewarded infinitely with a promotion back to the Championship. A positive first season in the second tier was all set up to be built on once again this season but the 43-year-old has turned his back on the opportunity to do just that instead taking himself back out of the spotlight as an understudy in the Premier League.
But whilst the financial and Premier League appeal alongside a chance to renew his working relationship with Gerrard are all factors discussed, Critchley never came across as someone who would chase money over personal reward. Nothing motivated Critchley more than seeing his side develop, he would always talk about remembering the players who are already in the door when transfer windows came around.
That attitude only comes to a point however, he knew, as he said on countless occasions, that this summer was pivotal for Blackpool to establish themselves as a Championship club with a real step up in quality required in order to really compete sustainably at this level. Lancs Live understands that Charlie Kirk is a player the Seasiders' now ex-coach wanted back at Bloomfield Road but the club weren't willing to pay the £500k option-to-buy in his loan agreement with funds being prioritised in other areas.
It is too early to understand the complete reasoning behind the departure, and perhaps we will never know, but there is no doubt that Critchley is not someone who is content with sitting still in football. If he felt he had taken Blackpool as far as he could without
a level of investment he simply wouldn't receive with what we understand to be a tight working budget this summer, then a move to establish himself at a Premier League club without a hit to his reputation as a number one makes sense from a personal perspective.
But that is where football and supporters increasingly feel miles apart.
Critchley spoke of a long-term future at Blackpool, he spoke of his love for the supporters, his love for the project and his playing staff, but Lancs Live understand those players were blindsided by the news as much as the supporters, some told mere minutes before the announcement. He was frustrated when he felt his character was questioned at times, or rather genuine criticism of performances, but the manner of this exit after the words he's told supporters in recent times is quite frankly disingenuous.
Modern football teaches you that you should come to expect this but you always like to believe the current incumbent is different, they will buck the trend and have a genuine feeling that they would like some longevity at a football club. I still believe Neil Critchley had that for Blackpool but it will be hard to convince many fans who have seen it all before.
Who comes next will tell you all you need to know about the ambitions the club have when it comes to surviving a second season in the Championship, There is a lot of work that needs to be done on this side to bring about consistent quality when it matters and with a tight budget, Josh Bowler bound for pastures new and now a Head Coach to replace - it has been made all the more difficult.
This is where we will get a flavour of the calibre of people in charge at Bloomfield Road, it is vital that a new appointment not only comes swiftly but comes with an identity, a focus on player and youth development
and is able to pick up from a high base in what Critchley has left behind. Critchley is one of the best managers in Blackpool's modern history for me and I am convinced he will be a Premier League number one before long but that is of little significance to supporters right now.
With season ticket prices increased and no early bird incentive for existing fans over new ones, the club have put real emphasis into the infrastructure projects of the new training ground and East Stand but football is a cut throat business. You can't stand still on the pitch because you'll quickly find yourself going backwards, there has to be a balance and they have to back an ambitious new man on the field in order to preserve Championship status for when the infrastructure is completed - something that, given the tight budget, they weren't willing to do with Critchley to take the next step.
It will be a busy next few weeks and that talk will come but for now I would like to think history will see Critchley for what he was. An excellent tactician, a proactive coach who never wanted to sit still, always wanting to find those extra margins, a man who understood what Blackpool as a town, as a community and as a fanbase was about and someone who has made memories that will last a lifetime.
But it's often how you leave a club that matters and lingers long in the memory and Critchley has failed on that front.
