“What Kieran needs to do…” – Collymore offers advice to Premier League new boy

Ipswich Town have breezed into the Premier League as a breath of fresh air, playing with freedom and verve in their opening two games, but they haven’t impressed Stan Collymore.

The former Nottingham Forest and Liverpool striker knows only too well how quickly teams can drop back into the Championship if they can’t consolidate, and whist he appreciates what Kieran McKenna is trying to do, the Tractor Boys have still lost both of their opening matches.

It’s as if Ipswich believe that if they keep playing in the manner in which got them promoted, that eventually things will come good.

Collymore wants Ipswich to be more pragmatic

Losing matches when you’re playing good football is only going to knock the confidence and, ultimately, knock McKenna’s side out of its stride.

“The Premier League is littered with maybe managers including Paul Jewell who had a couple of seasons in the top flight, possibly thought he was going to go on and be a manager in the top flight forever and was spat out,” Collymore said to CaughtOffside for his exclusive column.

“The phone didn’t ring and he hasn’t been a manager since.

“I think that what Kieran needs to do is, if he wants to be a Premier League manager with Ipswich over a period of years, or even be a Premier League manager with somebody else over a period of years, is that he’s got to play with a degree of pragmatism.

“In any vocation, you accept the terrain that you’re on, and don’t just say ‘I don’t care if I’m on Mount Snowden or I’m on Mont Blanc, I’m going to wear some flip flops and shorts and a vest.’ Do that, metaphorically speaking, and you’re going to get found out.

“I don’t think the manager should come out of the season with any credit whatsoever if his team are being smashed every week but if he adds a little bit of pragmatism, I think he can achieve his achieve his aims this season, and perhaps more importantly, have some longevity as a top class manager over the next 10-15 years.”

It’s sensible advice from Collymore, because the Ipswich faithful would surely prefer to see their club back in the top flight for a few more years yet after such a long absence.

Carrying on in the same vain when it’s proven to not be working at Premier League level wouldn’t be the best advert for McKenna’s managerial credentials, if he’s looking to move on to a bigger job at some point.

Getting some points on the board is paramount for the club, and that can start with their fixture against Fulham at Portman Road this weekend.

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