He saved Sir Alex but who will save him?

Famously credited (rightly or wrongly) as the man who saved Sir Alex Ferguson`s job as Manchester United manager when he was just plain Alex, Mark Robins is set to begin a task even more daunting than the one his old boss took on when he left Aberdeen for Old Trafford.

Robins inherits a squad that has seen off two, good footballing men in the space of a few short weeks with both Andy Thorn and Richard Shaw having been let down badly by the players they placed their faith in.

Now aged 42, former Norwich striker Robins takes on his third managerial job and can point to a solid record to date (under tough financial constraints in both instances) at Rotherham and Barnsley. Clearly someone who is confident in his own abilities, he left Rotherham for the Tykes job and walked out of Oakwell after a disagreement over the playing budget.

‘bullied’

A hint at his preferred style of play perhaps comes from comments he made after his Barnsley side were beaten 3-0 by Aidy Boothroyd’s Sky Blues at the Ricoh Arena in the 2010/11 season. Admitting that his men had been ‘bullied` out of the game Robins said nevertheless that they would not be changing the way his team played in the face of more direct opposition.

By the end of that season he had guided Barnsley to their highest finish for five seasons, one place and one point above City.

Robins’ impending appointment as the new Coventry manager has failed to bring about any of the hope and optimism that a new boss normally brings but not through any fault of his own, more the pervading atmosphere of decline and decay that surrounds the football club. Supporters will genuinely hope that they are wrong to expect the same scenario this time next year.