Wignall Warns U`s Off Coppell & Co

Appointing either former Reading man Steve Coppell or ex Charlton and Crystal Palace boss Iain Dowie could create a no-win situation for Colchester, according to Steve Wignall.

Both have been tipped as contenders by the local press, with the Evening Gazette suggesting Dowie`s name following the recent league win over Gillingham.

But one-time U`s boss Wignall told BBC Essex Radio on Saturday he felt such candidates would be a poor choice.

He advised that the club delay their current appointment plan to give current caretaker Joe Dunne an extended run in charge.

“They`re looking to aspire to greater things, but that still can be done without big names. Should Steve Coppell or Iain Dowie come in, if they weren`t successful in the first six or seven months, they`d b on their bike. If they were, they`d go to a bigger club, so you can`t win.”

Since his comments, advocating the case for both his ex-players Paul Buckle and Dunne, there has been suggestion that Wignall could return above a less-experienced coach as Director of Football.

He was indeed bullish about the possibility of Colchester luring a renowned coach to the club, saying: “They`ve tried to be different animal and really supporters haven`t been happy with that.

He continued: “That`s not necessarily talking about the results, more the way everything`s gone: it`s always a difficult transition to go to a new ground but there`s still the basics, for me, of the provincial kind of town that Colchester is.

“That`s only my opinion – who am I to say, after four years as a manager and seven years as a player? But I know what the people of Colchester want.”

Buckle and Dunne are just two potential choices in a pool of more than 30 possible names in the frame as United`s next manager.






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