Normally it is I agree, but what has been written and said about Coleman I think he spans that regular divide (commands a player/manager level of respect, if a tad whiny and jokey at times). He transcends that usual dichotomy with his leadership.Cantoffee wrote: ↑Sat Apr 18, 2026 5:27 pm I think there's a different type of influence in a dressing room when you're a coach vs a player.
A player is still "one of the lads", that's not the case with a coach.
Either way, fully believe Keane when he says we'd have gone down without Coleman. Characters are what kept us up and why others have gone down.
He does both the pep talk to motivate and he lays down the standards in no uncertain terms. He really is, and was the heartbeat.
If that cost us wages with an extra zero than simply a reserve player might have warranted, then it enabled us the capacity to continue to paying Premier League wages into the future.
There's no sentiment in that.
