Blackpool FC have only 14 days till they start their new Championship Campaign away to Nottingham Forest on the 9th of August and they currently have only 8 senior players, no recognised goalkeeper and a board and chairman in complete standoff with the manager.
They lost 27 players at the end of last season and have only brought in the one so far during the summer who is Sergei Zenjov an Estonian international striker who is not exactly a household name, they are left with defenders Gary Mackenzie, Tony Mcmahon and Charles Dunne, midfielder David Perkins and forwards Tom Barkhuizen, Bobby Grant and Steven Davies along with Zenjov.
They are currently training with only these eight and have had to cancel a pre season tour to Spain because of a lack of players and have played one pre season game and only have only one more planned. The pre season game which was played was at penrith where they won 4-0 with the 8 and a handful of trialists and youth teamers.
Manager Jose Riga was only appointed on the 11th of June and already there is talk of him leaving the club because of disagreements with Karl Oyston the chairman on transfer policies. It appears the Belgian wants to bring in certain targets while the board wants to bring in others which is causing Riga and Oyston to be in a standoff. It seems neither will budge on what they want in what is a situation that can only be described as farce able at this moment.
Also Riga is currently refusing to talk to the media and is banning the media from the club and this is not helping the situation with no one outside of the club able to know what is going on and no explanation being offered by either Riga or Oyston about the situation.
A number of trialists seem to have turned the seaside club down including Keeper Ben Alnwick, Nathan Delfouneso and Ishmael Miller who all seem too turned down the club because of the current situation and the uncertainty regarding the Manger and Clubs future.
The Pool need to sort this situation out as soon as they can as they are currently in disarray, how they do this is another question whether its sacking Riga or the board backing down they need to do it before it’s too late with some saying its already too late and saying the club who were one point off Premier League safety in 2011 are already destined to the drop, what can and what should Blackpool do to stop them being a embarrassment?
Source: DSG
