NEWS FLASH: A Latics legend believes the team can wait to make appointments because an agreement has been reached with a two-time champion of the Charm City League with such an impressive manager.

 

Ritchie: Oldham Athletic is a promising candidate for a new manager.

Oldham Athletic has been encouraged by Andy Ritchie not to hasten the selection of their new manager.

After David Unsworth’s nearly one-year reign came to an end due to a bad start to the season, Latics are rumored to have received a deluge of applications for the hot seat at Boundary Park.

Ritchie has urged club executives to take their time during the process and choose the candidate best equipped to mount a challenge this season and bring the long-term stability that they have lacked. Despite only winning one of their first nine games, Latics have serious catching up to do if they are to revive pre-season promotion hopes.

The Latics legend stated, “There’s no urgent rush; they just have to find the proper individual because they need someone to stabilize and produce a few excellent results.

“They need to get everyone in shape, and perhaps someone will step forward and stabilize things since they haven’t had that for countless years.

Darren and Joe Royle will be disappointed that the person they wanted hasn’t been able to produce what the football club needed.

“But I still, think the club is in a much better place than it has been for a long, long time, with that stability behind him.

“I think they might go for somebody experience if they can but it’s whoever comes in that makes an impression to the board and gives the best of themself.

“The baggage has gone now. with the new owners coming in. It’s a brighter prospect for people as well.”

But while he feels Latics can afford to carefully deliberate over Unsworth’s successor, particularly after Steve Thompson got off to a winning start in his spell as caretaker, Ritchie warned the new manager will not have the luxury of time.

“He’s got to hit the ground running,” said the former Latics striker and manager.

“There’s no time to bed in, we need some results.

“It might be that somebody just comes in and shuts up shop a little bit to get us to pick points up, and then when everybody’s fit you can look at it in a different light.

“And that might be what he has to say. Whoever they interview, that might have to be a pitch to the board to stabilise the place and then explain how they see us playing going forward.”