Barcelona’s decision to appoint a new manager from within highlights the Premier League’s aversion to doing the same

A lot of decisions in football haven’t always followed the path of common sense.

Carl Cort’s £7m move to Newcastle in 2000, Mario Balotelli choosing to light those fireworks indoors and Gary Lineker’s insistence on ending each Match Of The Day with a bum-achingly annoying pun are a few such examples.

There is also another which is made frequently in the English top flight, although it’s rarely discussed, as if doing so would give you herpes.

And this is the decision, or even the failure of clubs to appoint successors to departed managers from within the club’s managerial ranks.

Throughout the Premier League, teams have more often than not opted to bring in a new fresh-faced manager, ahead of choosing someone from their existing payroll.

Steve Kean is currently the only permanent boss appointed from within, having been a coach under former manager Sam Allardyce, with Chelsea’s Roberto Di Matteo and Terry Connor at Wolves both filling temporary positions until the end of the season.

Chelsea’s procession of managers typifies the approach of top flight teams who seemingly appoint a new man with a reputation that matches the brand and image of the club and so far they’ve had 15 different images in 20 Premier League seasons.

As much as anything a new manager is used as an advertising tool to try and project an image of the club, with their suitability to manage the task at hand sometimes being an aside – something which Chelsea have been guilty of in recent years.

Barcelona’s decision then to replace outgoing manager Pep Guardiola with his assistant Tito Vilanova is a refreshing one that demonstrates the board posses a big set of danglers between their legs.

In doing so they have boldly refused to bow to pressure and appoint a blockbuster Sylvester Stallone style action hero to be paraded in front of the media. Potentially though they could take an unsatisfactory amount of time in the eyes of the fans, or board to adjust to the specifics of a unique and demanding role and instead they’ve appointed a man who already has an acute understanding of the clubs workings.

Never was the potential success of this better demonstrated than at Liverpool, where Bob Paisley and Joe Fagan, both members of the coaching staff under Bill Shankly succeeded the Scotsman when he stepped aside and between them they brought 21 trophies to the club in an amazing 11 years from 1974-85.

This lesson could also be learned by Villa, whose refusal to appoint Gary McAllister –Gerard Houllier’s former assistant, who managed the last few games of the 2010/11 season in the Frenchman’s absence – or former caretaker Kevin MacDonald in favour of someone with Premier League managerial experience has proven to be wholly unpopular with fans, who find themselves supporting a team in a relegation battle.

So, good luck to Vilanova and may his understanding of the club and existing relationship with the players make him a comfy fit and the right appointment ahead of someone of a grander status.

Tags: Aston Villa, Barcelona, Liverpool, Pep Guardiola, Premier League