This article is part of Football League World’s ‘Terrace Talk‘ series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…
Charlton Athletic dropped a bombshell on their fans on Tuesday afternoon by announcing that manager Johnnie Jackson had departed the club.
The 39-year-old had been handed the job earlier in the season, initially on a caretaker basis following the sacking of Nigel Adkins after a poor start to the 2021-22 League One campaign, but after an upturn in form the ex-Addicks midfielder was given the chance to become the full-time boss at The Valley.
Jackson could not keep up his strong start as manager though and in the end the Londoners finished in 13th position in the third tier following a 4-0 final day drubbing by Ipswich Town.
Addicks owner Thomas Sandgaard though has opted not to extend Jackson's contract - if the club had finished inside the top eight places of League One then it would have been done automatically, however he is going in a different direction this summer.
There are a number of options who could be considered to replace Jackson - FLW's Charlton fan pundit Ben Fleming believes though that the stand out picks right now are soon-to-be free agent Mark Warburton and an individual in Michael Appleton who left his post at Lincoln City just a few days ago.
"It's clear that the style of football was a big reason in why Johnnie Jackson was let go, so you'd have to assume that a manager who is looking to play progressive, modern football is going to be people they're targeting," Ben said.
"Michael Appleton and perhaps Mark Warburton who has just left QPR - they would be two I'd really look to target, however Mark Warburton might be a bit too ambitious and he's probably looking for jobs in the Championship.
"But certainly Michael Appleton who has just left Lincoln is someone I'd be happy to look at - obviously it hasn't gone well for Lincoln this year but he took them to the play-offs two seasons ago.
"Other than that, Michael Beale is someone who we've had links with, he was touted before Nigel Adkins was given the job.
"But for me, Appleton and Warburton - if you could get him - would be two positive managerial appointments."
The Verdict
Charlton certainly need to go in somewhat of a different direction for their next manager, with Jackson not being able to get the best out of the squad he had at his disposal despite a positive first couple of months.
Thomas Sandgaard has now tried the experienced route with Adkins and the fan favourite in Jackson, so he will perhaps be stuck at a crossroads on what to do next.
Appleton, despite his poor season with Lincoln, has a track record of developing younger players, having good contacts in the loan market and he was able to take the Imps to the League One play-off final last season, so he has something about him.
If Charlton were able to convince Warburton to try and take the Addicks up to the second tier though then it would be a major coup - but it does appear that it would be an ambitious move for Sandgaard to try and make.