I would hate to lose Paul

Photo: Max Flego

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: Paul Dickov looks on as Athletic crash

Latics will fight hard to keep boss
ATHLETIC chairman Simon Corney says the club will fight to keep hold of Paul Dickov — but may face a losing battle.

Athletic’s manager suddenly and unexpectedly became on Saturday morning an 11-8 odds-on favourite to land the vacant role at Huddersfield Town.

Since then, the picture became muddied with the bookmaking markets closing as a result of a flurry of bets on ex-Leeds boss Simon Grayson taking on the job at the Galpharm Stadium.

Whatever the truth — some sources suggest that the West Yorkshire club will draw up a shortlist this week as they looked to replace sacked Lee Clark — Corney (pictured left) believes the job Dickov has done so far indicates he is set for a bigger stage than Athletic.

“Nothing official has happened,” said Corney. “But (the apparent interest) doesn’t surprise me. Paul has been linked with three or four clubs and last season, we had an approach from one club in the Championship enquiring about him.

“Everyone knows he is a young, bright manager. I am not afraid to admit he works under a restricted budget at Oldham and everyone knows that.

“What he has done is fantastic. He is very much a man-manager and it doesn’t surprise me one bit. I would hate to lose Paul. He has been fantastic for us, he is great around the club and everyone from the staff to the players love him.

“The fact that a team like Huddersfield could be interested in him is just a reflection of what he is doing in the game.

“One day he will go and manage at a bigger and better club than Oldham, with no disrespect to my own club.

“There are bigger clubs that will keep an eye on him. We will fight very hard to keep him, but you never say never in football.”

Dickov himself expressed surprise at the developments.

“You probably know more than I do,” he told journalists after the heavy MK Dons defeat, when confronted with the news.

“I got down here and somebody told me I had gone from outsider to odds-on favourite.

“I can’t tell you any more. But I won’t be odds-on favourite any more.”

One issue Dickov has to deal with today is the Twitter activity of Keanu Marsh-Brown, whose comments appear sure to anger Athletic’s manager.

On his own substitution early in the second half for Josh Parker, Marsh-Brown stated: "josh when I tell you to play left wing you you [sic] started sucking through your teeth hahahaha#funny.

Athletic await a scan on left-back Paul Black, who was carried off in the first half through injury.

“It looks like quite a bad one at the moment,” said Dickov, in reference to what appeared to be a torn hamstring for the left-back. He will have a scan on the injury early this week.


ATHLETIC’S away clash at Sheffield Wednesday is to be broadcast live on Sky Sports.
The game will now take place on Monday, April 9, with a 12.45pm kick-off.

The fixture had been scheduled to take place the following night.