Crewe Alex's 2024-25 Season Review Part 3 - What's Next?

So, here we are then. The 3rd and final part of my season review. Part 1 focused on the good. Part 2, which was far longer, looked at the bad. Now we come to a look ahead to what comes next. The squad is out of badly out of form. The manager is under increasing pressure from all angles. So, where do we go from here? Well, let's take a look:

Overall Verdict

So, what to make of all of this? Well, if you aren't bitterly disappointed by how this season has played out, then you really should start setting higher standards of this team. But I'll come to that shortly.

I didn't mention in parts 1 and 2, but I thing I do think deserves a mention here, is budget. Yes, the Alex have a bottom 8 budget in L2. Compared to the likes of the Vale, Carlisle, MK Dons, Bradford, Salford, Gillingham, Chesterfield, Notts County and Salford, with a couple of others probably chucked in for good measure, they are a poor team financially. So surely punching against some of these teams for a top 7 spot in 2 straight seasons deserves commendation right? To a certain extent yes.

However, whilst having lots of money isn't a guarantee of success, having less money doesn't make success impossible. Christ, the Alex are one of the most successful examples of consistently punching above their weight by spending 8 of 9 seasons in the 2nd tier. Being a consistent promotion contender in L2 and even becoming a steady team in L1 is perfectly within their reach. Look at Accrington, Stevenage, Burton, Northampton, Lincoln, Exeter, Wycombe, Leyton Orient. Sure, a number of these teams will have bigger budgets. But are we saying the Alex couldn't even come close to competing with them for mid-table in L1?

This club will never reach the 2nd tier again in my lifetime, that I'm very confident about. But if you're telling me they could never hope to be a consistent L1 side, then I fundamentally disagree, even with their current ownership and business model. Why should we accept being a bottom half L2 side just because that's where our budget lies, when we see some of the teams mentioned above doing better in the league above on crowds which don't massively outstrip ours?

For me, using budgets as an excuse ignores the most basic fact, which is this season, they haven't looked inferior to any team. Yes, they've lost games and come up well short of the top 7, but how many teams have truly outclassed them where it was the oppositions quality which saw them lose? They didn't lose both games against any of the sides in the top 10 for example.

Some say the Alex can't compete. Well they did. All season. They did not fall short of the top 7 due to having a small budget. They fell short due to all the issues raised in part 2 of my review, which admittedly some of which having more money solves no doubt. But a lot of it was poor decision making, at all levels of the club. That is very fixable.

Whats next?

So, the question now becomes what's next? I've already discussed who I think might be staying and who might be on their way out in the coming days. But the management now have to go away and decide what sort of team they want for next season. Are they going to double down on the low scoring, low conceding, low possession, long ball counter attack style they persisted with for most of this season?

Or are we going to a see the style of football we got in February and that they produced in fits and starts throughout the season, with a squad built around Sanders, Lankester, Tabiner, Holicek, Agius and Lunt, all diminutive technical players who suit a more possession and passing style? It's time Lee Bell and the management realise the kind of player they have and build a system and style that suits them.

Bell will likely find his budget for next season isn't at the same level it was this season. With no player sales(Zac Williams aside potentially), no Sky TV money from the play-offs and no Wembley revenue to fall back on, he'll probably find he has to say goodbye to some players he ideally would have liked to keep, plus move back towards trusting in young home grown players. That for me has to be a good thing.

Either succeed in the way the fans want to see and the way the club is built to do, or don't, be moved aside and someone else will come in. Bell goes into the summer with not a lot of goodwill left with the fan base. A lot of fans online are fed up with the style, the results and the lack of youngsters coming through. He'll likely get time to rebuild in the summer, but should things not improve early next season, he might find a P45 waiting for him very quickly.

"Who Else Could you Get?"

Which also raises one final point. The old "if you sack the manager, who else will come in and do a better job?" has been knocking around in the last few weeks. Well, here's the thing. Lee Bell is the 3rd manager in 13 years to lead this club to the top 7 in L2. The same "who else" nonsense was thrown out as Dario was preparing to step down, both in 2007 and 2011. It was used when Davis was under pressure. And Artell. And Morris.

Managers come and go in football. Nobody should be getting overly attached to any manager, especially not Lee Bell. Whether he's poached or sacked, his time as Crewe manager will come to an end eventually, be that in 6 days, 6 months or 6 years. We shouldn't fear it. I don't want to see us sacking managers after every bad run. I like the stability that long term appointments bring.

But if/when he does leave, someone will come to replace him. That probably will be internal, like Mike Jackson, David Vaughan or even Mickey Demetriou. It could someone like Luke Williams or Altrincham's Phil Parkinson. There are other individuals who could come in and do a job at this club and it's arrogance of the highest order to suggest Lee Bell is the only one who can or could.

Managerial jobs in the EFL are coveted. There are only 72 of them and realistically, if you are a manager of a certain calibre, jobs with small EFL sides are the best you can hope to get. Should this position become available, yes the money on offer to a new manager won't be big, either in terms of playing budget or personal salary. But they'll get a club with a strong academy, superb training facilities, a supportive fan base and a patient board. This will be a job with high demand, should the board choose to look externally.

Looking Ahead

So, what is next? Could we see a managerial change this summer? No, I don't think so. I think the board, given they handpicked Bell, will back him again. But he will know he needs a big summer to make the necessary changes to his squad and find quality players at various spots. He hopefully knows he needs to have a big reset in mentality and in how he wants this team to play football. And maybe he needs to make alterations to his coaching staff to bring in fresh ideas and perspectives.

One thing is for sure, if he doesn't have a good start next season or if there aren't signs of better football being played, I do think he'll very quickly be fighting for his job. And here is an interesting fact to finish on. Of the last 4 managers that were officially sacked by the club(Steve Holland, Gudjon Thordarson, Steve Davis, Dave Artell), they were let go either during a relegation season in L1 or after coming down to L2 and struggling.

I hope Bell and his management can have the reset and retool they need this summer. Because he could be the first manager sacked after never experiencing a relegation threatened season if they get things wrong over the coming weeks and months. Strap in, we are set for a very interesting summer and 2025-26 season, whatever happens.