Barker To Be Appointed By Portsmouth

Last updated : 06 December 2013 By Jim Bonner

Richie Barker is set to be appointed as the new manager of Portsmouth Football Club on Monday.

The local news reports that the board decided to hire the 38-year-old last night and it is believed that Steve Coppell will join him as an unpaid director of football.

Barker has experienced promotion from League Two with Bury in the 2010/2011 season but only took over with eight games of the season to go once Alan Knill have left for Scunthorpe, winning six of them.

The following season saw Barker keep the Shakers up in League One comfortably despite their financial problems, which saw him courted by Crawley for the 2011/2012 season where his win percentage of games as a manager was an average 37%.

That's not the most inspiring figure, especially as a run of seven games without a win (with only a solitary goal scored during that run) contributed to Barker's sacking from his most recent job.

Whilst this may not be the most exciting appointment, it may well be a shrewd one as Steve Coppell will bring a wealth of experience and knowledge to the club (providing he does actually arrive) and would be an excellent assistant to a young manager who has something to offer.

The pressure will be on from the start but Barker will surely have the backing of every Pompey fan for when he takes charge of the team next Saturday against Newport County.

Let's just hope that he lasts significantly longer in the job than most of his predecessors.