So…  Kevin Keegan has quit Newcastle, just a day after Alan Curbishley quit the Hammers.  It looks like they both went for more or less the same reason: they have the traditional view of a club manager being in charge of everything but their clubs are going with the continental system of having directors of football.With no games in the league this week it means we are going to have at least a whole week of the same few usual suspects being rumoured for two clubs now.  Except, somehow I can’t see Big Sam Allardyce being a bookies’ favourite for the Toon.  

But concentrating on the Hammers because that’s the team that really matters, what is going on there?  I will admit that, before he took the job, Curbishley would not have been my top choice and I worried that there was such a great expectation on him after being talked about as boss when Roeder went that nobody could live up to it.  Having said that, he met one of the main criteria for West Ham manager in being ‘family’.  We are a sentimental lot at West Ham and most ofour managers over the years have been ex-Hammers.

I also think that another club tradition is sticking by managers so despite my reservations before his appointment, once he was there I wanted him to make a go of it, but having said that, I’m glad he went quickly instead of letting all the rumours to run for months like they did with Pardew.

So who are the candidates for the job?   The usual selection of any manager currently without a job, plus a few known to be unsettled or looking for a bigger job, and then any ex-Hammer that anybody can name.  I think its safe to say that Keegan is not likely to go for the job, but other names I have seen bandied about are Avram Grant, Sam Allardyce, Harry Redknapp, Slaven Bilic, Stuart Pearce and Davide Ballardini.  A new name to appear today is Paolo Di Canio.

The gut reaction of an average armchair Hammer is:

Allardyce – please no.

Grant – No.  If he couldn’t do it with Abramovich’s billions how could he do it with Gudmundsson’s millions? And with Kia Joorabchian involved there is too much chance of there being something dodgy involved in the deal.

Harry – would be popular, but if someone else is in charge of transfers how would he exercise his main talent of wheeling and dealing?  Also he would be mad to take the job.

Ballardini – know nothing about him except that he has never played for West Ham so will not be a first choice.

Pearce – Would be an interesting choice and popular.  I would enjoy seeing him going psycho on the touchline.

Bilic – Another popular ex-Hammer. He has been very impressive with the Croatia team and getting him out of that position would be good for England’s prospects in their qualifying group.  He would be my number two choice.

Di Canio – when he was playing for the Hammers he was a cult figure second only to Julian Dicks in popularity (Trev and Bobby Moore are beyond and above all that) and we still have fond memories of his time at Upton Park but since then…  do we really want a manager who says he is ‘fascist but not racist‘?  When his name was mentioned before I didn’t give it much credibility, but now he says he is interested.  We don’t need that, and we don’t need a manager who has never managed before.

My first choice might surprise other West Ham fans, but its somebody I wanted to see in the frame when Roeder left and when Pardew left: Iain Dowie.  I can’t see him being tempted away from QPR so soon after starting there, but he would be my preference.