Manager Simpson leaves Carlisle United..
Manager Paul Simpson has left Carlisle United following their 2-1 home defeat by Tranmere Rovers.
The Carlisle-born Simpson, 58, ended his playing career with the Cumbrian club and returned for a second spell as manager in 2022, leading them to promotion.
However, they were relegated to League Two last season and Saturday’s loss was their third from four league matches this term.
Assistant managers Gavin Skelton and Billy Barr have also departed, as has Simpson’s son Jake, who was the club’s head of performance.
Academy coaches Mark Birch, Steven Rudd and Jamie Devitt have been placed in caretaker charge.
Carlisle lost nine of their final 10 home games last season and drew the other.
And Simpson’s exit was announced three hours after their latest reverse at Brunton Park.
“Everyone at the club would like to thank Paul and his staff for their efforts,” Carlisle said in a statement., external
The Piatak family, from Jacksonville in Florida, completed a takeover of Carlisle last year and Simpson spoke before the start of the season about “positive things going on” at the club.
But results have continued to be poor and he leaves with the team 20th in the table.
Prior to his time as a player at United, Simpson’s career included spells at Manchester City, Derby County and Wolves.
As well as his two stints in charge at Carlisle, he has managed Preston, Stockport, Shrewsbury, Rochdale and England’s under-20s side, leading them to victory at the Under-20 World Cup in 2017.
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Carlisle United Reportedly Set Sights to sign Fellow League Two Manager….
Carlisle United have reportedly set their sights on a fellow League Two manager to replace Paul Simpson after his role as manager came to an end at the weekend.
Crewe Alexandra’s Lee Ball has supposedly been picked out by the Cumbrian side as the man they would like to take the club forward for the rest of the campaign. Having completed their takeover of the club last year, the Piatak family have invested heavily in the side since the January transfer window and want to see the recently relegated side bounce back to League One at the first time of asking.
One of the brightest young managers in the EFL – Bell’s career so far:
Bell spent the majority of his playing career within the lower reaches of the EFL having come through the youth ranks with Crewe. He had loan spells at Shrewsbury Town and Burton Albion and also made 53 appearances for the Railwaymen.
The former midfielder went on to appear for Mansfield Town, Macclesfield Town before second spells with Burton and Crewe. After his second spell at Macclesfield in 2015, Bell retired at the age of 32 and joined Crewe as their under 18s coach.
After periods as interim boss, the 41 year old was given the role of manager on a permanent basis at the end of 2022. In his first full season in charge of the Cheshire side, Bell led them to an unexpected sixth place finish and the play-off final where they lost out on promotion to Crawley Town.
Despite a below-par start to the 2024-25 season, Bell has been rated by many as one of the most promising young managers in the EFL. His performances with Crewe have seen the likes of Carlisle reportedly considering a move for the 41 year old.
What would Lee Bell bring to Carlisle?
Given that his managerial role at Crewe is his first as the main man, Bell has done an impressive job. The former midfielder has taken charge of 93 matches for the Railwaymen and has a win percentage of 37%.
One of Bell’s biggest attributes is his embedding a pragmatic style and versatility into his team. This skill was emphasised by Notts County manager, Stuart Maynard, ahead of their game against Bell’s side last season:
“Crewe are known for their tactical versatility, they’re skilled at switching formations and tactics depending on the opponent. So, it’s crucial for us to be well-prepared for whatever they throw at us.”
This pragmatic and versatile attribute has been shown so far this season with Crewe playing a 3-5-1-1, 3-4-1-2 and 4-2-3-1 in the four games against Barrow, Chesterfield, Swindon Town and Bromley. Coupled with this is the strong defence that Bell has built at Crewe with a clinical counter attacking style.
When looking at last season, the Railwaymen kept 13 clean sheets which was four shy of the league best in 17. Their ability to be clinical is shown by the fact that they outscored their expected goals (xG) total last season having scored 69 goals from an xG of 59.6.
Finally, Bell has the ability to build a squad that is willing to fight for each other and has strong team spirit both on and off the pitch. Bell believed was one of the main reasons why they came from behind a number of times last season:
“We’ve made small changes to things that didn’t really happen at the club, like getting everyone to eat together,”
“We made a social room with a pool table, table tennis and darts. It means they might stay around the building for a couple of hours longer. One of our strengths is the character the group has”.
“They had to show that from very early in the season because we were a couple of goals down in every game. They showed the bond within the group to overcome that”.
With Carlisle sitting 20th in League 2 with one win to their name so far this season, they will need to appoint a new manager should they want to rise up that table and compete where they would have been expecting to before the season started. That manager could be Lee Bell and given the season he had with the Cheshire side last time out, he would not be a bad choice for the Cumbrian side.
