Skubala appointment sets tone for Robins future - Ellis
Michael Skubala became Bristol City's third manager in a year when he was appointed
- Published
Bristol City sporting director James Ellis believes securing the services of former Lincoln City boss Michael Skubala "sets the tone for the next two to three years".
In an interview with the Robins' club website, external, Ellis also said Skubala came through a "rigorous" recruitment process before being appointed.
"We have ambitions over the next three years to get to where we want to be, and Michael's appointment is an important one to set the tone for that," said Ellis.
"Michael is a high-quality human being, a high-quality leader, a winner and someone who is going to help move this football club forward."
Along with Preston North End and Queens Park Rangers, the Ashton Gate club are on the longest active run of consecutive Championship seasons, having last been absent from the second tier in 2014-15.
They hope that by hiring the man who won the third-tier title last season, the top tier of English football may become a real possibility in the near future.
"Everyone in the South-West is passionate about how their football club is run and how they play," said Ellis.
"Michael is very balanced and he connects well with people, and that goes for up through the organisation, too.
"He knows his job is to win football matches, but to do that you need the support of everyone around you."
That all-inclusive approach was something the Bristol City board factored into their hiring process.
Skubala will be the third man to take charge of of the Robins in a year after the club dismissed head coach Gerhard Struber in March, before appointing interim boss Roy Hodgson in his place until the end of the campaign.
"We wanted to deliver a process that had attention to detail, it was rigorous and needed time, which is why we must thank Roy [Hodgson], who came in for the final seven weeks of the season," said Ellis.
"We talked to people that understood him not just as a coach but as a person, because we needed to make sure of the fit of the individual and his staff, because this is a special club and a different one for great reasons."
Skubala guided Lincoln to League One success in his third season at Sincil Bank
'Head coach' to 'first-team manager'
Many Bristol City fans picked up on a crucial difference in last week's announcement of Skubala, which said the ex-Lincoln boss had been recruited as first-team manager, rather than head coach - the job title of the previous two permanent bosses, Struber and Liam Manning.
Ellis made clear that this change was as much to help reflect the direction of the club internally as much as externally.
"It's not about the title, it's about the accountability and responsibility. I am old school and feel as though a football club should have a manager," said Ellis.
"That is more his role internally and how the players and staff around him understand that he has all autonomy over all football performance matters."
Football performance will ultimately be the test of Skubala's tenure at Ashton Gate, having left Sincil Bank after masterminding one of the EFL's great unexpected stories in recent years.
"People will be accountable for what they do, but as a manager his core job will be to win football matches on a Tuesday and Saturday," said Ellis.
"He is here to improve the team, the collation of points, and every single player. His job is about team performance and individual development and growing our ability to create an environment that enables us to win."
