Merson seeks manager's role at Walsall
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Your support makes all the difference.Paul Merson hopes to take his first steps into management at Walsall after completing a move to the Midlands club yesterday. The 35-year-old former England international has joined the Saddlers on an initial two-year deal from Portsmouth, whom he helped propel to the First Division title last season.
Merson's stay at the Bescot could well be extended since he hopes to branch out into management under the guidance of the Walsall manager, Colin Lee. "Yes, a major consideration in me coming here was Colin Lee because in the future I would like to get into coaching and management," Merson said. "I'd like to get my coaching badges, and part of the reason I'm at Walsall is to learn my trade as a manager.
"But if and when I do eventually leave Walsall, I don't want the supporters to remember me as a rubbish player who went on to become a good coach," he added. "I'd rather they remember me as a good footballer. People in this game will always tell you you're a long time finished and I want to keep playing football as long as I can."
"It's a new challenge for me and that was part of the attraction in coming here. I like the way Walsall play football because they play a total football style, and I want to be a part of that."
Merson's appetite for the game means he found it difficult to envisage a future outside football. "I would miss football, yes," he said. "But I've always been attracted by management because I've always wanted to pit my brains against somebody else.
"That's why I would rather be a manager than a coach. My basic beliefs are that you should treat players fairly and let them get on with playing football because that's what people who come to football grounds want to see. You've got to win football matches, of course, but there's a certain way of winning."
There was also a parting shot for Portsmouth, who Merson said were intent on changing the conditions of his contract. Merson had a year to run on his Fratton Park deal but said Pompey wanted to ditch the clause in his contract which allowed him days off because he was driving to the South Coast from his home in the Midlands.
"When I left Portsmouth the other day, I felt very disillusioned with the game," he admitted. "I went down there on a two-year deal and you look at what I'd done last season, but at the end of the day I had to fight for my money. I was driving 35,000 miles in a season. There was no 'thank you' or anything like that but that's how it can be in football. The older you get the more you realise it's a business."
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