Bristol Rovers should discover within the next 24 hours whether Joey Barton will become their next manager with the former Manchester City and Newcastle United midfielder to hold further talks with club hierarchy.
Bristol Live understands Barton was in Bristol on Tuesday to meet CEO Martyn Starnes, but did not attend the 3-1 victory over Portsmouth at the Memorial Stadium.
The 38-year-old is said to be excited at the potential of Rovers having cut his teeth in League One management with Fleetwood Town who he left in January having led them to the play-offs last season.
There is an understanding that Rovers are a step up in stature from Fleetwood, in terms of the size of the support, growth and expectation within the city.
However, a major stumbling block, and the issue that could ultimately see the Gas move on to other candidates is concerns over the coaching structure with Barton wanting greater control of day-to-day affairs across the club.
At Fleetwood, he was able to appoint former teammates and close friends Clint Hill, Andy Mangan and Eddy Jennings on his staff and while there isn’t expected to be a complete overhaul at Rovers, president Wael Al-Qadi and Starnes are keen to maintain some stability in personnel.
Matters on the pitch have delayed the process slightly with Paul Tisdale’s dismissal last Wednesday then giving way to preparation for a crucial League One relegation battle against Swindon Town.
The cancellation of that fixture, and the subsequent drama surrounding the referee’s decision to call it off, with the close proximity of the following game against Portsmouth has meant focus has been mainly on the field.
Tuesday’s brilliant 3-1 win over Pompey, under the guidance of director of football Tommy Widdrington, has allowed some breathing space for the club and time to think over the right direction to take as the Gas have moved up to 18th in League One with a trip to Gillingham on the weekend.
There is a sense now that the appointment doesn’t need to be rushed should Rovers continue, as hoped, to move away from the relegation zone.
Internally, the belief has always been this is a talented group of players under-performing, and the victory over promotion-hunting Pompey vindicated that to an extent, although will also need to be built on.
The plan remains for Widdrington to return to his role as director of football but if a consistent run of performances, akin to what was produced at the Mem on Tuesday night, can be produced, the 49-year-old could feasibly take charge until the end of the season when more options would be available.
Widdrington has insisted several times he has no desire to take the role on permanently and that will remain the case, irrespective of how well he performs in the dugout.
But should Barton reject the opportunity, there are a number of other options with the Gas also remaining interested in former Motherwell manager Stephen Robinson, while ex-Barnsley boss Daniel Stendel is also under consideration.
Stendel, most recently in charge at Scottish Championship side Hearts, does have offers to manage in the German second tier with Osnabruck and with French Ligue 2 club Nancy, but the 46-year-old, who won promotion to the Championship with Barnsley in 2018/19, would prefer to work in England, should an appealing project be forthcoming.
Bristol Live understands that enquiries were made surrounding the availability of former Southampton and Hull City manager Nigel Adkins but the 55-year-old remains keen on a role in the Championship or at a top-end League One side competing for promotion.
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