Football Season Guide

Blackpool have had a turbulent 2018/19 season mostly off the pitch, as the war between the club owners and the fans culminated in the Tangarines finally changing owners. On the field, the Tangarines performed above expectations and remained in the play-off race until very late in the season. Terry McPhillips received a lot of praise for the work he did after taking over early in the campaign. However, this summer saw McPhillips follow the steps of his predecessor Gary Bowyer by deciding to leave his post as the manager of Blackpool. It was a move that came out of the blue, but the board quickly acted and opted for experience by bringing in Simon Grayson. The Tangarines had a bloated squad last time around and the players who left mostly featured sporadically, with defender Ben Heneghan, back to parent club Sheffield United, the sole exception. The list of arrivals looks extremely promising. Sullay Kaikai, back from a spell at Holland, is a proven menace at League One level, Ryan Edwards is an established defender in this division, while Ben Tollitt and Jamie Devitt may come from League Two, but both starred for their now-ex clubs last season. The Tangarines therefore certainly look stronger than last season, but there are obviously question marks over whether they overperformed last time around with what was a rather limited squad.