Martin Allen says Barnet deserve to be bottom of League Two
Saturday 24 March 2018 13:28, UK
There is always someone you just cannot say no to - and that is exactly what brought Martin Allen back to Barnet for a fifth time this week, 15 years after he first took charge of the Bees.
Of all the times Allen has said yes to a club he openly believes he has a special relationship with, coming in to fix a season with eight games remaining, and seven points to make up on their relegation rivals, will not rank among the most attractive.
The 52-year-old admits his new club - if you can call it that - deserve to be rock bottom of the EFL, but he still has the belief he can pull off a great escape with the club who have enjoyed more success under Allen than anyone else in their recent history.
It is those memories of the good times - winning the National League less than three years ago - that spurred him back to north London, after more than a year out of work since leaving Eastleigh last February.
"The fact it's Barnet is what made me say yes," he says. "Going back to that club, there's still a bit of time, 24 points to play for and eight games, and a lot of possibilities to get the points to put us above that white line.
"I have had offers to go to manage other clubs, which didn't really suit me or my family, and I don't really want to move any more.
"If it'd have been any other clubs - I don't know, but I've enjoyed my week with them so far and this is just the build-up to Saturday.
"I don't think it's a false position they're in, they're bottom because they deserve to be. They haven't won enough games, and over this period of time, you are where you are for a reason.
"That said, there has been a lot of injuries, some of these players are now back fit, we've trimmed the squad down and we'll have to see what happens. We've just asked the players to give it their best shot, and whatever will be will be."
Beyond Paul Fairclough's spell in the early 2000s, it has been a largely disappointing era for the club outside of Allen's array of spells.
Things have gone from the sublime to the ridiculous, and even last season a play-off push under interim boss Rossi Eames was derailed when his successor, Kevin Nugent, won only one of his 11 games in charge before he got the chop.
There is a feeling that even though many fans are less than enamoured with the head coach's robust style of play, that he knows better than anyone how to galvanise the club.
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But in the intervening 16 months between leaving for Eastleigh and returning this month, Allen insists he never gave the prospect of returning to The Hive a second thought, despite jokes among the fan base every time the club went on a bad run in his absence.
"I never thought about it, I've always kept in touch with the chairman all the way through," Allen said.
"I never left on bad terms last time, I've always had a good relationship with him. It was no surprise to get the call on Sunday night, because they do need to change something - it's a gamble really, to see if he can get results quickly.
"There is something special here. To get promotion, win a Championship, that will always be extra special, for me and the supporters and the players in that team.
"That whole season, being top of the league, it was remarkable. Going back now, I don't want to see Barnet going back into the Conference. I don't want to see them drop back into the Conference, and all that work being lost."
Watch Allen's first game back in charge when Barnet travel to Luton on Saturday, live on Sky Sports Football from 5pm.
