CARL Baker insists the players have to take the blame for Andy Thorn getting the sack.
“At the end of the day it's not the manager's fault,“ said Tuesday night's match winner who is clearly annoyed by the contrasting levels of performance from the team in the space of 75 hours.
“He picks the team but the same team went out in the second half against Bury as played so well in the first, so it must be frustrating for him. I think the lads must take full responsibility and we all showed that that wasn't acceptable with the way we played in the cup.
“I couldn't sleep on Saturday night thinking about how we had thrown it away. I had texts from a couple of the Bury lads I know who said they couldn't believe how they got back in the game after the first half when they said we were one of the best teams they have played for a long time.
“But football has a habit of kicking you in the face one day and then you have nights like Tuesday. I did fear the worst after the first five minutes and it could have turned out to be an absolute nightmare, to be honest. But thankfully we gave a response and I personally felt proud of the performance and all the lads.“
He added: “It has been really hard over the last few days. I had a good relationship with Thorny who has always been good with me so I am sad to see him go.
“It was a shock because it was so early in the season. I know the second half against Bury wasn't good but we still haven't lost in seven games. I thought with him bringing in so many new players in the pre-season that they were going to give him a bit more time, but it's a ruthless business.
“I'm sure he's hurting now because he wanted to be a success here but unfortunately that wasn't to be. All the lads were disappointed to see him go but it happens all the time and we have to make sure we keep going.
“Richard Shaw and Lee Carsley have been fantastic and it is testament to them that everyone worked their socks off for them against Birmingham.
“I think we did work harder because the second half against Bury was so bad but we knew that whether we won, drew or lost I think the fans would have gone home happy because we played for 90 minutes and gave a performance.“
Tuesday night was arguably one of his best games since joining the club, topped by his extra-time goal to send the Sky Blues through to the third round of the Capital One Cup. Caretaker boss Shaw summed it up by saying: “The desire that he showed to close people down ­ I've never seen Carl tackle like that, not even in training, but he was sensational.“
Baker, who revealed he was determined to do well on his mum's birthday, said: “I just thought driving to the game that I was going to give it everything I have got and wanted the fans to see me giving 110 per cent and hopefully they would get behind me. And I thought I did that and I had a lot of the ball in the final third and things I was trying were coming off. I felt really good, fit and strong. I was expecting to hit a brick wall going into the second half of extra time but I still had energy on the final whistle.“
And as for his new-found art of tackling, he added: “I don't know where that came from. Carso and Shawsy spoke to me before the game about being in the right position, which was in and around Hayden Mullins.“
But the icing on the cake for Baker was his 97th-minute winner, the 29-year-old revealing: “It was the best feeling in the world.“
The challenge now, of course, if for him to produce displays like that on a more consistent basis.
“Yeah, definitely,“ said the determined forward. “I don't want my standards to drop.
I am feeling really fit and I want to look after my body and recover right for Saturday and the rest of the season. There will be games when I won't play so well but I still want to be working hard.“
Whether that will be under Shaw and Carsley remains to be seen, of course, but the new fabulous Baker and the boys know they could have a big say in the matter.
“I gather the players are all behind Richard. Me personally, I would love it because he is a great fella' and he and Carso work great together. I have a lot of respect for them. They have been fantastic since they have come in and everyone can see the lads gave them an absolute shift and a lot of that is to do with them being in charge. It was a bit of a statement to be honest. “It's in our hands really and I think the lads know that. Hopefully Shawsy will get a little bit of time now and if we pick up results I don't see the need to change.“
“At the end of the day it's not the manager's fault,“ said Tuesday night's match winner who is clearly annoyed by the contrasting levels of performance from the team in the space of 75 hours.
“He picks the team but the same team went out in the second half against Bury as played so well in the first, so it must be frustrating for him. I think the lads must take full responsibility and we all showed that that wasn't acceptable with the way we played in the cup.
“I couldn't sleep on Saturday night thinking about how we had thrown it away. I had texts from a couple of the Bury lads I know who said they couldn't believe how they got back in the game after the first half when they said we were one of the best teams they have played for a long time.
“But football has a habit of kicking you in the face one day and then you have nights like Tuesday. I did fear the worst after the first five minutes and it could have turned out to be an absolute nightmare, to be honest. But thankfully we gave a response and I personally felt proud of the performance and all the lads.“
He added: “It has been really hard over the last few days. I had a good relationship with Thorny who has always been good with me so I am sad to see him go.
“It was a shock because it was so early in the season. I know the second half against Bury wasn't good but we still haven't lost in seven games. I thought with him bringing in so many new players in the pre-season that they were going to give him a bit more time, but it's a ruthless business.
“I'm sure he's hurting now because he wanted to be a success here but unfortunately that wasn't to be. All the lads were disappointed to see him go but it happens all the time and we have to make sure we keep going.
“Richard Shaw and Lee Carsley have been fantastic and it is testament to them that everyone worked their socks off for them against Birmingham.
“I think we did work harder because the second half against Bury was so bad but we knew that whether we won, drew or lost I think the fans would have gone home happy because we played for 90 minutes and gave a performance.“
Tuesday night was arguably one of his best games since joining the club, topped by his extra-time goal to send the Sky Blues through to the third round of the Capital One Cup. Caretaker boss Shaw summed it up by saying: “The desire that he showed to close people down ­ I've never seen Carl tackle like that, not even in training, but he was sensational.“
Baker, who revealed he was determined to do well on his mum's birthday, said: “I just thought driving to the game that I was going to give it everything I have got and wanted the fans to see me giving 110 per cent and hopefully they would get behind me. And I thought I did that and I had a lot of the ball in the final third and things I was trying were coming off. I felt really good, fit and strong. I was expecting to hit a brick wall going into the second half of extra time but I still had energy on the final whistle.“
And as for his new-found art of tackling, he added: “I don't know where that came from. Carso and Shawsy spoke to me before the game about being in the right position, which was in and around Hayden Mullins.“
But the icing on the cake for Baker was his 97th-minute winner, the 29-year-old revealing: “It was the best feeling in the world.“
The challenge now, of course, if for him to produce displays like that on a more consistent basis.
“Yeah, definitely,“ said the determined forward. “I don't want my standards to drop.
I am feeling really fit and I want to look after my body and recover right for Saturday and the rest of the season. There will be games when I won't play so well but I still want to be working hard.“
Whether that will be under Shaw and Carsley remains to be seen, of course, but the new fabulous Baker and the boys know they could have a big say in the matter.
“I gather the players are all behind Richard. Me personally, I would love it because he is a great fella' and he and Carso work great together. I have a lot of respect for them. They have been fantastic since they have come in and everyone can see the lads gave them an absolute shift and a lot of that is to do with them being in charge. It was a bit of a statement to be honest. “It's in our hands really and I think the lads know that. Hopefully Shawsy will get a little bit of time now and if we pick up results I don't see the need to change.“
