The frequency with which old hands have been given jobs in the Premier League this season has been remarkable. Alan Pardew, Mark Hughes, Sam Allardyce, David Moyes and Roy Hodgson are routinely recycled by the same few clubs who seem to crave the apparent safety and stability provided by such experienced names.

One manager who hasn’t become part of that process is Alan Curbishley. Regularly linked with the England job while delivering sustained success at Charlton, he has now been away from frontline management for a decade. His absence isn’t for the want of trying.

“It took me a year to sort out my differences with West Ham, which was far too long. Then the opportunities I was being offered didn’t really appeal to me,” says Curbishley. “It was mostly Championship stuff. Suddenly you find that it’s been two or three years and you’re out of favour. You’re forgotten. The game moves on so quickly. Owners who are new to the game don’t really know about you. Then I possibly lost a bit of enthusiasm for it, to be honest. I started doing other things and getting involved in TV work and I was enjoying that. Then you’re out too long. That’s the problem.”

Rumours of Curbishley’s comeback have persisted and it’s become something of a running joke every time he is installed as one of the favourites for a vacancy. He twice came very close to a return. In one instance the club chose another candidate; in the other he decided against taking up the offer. “I may have been a little bit picky. Managers often jump straight back in, but I wanted to make sure it was the right opportunity. I probably ended up waiting too long. I did have opportunities – quite a few in actual fact – but I didn’t think they were right. With my record, I wanted to go back into the Premier League.”

“We’ve had a unique year in terms of Premier League dismissals. There have been eight and mostly at teams down the bottom. A lot of clubs have gone down a certain route to try to stay in the league. Perhaps if that had happened when I was just out of a job, it would have been quite exciting. But those sorts of jobs weren’t there. Experienced managers did say to me: ‘Look, you can’t be out of the game too long.’ And perhaps that’s what my downfall was in some respects.”

Alan Curbishley received a standing ovation from the Charlton fans when he left at the end of the 2005-06 season. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian

Curbishley started his managerial career at Charlton and it’s difficult to overstate his achievements with the club. Forced to leave The Valley in 1985 due to safety issues, they spent several years ground-sharing with Crystal Palace and then West Ham. They were in a mess. After Lennie Lawrence’s departure, Curbishley and Steve Gritt were appointed as joint player-managers in the summer of 1991. Players were sold to fund the club’s return to The Valley, but they remained competitive in the second tier. Curbishley took sole charge in 1995 and went on to win promotion and establish Charlton in the Premier League.

They became a model of stability and finished as high as seventh in 2003-04, but as the seasons ticked by there was a growing sense Curbishley had taken Charlton as far as he could. He stepped down towards the end of the 2005-06 season, having been in charge for 729 games. “I find it a little bit difficult to take because I left when I did to give the new manager a chance to bed in and get his feet under the table. For once perhaps the planning didn’t work out how we thought it would.”

Charlton went through three managers the next season and were relegated after seven consecutive campaigns in the Premier League. They haven’t been back since and, if they are not promoted in the next few weeks, they will have spent as many seasons in League One as the Championship since Curbishley left.

Curbishley’s legacy has only been enhanced by Charlton’s struggles, but he has found it painful to watch. “I go when I can. I was there recently when Lee Bowyer took over because he’s one of my ex-players. It’s nice to go back but it’s not nice to see the stadium a third full. That’s a bit demoralising but hopefully they can get themselves back on track. They have a Premier League stadium, a lovely training ground and a good fanbase, so hopefully things can pick up again.”

Alan Curbishley in charge of Charlton in 2001. Photograph: AI Project/Action Images

In his final season at The Valley, Curbishley was one of five men interviewed for the England job in anticipation of Sven-Goran Eriksson’s departure after the 2006 World Cup. The FA picked Steve McClaren and Curbishley was soon called upon to save West Ham from relegation, winning seven of their last nine games to keep them up.

His spell in charge ended abruptly three games into the 2008-09 season. He was meant to have the final say on transfers but George McCartney and Anton Ferdinand were sold against his wishes so he resigned. “My position was untenable so things came to a head,” he says. “It was disappointing because we had a decent side that could compete. It was a big decision.”

What happened at West Ham remains the biggest frustration of his managerial career. Curbishley had supported the club as a boy and believed he could take them into the top six. He later sued for constructive dismissal and was awarded a settlement of £2.2m, but he hasn’t been seen in a dugout since.

Alan Curbishley enjoys a chat with Ray Winstone during his stint in charge of West Ham. Photograph: Julian Finney/Getty Images

Much has changed in football. “In my mind, it was always about trying to build something. Managers don’t have that long-term view now. At Charlton we were always trying to improve – pushing a little bit further and doing a little better. It was about building the stadium and increasing the gate. The emphasis now is short-term. That’s a big problem for clubs. Managers aren’t around long enough to think long-term about bringing young players through, which is obviously a lot better than having to buy them.”

Aside from his media work, Curbishley has had a couple of stints at Fulham: first as a technical director and then supporting Kit Symons in his first managerial job. “I’m on the League Managers’ committee and we’ve been talking about that as a potential role for those who don’t necessarily want to be managers anymore, but would like to offer their experience to up-and-coming young managers. They probably only get one shot at it and if they’re not successful it’s very difficult to get another job. It’s an idea a lot of young managers should think about. Even Tony Pulis had Gerry Francis with him for years. Most of them probably see it as a sign of weakness if they ask for a little bit of help, but I don’t see it that way.”

Curbishley is happy, but thinks he still has something to offer. “I have been forgotten. Things move on, don’t they? Football doesn’t stand still. You’ve got to be in it and around it. But I haven’t been on Mars. I see football every weekend and in midweek. I know what’s going on. It’s not as if I’m completely out of touch. I’ve had over 800 games and I think I’m still in the top 10 for games managed in the Premier League.”

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