Long may this continue: here we are, heading into Christmas, and the 20 men who started the season as Barclays Premier League managers all retain their jobs.

If it was down to me, they would all still be in their roles on May 24 next year, when the campaign reaches its conclusion.

I’d certainly back a rule being brought in that prevented clubs sacking their manager during a season, as there are so many implications from one decision.

Alan Pardew came under fire earlier this season and was favourite to be the first boss sacked in the top flight

Newcastle have won six of their last nine games, including victory over previously unbeaten Chelsea

Think about the negative domino effect that is created: if one club is performing poorly and sacks its manager, that means another club will lose their manager through no fault of their own. They, in turn, then have no option but to try to lure someone else away... and on it goes.

Why should owners and chairman be able to do that? If the man they started out with in August isn’t delivering, they shouldn’t be allowed to correct their own mistake by inflicting huge change elsewhere: they make the appointments, so they should live with the consequences.

How long this stability continues is anyone’s guess, given that there is a lot of scrutiny on some managers, but it is looking like this will be the first season since the opening Premier League campaign in 1992-93 that no managerial changes will have taken place before Christmas.

What I have found fascinating this year is how some managers, who were seemingly walking a tightrope not so long ago when they were in the middle of bad runs, are now being hailed for doing ‘brilliant’ jobs.

Use Alan Pardew as an example. The outsiders’ perception is that he will have changed his methods to generate Newcastle’s improvement but the reality will be different.

New signings, like Ayoze Perez, have settled, while Moussa Sissoko is showing the form he did when first arriving here.

Sam Allardyce is another case in point. West Ham’s owners wanted him to play more attacking football and it looks like that is what he has given them. Has Allardyce, with more than 20 years’ coaching experience, completely altered his approach in one summer?

Sam Allardyce also came under fire early in the season after an underwhelming start by West Ham

Yet signings like Diafra Sakho (front) have propelled the Hammers to fourth in the Premier League table

Or is it down to two new signings — Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho — making an instant impression and Stewart Downing hitting the form of his life?

David Moyes’ recruitment at Everton was excellent. Players such as Tim Cahill and Seamus Coleman were real finds, but during his time at Manchester United he was constantly reminded about how his one big signing, Marouane Fellaini, was struggling.

Similarly, look at Brendan Rodgers. He said this week ‘it wasn’t rocket science’ to see why Liverpool’s fortunes had dipped. Losing strikers of the calibre of Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge would have an impact on any side. It shows how vital it is to buy well and keep your good players.

I’ve long felt managers receive too much criticism when things are going badly and they can receive too much praise when they are winning. Of course, as Sir Alex Ferguson says, the manager must be the most important person at a club — but is he more important than players in securing results?

As in any walk of life, there will be some who are more capable of influencing situations than others.

Ferguson was a serial winner wherever he went and he could be worth up to 10 points a season for Manchester United. Likewise, Jose Mourinho gets results no matter what club he is at.

Both men would tell you they have been blessed to work with great squads of players. Some would say they were fortunate to be able to utilise such talent, but let’s not forget how good they have been at attracting the right men to add to their teams; they know how essential recruitment is.

Brendan Rodgers has struggled in his second season at Liverpool after losing Luis Suarez

The Uruguayan hitman now plays in Barcelona, leaving Liverpool with a daunting hole to fill

Every manager I speak to tells me the most important part of the job is recruitment and it is impossible to disagree. When you speak to someone who loses their job abruptly, the first reason they will give is that their signings didn’t work out. Nothing more needs to be said after that.

That is why you have to wonder whether there is any point in sacking a manager in the middle of a season. Yes, clubs tend to benefit with an initial boost for the first five or six games when a new man comes in but then, after the honeymoon period, results tend to level back out.

Again, there is evidence of men who have come in and transformed a club’s fortunes. Tony Pulis, at Crystal Palace last season, is probably the most spectacular example of someone rescuing a team that looked to be dead and buried.

Owen Coyle (with Bolton) and the late Alan Ball (at Southampton in 1994), however, are the only others who have joined a club in the relegation zone after Christmas and been able to keep them in the Premier League.

Alan Ball (left) embraces Matthew Le Tissier - the pair helped Southampton escape the drop in 1994

Crystal Palace were bottom when Tony Pulis took over last December; by May he had taken them to 11th

Changing managers doesn’t mean a club is waving a magic wand to make things better and that is why I keep coming back to players being absolutely essential to the prospects of those who oversee operations from the sidelines.

Take Louis van Gaal and Manchester United. When he first arrived at Old Trafford and he had those poor results early on, it was questioned whether he could adapt to the English game or if the methods that had served him well in Europe and with the Dutch national team would pay off.

Four months on and United are thriving, but is it just down to Van Gaal? No. United spent huge money to buy top talents, such as Angel di Maria, and have others in Robin van Persie and Wayne Rooney who are making a difference. Their balance is starting to look right.

And that is essential. If players perform, managers flourish and then you have a winning formula.

If players lose their way, the manager, ultimately, will pay.

Louis van Gaal has steered United to five straight wins and his side are being talked about as title contenders

De Gea could be player of the year

You have to go back to 1985 for the last time a goalkeeper was recognised as being the outstanding player of a season.

Back then, Neville Southall — a man I grew up watching — received the FWA award for the remarkable form he showed when Everton won the League Championship and last week at Old Trafford I began to wonder whether David de Gea might emulate him.

There has been a lot of debate about where De Gea stands at the moment in terms of the goalkeepers we have in this country, but there is no doubt in my mind he is now the No 1, having just edged past Chelsea’s Thibaut Courtois.

David de Gea has been nothing short of exceptional this season, pulling off a string of fine saves

Thibaut Courtois, who took over from De Gea at Atletico Madrid, has impressed in his first year in England

Neville Southall won the FWA award in 1985 helping the Toffees to win the First Division title by 13 points

I thought his performance against Liverpool was amazing. He never did anything wrong at any stage in the game and, most importantly, gave his defenders the confidence that he would save them when he was called into action. He looks a different goalkeeper to the one who first arrived in England.

If De Gea keeps playing as he has been, it will be difficult to overlook him at the end of the season. With Manuel Neuer in contention for the Ballon d’Or, we are seeing what a difference a top-class goalkeeper makes to a team.

History shows how hard it is for No 1s to be singled out — Pat Jennings (1976) and Peter Shilton (1978) are the only keepers to win the PFA gong — but if De Gea maintains this consistency, it might be hard to overlook him.

This week I'm excited about... Sky signing Thierry Henry

Thierry Henry is the best of the Premier League era

There has been widespread acclaim for Thierry after he announced his retirement this week — and all of the praise has been richly deserved. At the peak of his powers, it was almost impossible to stop him. I will never forget the moment, during one game at Anfield, when he engaged overdrive and ran away from me with a change of speed I had not witnessed. It felt as though I was trying to chase after someone on a motorbike.

He is rightly regarded as the best player of the Barclays Premier League era and looking back at some of the footage that has been shown of him in recent days provided a reminder of just how ahead of the game Thierry was; the medals he won accurately reflect his talent.