Posted by

Harjeet Johal ,

December 14, 2015 Twitter

@HarJournalist

Read this on your iPhone/iPad or Android device





VANCOUVER, B.C - Does Vancouver Whitecaps manager Carl Robinson have a wandering Welsh eye?



If left untreated or not offered a contract extension, Whitecaps supporters could see their cardigan clad gaffer patrolling the touchline of a football club in England or Wales in the not too distant future.



Carl Robinson is under contract with the Whitecaps for two more years. Could he be tempted to depart Vancouver for a green grass pitch in the Premier League or Sky Bet Championship? Yes, of course he could.



The Vancouver Whitecaps have performed above and beyond expectations since Carl Robinson was hired as manager on Monday, December 16, 2013. In his two seasons as Whitecaps manager, Vancouver has increased points, wins, and goals for, and has also seen a decrease in goals allowed. Under Robinson the Whitecaps also hosted the team’s first ever MLS home playoff fixture on Sunday, November 8, 2015.



Carl Robinson is one of the lowest paid managers in Major League Soccer. If the Whitecaps want to keep him in Vancouver long-term, they have several options that could entice Robinson and his family to stay on the west coast.



A) Pay raise, B) Contract extension, C) An extra job title, D) Bigger transfer budget, E) All of the above.



When it comes to up and coming managers Robinson is becoming a well-known name and not just in MLS ranks. While pundits and supporters across the pond may not know who Carl Robinson is. Owners, chairmen, and managers in the Premier League and Sky Bet Championship are keeping a keen eye on Robinson.



The 39 year-old Carl Robinson grew up going to Boxing Day and New Year’s Day matches and this is a tradition he enjoys to this very day. What a great feeling it would be for Robinson to one day manage a football club on one of those special days. Unfortunately that won't be possible if he stays in Major League Soccer.



Out of nowhere Carl Robinson has turned the Whitecaps into an MLS Cup contender. Nobody reckoned Robinson would be the go to guy to after Marin Rennie was fired. In fact, the Vancouver Whitecaps turned to Robinson after previous managerial candidates fell through. The Whitecaps landed an absolute star of a manager when Robinson came aboard as the gaffer.



You want someone who breathes, sleeps, and thinks about football 24/7. That's Carl Robinson to a tee.



Matias Laba, Kendall Waston, Pedro Morales, and Jordan Harvey have all signed contract extensions and David Ousted is currently in contract extension negotiations. You won't get the best out of those players if Carl Robinson isn't retained beyond the 2017 season. The players love playing for Carl Robinson. He's a player’s manager who says it like it is and he has played the game of football. That's a big factor why players want to play for Carl Robinson.



Each day that Carl Robinson isn't extended the window for the Whitecaps to hoist the MLS Cup shrinks.



Vancouver doesn't have a star calibre player like the Seattle Sounders, Montreal Impact, Toronto FC, New York City FC, LA Galaxy, Orlando City SC and so forth. Robinson and his staff have put together a team of players with the majority being from North America, Central America and South America. This isn't a team of household players making millions of dollars and partying on yachts. It's a team of comradery, chemistry, character, toughness, leadership, and players who want to give their all for each other.



The success Robinson has had in Vancouver is in part because of the coaching staff he has surrounded himself with. If Carl Robinson was to take a job with another club, he would most likely want his coaching staff of Martyn Pert, Gordon Forrest, and Marius Røvde to come with him.



The Whitecaps organization should look at a scenario that entertained Canadian Women's National Team Coach John Herdman. The England Women's National Team crashed out of Euro 2013 in Sweden and Hope Powell was sacked. John Herdman was linked to the manager vacancy with the England. Knowing what kind of coach Canada Soccer had with John Herdman, they increased his salary, job title, and signed him to a contract extension that goes through the summer of 2020.



Carl Robinson is clearly in the same boat and the Vancouver Whitecaps can't let him sail away.



Cardiff City, Swansea City, Wolverhampton, Sunderland, and Norwich City aren't exactly top of the table teams this season, but they all have a connection with Carl Robinson. Whitecaps fans should look to the summer of 2016. When the manager job centre queues start to form before the August kickoff to the 2016/2017 Premier League and Sky Bet Championship season. Manager vacancies will be abound.



If the Whitecaps sign Carl Robinson to a contract extension he would have no desire to move back to the U.K. for a job before the start of the next campaign.



Swansea City sacked manager Garry Monk on Wednesday, December 9. Swansea City Chairman Huw Jenkins is a big fan of Carl Robinson and the work he has done in MLS. Carl Robinson won't be joining the Swans for this go around, but he was briefly linked as a long shot to fill the manager vacancy.



When approached for a comment, a Swansea City official added this.



"Unfortunately we are not commenting at the moment on any speculation / links with the vacant managerial position."



David Moyes and Gus Poyet are the 4/1 favourites for the vacant Swansea job #SSNHQ pic.twitter.com/totkVZW93G — Sky Sports News HQ (@SkySportsNewsHQ) December 10, 2015 The bookies don't have Carl Robinson listed to land the Swansea City job. However, at the rate that Premier League and Sky Bet Championship teams sack their managers, it shouldn't take too long for Robinson to see his name linked to a job.



If the Whitecaps take care of business as well as they have done on the pitch Carl Robinson should be signed to a contract extension. He has exceeded expectations and fans won't want to see Carl Robinson wander away.



Notes: Carl Robinson and his family have left Vancouver for a three week Christmas and working holiday in the United Kingdom.



