Major Bristol Rovers managerial development shared | OneFootball

Bristol Rovers have been denied a work permit for managerial target Michael Wimmer.

Michael Wimmer will not be the next Bristol Rovers manager after their appeal over a decision to reject his work permit was turned down.

The Gas have been on the lookout for a new boss after the sacking of Matt Taylor last week, and it was apparent pretty quickly that they had identified Wimmer as the man they wanted to succeed him.

However, getting the necessary clearance was always going to be a challenge in the current climate, and reporter Dan Hargreaves has revealed that Rovers’ pursuit of Wimmer is now over.

“Understand that Bristol Rovers lodged an appeal to a FA panel against a rejected work permit for Michael Wimmer but that they were unsuccessful. They are now looking at other targets.”

There’s no denying that this is a big blow for Bristol Rovers, as it would’ve been a very intriguing appointment, and Wimmer would’ve arrived with a very decent pedigree.

He has a good background in the game, having worked for Nurnberg in the academy, which shows he is good at developing players, whilst he was also part of the coaching team at Stuttgart.

In terms of managerial experience, Wimmer was in charge of Austria Wien, who are a big club, and he had a good win percentage with the club.

So, he would’ve been an appointment that excited Bristol Rovers, and it would've been a coup when you consider his CV, even if there was obvious risk attached to it considering his lack of experience in England.

Bristol Rovers must get this appointment right as pressure builds

There’s understandable scrutiny of the hierarchy at the League One club now, as they will admit that mistakes have been made, and there is a real possibility that they could be relegated to the fourth tier once again this season.

So, those making the decisions need to quickly move on to another target, and you can be sure that they had a lengthy list of options once they made the call to sack Taylor.

Therefore, the challenge is to now find the next best candidate, and they will want the new boss brought in as quickly as possible given they are about to embark on what is a very busy festive period.