Firstly, like Rahoul I too am delighted about the events of the last week: O’Driscoll and Guedioura may not be new to the club, but their very familiarity is part of what makes them good choices as manager and player respectively. As I said on Facebook, I’d rather have a good gaffer than an iconic name (and let’s face it, that was the press playing silly buggers – as soon as the word left his lips, it was clear that it would be blown out of all proportion).

O’Driscoll is the right man for all kinds of reasons; despite the suspicions that he was able to make a strong impact by playing a “good cop, bad cop” routine with Steve Cotterill (a suggestion given credence in a piece written by a Donny fan when SO’D came to The City Ground last season*), Andy Reid certainly seems to back up the suggestion that it was the quiet man who was able to make the difference.

If you needed any further evidence that O’Driscoll seems to fit the bill at The City Ground, then check out this interview from a few years ago. I personally think that there are a lot of parallels with Paul Hart, another football purist who was often accused of lacking a “plan B”.

As for Gueds, well it seems clear to me that he has the potential to continue to be a real talisman for the Reds. He has gone on record as saying the love shown to him by Reds fans was a key factor in him returning to the club, and despite Wolves’ insistence that it was a good deal for all, the Wolves fans that I know are rather annoyed that the Algerian wasn’t given a fair crack of the whip at Molineux.

On top of that all, Chrissy Cohen is back in full training and getting some match time. With rumours of interest in players such as George Elokobi, Danny Collins and James Coppinger, all of a sudden (and despite the fact that we still don’t have a back four), there is a lot of optimism around The City Ground.

* Hat-tip to Peter Blackburn