Blackpool in talks to appoint ex-Luton Town boss to replace Steve Bruce | OneFootball

Matt Bloomfield has been named as a potential figure to take the Blackpool reins

Just days after being relieved of his duties as Luton Town boss, Matt Bloomfield could be in line to take the reins of League One rivals, Blackpool.

That is according to a fresh report from Alan Nixon - via Patreon - on Monday morning, with the Tangerines still looking to source a swift replacement for Steve Bruce, who departed Bloomfield Road following the club's most-recent defeat in the third tier against AFC Wimbledon on October 4th.

Owner Simon Sadler's call has been one of six managerial changes to take place across the Championship, League One and League Two in the opening two months of the season thus far, with Bloomfield also at the forefront of such developments as a result of an underwhelming stint at Kenilworth Road.

A handful of names have previously entered the frame to take over from Bruce, with the East Lancashire side currently residing in 23rd place in League One after 12 games played, with a run of two wins, as many draws and eight defeats leaving them on eight points, a record only Peterborough United have done worse than as Darren Ferguson also remains under intense pressure at the Weston Homes Stadium.

Former striker, Stephen Dobbie and Steve Banks are currently overseeing matters on the Fylde Coast on an interim basis, although the club are hoping to reach a swift conclusion to their latest managerial search ahead of the upcoming clash with Wycombe Wanderers on Saturday afternoon - ironically the club where Bloomfield's status needs next-to-no description.

Matt Bloomfield enters Blackpool FC managerial frame days after Luton Town dismissal

As well as being best known for his playing days at Adams Park, the same can't quite be said for Bloomfield in a managerial sense, albeit his exploits in Buckinghamshire are as good as they've got thus far.

After steadying the ship at Colchester United during a brief period, the 41-year-old took over from Gareth Ainsworth in charge of the Chairboys in February 2023, and oversaw a massively strong run of results in just less than two years in charge.

This time last year, Bloomfield had his side on par with eventual promotion winners, Birmingham City and Wrexham, before being handed the Luton vacancy on a three-and-a-half year contract in January.

He was then unable to prevent back-to-back relegations from the Premier League to League One, and despite the club currently residing in 11th - just five points off the play-offs - he was handed his P45 after a 2-0 defeat at league leaders, Stevenage.

However, that hasn't seemingly deterred Blackpool from potentially appointing Bloomfield as their latest boss.

Nixon's report states that he is in the final running for the vacancy, less than two weeks after leaving the Bedfordshire club, and is set for a second interview with the hierarchy.

His aforementioned experience at this level is said to make him a key target alongside Leyton Orient's Richie Wellens and former centre-back, Ian Evatt, who was last in charge of Bolton Wanderers.

It is also claimed that the North West club are happy to hold fire until they are certain no compensation fee has to be parted with to lure Bloomfield - rather humourously - to Bloomfield Road amid similar stumbling blocks in their pursuit of Wellens, whilst fellow modern-day icon, Charlie Adam is said to be another contender.

Matt Bloomfield would be an intriguing appointment for Blackpool to make

Given the recent set of circumstances, it may come as a shock should Bloomfield be swayed to jump immediately back on the managerial horse, and one which would intrigue a lot of outsiders.

He would certainly be walking into a similar set of circumstances to what he inherited at Colchester, which then paved the way for his emotional return back to Wycombe.

Blackpool's squad, on paper, will also be viewed as way above the second-worst in the league, with there always being a sense of expectation that the Tangerines will at least fight for a play-off place whenever residing in the third tier.

As such, finances and expectation levels are still nowhere near as high as what he found at Luton, which could also work in Bloomfield's favour in a bid to get 'Pool' moving up the table as quickly as possible, with the standings still somewhat congested.