"A bit of patience" - Pundit issues plea to Bradford City over Graham Alexander's future | OneFootball

Carlton Palmer has given his view on Graham Alexander's future at Bradford City as their poor run of form continues.

Pundit Carlton Palmer believes Graham Alexander deserves more time to turn Bradford City's fortunes around despite their current poor run of form.

Alexander was named as Mark Hughes' permanent replacement at Valley Parade last November, just weeks after being sacked by fellow League Two side MK Dons, and it is fair to say he has struggled to win over the Bradford fan base since his arrival.

The 53-year-old led the Bantams to a ninth-placed finish last season, but while there was plenty of disappointment at missing out on a play-off place, a strong run of form towards the end of the campaign offered hope that a promotion push could be on the cards this term.

After a positive start to the season, Bradford sat as high as fifth in the table in mid-October, but a run of just one win in eight games since then has increased the pressure on Alexander.

The Bantams suffered a 3-0 defeat against promotion rivals Notts County at Meadow Lane on Saturday, with all three goals coming in a damaging four-minute spell in the first half, and they currently sit 12th in the table, three points from the top seven.

Carlton Palmer speaks out on Graham Alexander's Bradford City future

Speaking exclusively to Football League World, Palmer urged Bradford to stick with Alexander for now, but he admitted the former Salford City boss needs results quickly if he is to save his job at Valley Parade.

"Graham Alexander is under pressure at Bradford City," Palmer said when speaking to FLW.

"It's a very difficult one, I don't advocate for a manager to be sacked.

"They had a very disappointing result as they were beaten 3-0 at Notts County, who currently occupy the last play-off place, on Saturday, and Bradford are in 12th place on 28 points.

"It seems the supporters are more frustrated with the people at the top than the manager, but Graham Alexander has got to start turning this round.

"We'll have to wait and see, he needs a result and a good performance very, very quickly because you know what happens, the tide can turn.

"It doesn't get any easier because they play Port Vale on Boxing Day, and then they've got Chesterfield away, but he needs to string one or two results together to get the supporters off his back and to get them back into a play-off place.

"I think a bit of patience has to be given, they are not too far away in terms of a play-off position, they just need to string two or three results together.

"He's got to do something pretty quick to turn the tide."

Graham Alexander facing crucial Bradford City period as pressure builds

With the club now in their sixth consecutive season in League Two, the frustration of Bradford supporters is understandable.

While the Bantams are only three points from the play-off places, they are already eight points from the automatic promotion spots, and it is hard to say with any certainty that they will be among the promotion contenders come the end of the season.

Inconsistency has been the story of Alexander's time at Valley Parade so far, with positive runs of form often followed by a string of underwhelming results, and if that pattern continues, it will not be long until his job is under severe threat.