GRAHAM Alexander refuses to get dragged into the obvious rift between Bradford City and current Morecambe manager Derek Adams.
Adams made no secret of his delight after thumping the Bantams 3-0 last season as he faced his old club for the first time since being sacked in February 2022.
He is not a popular figure among City fans and club CEO Ryan Sparks felt compelled to respond publicly when Adams referred to the Bantams as “one of the smallest inside the league” around this time last year.
Gallingly, City have never won at Morecambe while Adams has been in charge of the Shrimps, but they have the chance to change that when the pair face off in Lancashire in the FA Cup second round in a few weeks, that draw having been made on Monday night.
There will no doubt be plenty of less than friendly chants directed towards Adams that day from the travelling Bantams army, but that is of no interest to Alexander.
He told the T&A: “I separate everything (from that kind of narrative) and I’d never go into anything personal in football.
“There’s too much else for me to think about and focus on as a manager and besides, I’ve already come up against Derek numerous times with different clubs.
“He’s a good manager and it’ll be a competitive game when we face them in the FA Cup.
“I can say that before every game, because there are a lot of good people, good clubs, good teams, good opponents and good managers.
“That game with Morecambe is just a regular one, it’s not anything different when we come round to it and any noise around Derek is irrelevant to me.”
City fans and former players still fondly reminisce about their run to the FA Cup quarter-finals in 2015, partly because there has been little to shout about for the club in the famous old competition in the decade since.
Asked if he felt a level of responsibility to try and get City through a few rounds, now the first hurdle against Aldershot has been cleared, Alexander said: “That’s not really a concern of mine right now.
“When we come round to that cup game, we’ll give it our best shot, but we won’t be looking any further than Morecambe in that competition.
“That’s not how I do things, it’s not how I live my life.
“I’m well aware of Bradford City’s history in all competitions, but this is a new team with completely new people, so we have to make our own memories.
“For me, it’s one step at a time, so our biggest challenge is overcoming Morecambe and making it through to the third round.”
While that cup game will see Adams go up against his former side City, this Saturday sees Alexander facing a reunion of his own.
He is taking the Bantams to Fleetwood, with the Lancastrians giving him his first managerial role back in 2012.
He led them to promotion via the League Two play-offs in 2013-14, then helped them finish 10th in the third tier the following season.
Alexander’s spell with the Cod Army put him on the map as a manager, but he insists there is no room for sentiment this weekend.
He said: “I left there eight or nine years ago now, so there’s a lot of water under the bridge.
“I’ve still got a soft spot for them, because they’re the club who showed great faith in me as a retired player and a young coach.
“But I’ve come up against them with a couple of clubs since then, Scunthorpe and Salford, so it’s just another game for me and the team on Saturday.
“Regardless of who we play in any competition, I never take that outside thing that the media always stick on different games.
“It’s always just about the challenge of the next opponent, whoever it is, that’s never different for me, my players or my staff.”
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