Appleton received Ferguson hairdryer treatment after 65-day Blackpool stint

It is safe to say Michael Appleton's re-appointment as Blackpool manager last week did not go down well with the vast majority of the club's supporters.

The feeling of ill will could be clearly gauged by scrolling through the replies on Blackpool's official Twitter page. A possible reason for the unhappiness was a perceived lack of ambition, given Appleton's last role was at League One side Lincoln.

More likely, though, is that the fans have not forgotten how his last spell in charge ended. Appleton lasted just 65 days in charge at Bloomfield Road first time around. It was during the 2012-13 season, when the club were still under the control of controversial owner Karl Oyston.

Remarkably, it would prove to be one of three managerial roles Appleton would hold in the space of just six months. He had been poached from Portsmouth before his brief stint at Bloomfield Road ended when Blackburn Rovers came calling.

But that would also prove an error of judgement by the rookie coach, with his spell at Ewood Park lasting just 67 days - two days longer than his Blackpool spell. Speaking to FourFourTwo last year, Appleton reflected on his first spell with the Seasiders.

"I just made a poor judgement," he said. "I didn't do proper research on the Oystons, particularly Karl, who to this day is the most difficult man I've ever worked with.

"I could never get hold of him, and he wasn't willing to have sensible conversations. I found him to be very disrespectful, but I was in such a rush to get out of the environment I was in - and I could never be sure I'd keep my job at Portsmouth anyway, if new owners took charge of the club."

His rash decisions even earned him a ticking-off from Sir Alex Ferguson, whom he had played under after progressing through the famed Manchester United youth system.

Appleton adds: "He had a right pop at me, and rightly so. I hadn't done due diligence before taking the jobs. I get it now, but at the time it was a bit 'Bloody hell!' I hadn't played under him for a long time, but he clearly had a lot of respect, to ask for a meeting and tell me some things. I needed to start making better decisions."

Thankfully, those quick-fire stays in management didn't perturb Appleton and he has since put down roots at two clubs. He spent three seasons at Oxford, winning promotion into League One, before two-and-a-half successful years at Lincoln City came to an end last season.

Now aged 46, he is clearly a different man and different manager to the one who exited almost a decade ago. He comes into a club that posted a respectable 16th-place finish in the Championship in their first year since promotion.

Speaking after his unveiling, he said of building on the good work predecessor Neil Critchley did, saying: "At the end of the day the work Neil has done over the past two years has been great. I can just only hope to build on that. I want to try and keep that feelgood factor around the football club because it's in a really good place at this moment in time."

Meanwhile, a fresh report claims Aston Villa forked out a whopping £1.2m to release Critchley from his Blackpool contract. Despite leading the club to promotion from League One and then preserving their second tier status, Critchley opted to jump ship and become Steven Gerrard's assistant at Villa Park.