“Lost the spa: What does it mean and how can this happen?”

The expression “losing the dressing room” has become a common term in modern football vocabulary, a grim warning that signals the decline of a struggling manager. The dismissals of Thomas Frank at Tottenham Hotspur and Sean Dyche at Nottingham Forest, after just 114 days in charge, were accompanied by rumors of internal discontent and unrest, as players allegedly lost faith in their approaches and methods.

But what does it really mean to “lose the dressing room”? And is it possible for a manager to regain it once lost?

When leaks of information arise and rebellion begins to grow, the outcome is usually just one: the manager’s departure. Former England international Danny Murphy, who played for clubs such as Fulham and Liverpool, told BBC Sport: “I take this as a sign that groups of players start to question the manager’s ability. Generally, this happens when the team is losing.” Doubts arise around team selection, playing style, training sessions, and even days off. Everything begins to be questioned, initially by small cliques of players, until dissatisfaction spreads.

Murphy added: “They can be players who are in the team, but who do not fully agree with what the coach is trying to do. The feeling is that the players who are out of the team are more vocal about it, but that doesn’t mean they are the only ones. It can become a constant noise in the dressing room.” He emphasized that “it’s not like I’ve witnessed players making a conscious plan to get rid of the coach. That’s a bit exaggerated, but for me, ‘losing the dressing room’ means that more than a minority of players believe they are following a wrong path to failure.”

Chris Sutton, a former forward who won the Premier League with Blackburn, added: “This happens when players no longer really listen to the coach. They simply switch off – their message gets lost. It can be due to tactics or personality clashes. Many things can be at play. As a former player, I know that players can be fickle. The game is driven by results. Dressing rooms are fundamentally happy places when teams are winning. When they are not, the blame game can start.”

But what happens when the dressing room is “lost”? Murphy shared his experience with former Fulham manager Lawrie Sanchez, who brought him to Craven Cottage in 2007. “Lawrie is a good guy, I’m very grateful for him bringing me to Fulham. It was nothing personal. It was just a difference in approach. He wanted to play a more direct and pragmatic style of football. We had a lot of good footballers, technically skilled, and even though we were in the team, there was always a feeling of ‘What are we doing and why?'”

He continued: “Lawrie believed in his approach because, initially, he managed to keep Fulham in the Premier League with it. He had success with Wycombe Wanderers and the Northern Ireland national team. He also had success with Wimbledon, so it was understandable. The problem was that he didn’t have the ability or the desire to try something different, even just to see.”

Sanchez was dismissed after just eight months in charge of Fulham, between April and December 2007. But how quickly can a dressing room be lost? In Dyche’s case, the loss of the dressing room can happen very quickly. After succeeding Ange Postecoglou and becoming the third permanent manager of Nottingham Forest this season, his management began to crumble after a good start. BBC sources suggest that Dyche struggled to connect with some players who questioned his methods and tactics, focusing on the physicality of the squad. Following a defeat to Leeds United, players’ opinions were sought, and they did not give their full support to Dyche.

Thus, the big question remains: how quickly can a locker room turn against a coach? Could this happen even before he leaves the position? The dynamics of a locker room are fragile, and in the relentless world of football, the line between success and failure is extremely thin.