"I've tried" - Bradford City: Graham Alexander reacts to Phil Parkinson comparison | OneFootball

The Bantams' boss has now been in charge at Valley Parade for a year.

Graham Alexander hopes that Bradford City fans will look back fondly on his time with the club, following comparisons between him and former boss Phil Parkinson.

Alexander has been in charge at Valley Parade for a year now. He found the club in a bit of a hole after their play-off semi-final loss in the prior season, which eventually led to Mark Hughes being sacked.

They were 16th in the table, after as many games, when Alexander found them. He was then able to restore them to their previous play-off contending state, but narrowly missed out on the top seven on the final day of the season to eventual winners Crawley Town.

The way in which he has City playing is reminiscent of the Parkinson days at Valley Parade, according to some Bradford supporters. In his near five-year stay with the club, the now Wrexham boss was able to stabilise the club, win them promotion the next season and take them to heights that they wouldn't have dreamed of reaching when he first took charge.

That 2013 EFL Cup final against Swansea City will live long in the memory. The result wasn't what they wanted, but Parkinson and his players claimed the scalps of Arsenal, Aston Villa, Watford and Wigan Athletic along the way.

The Wrexham manager had the Bantams pushing for promotion to the Championship in his last couple of seasons at the helm. He ended up leaving to join Bolton Wanderers in the summer of 2016, and three seasons later Bradford were relegated.

They are some of the fondest times in living memory for most of the club's supporters, but Alexander hasn't been overawed by the comparisons.

Graham Alexander responds to Phil Parkinson comparisons

The current City boss said that he sees elements of himself and Parkinson that are similar, but he isn't looking for tonnes of plaudits from the supporters. His main aim is to keep this team on a winning trajectory.

"I think I'll just save it for when I'm not here, and if they (the Bradford supporters) think that I was a good manager for the club, then that'll do me," said Alexander on the Parkinson comparisons, to BBC Radio West Yorkshire Sport. "I've never been in the game for that.

"Listen, everyone wants a pat on the back and wants to be liked, but I understand that I'm here to try and create a team that wins and takes them from one place to another.

"(I hope) When we say our goodbyes, which always happens in football, they say 'Actually, he weren't bad for us and he was a good manager.' That will do me. They don't have to compare me to anybody.

"I think we're different in ways (him and Parkinson), but I think that we both want to win. We both had a history of success.

"I think Phil probably got the club, and I’ve tried my best over the last 12 months to get the club and get the people. But I still think that there is improvement that I can make."

Phil Parkinson comparisons are a good sign for Bradford City

The hallmarks of that mid-2010s team that the now Wrexham boss had at Valley Parade weren't solely to do with results and winning. The success that he brought to the club was obviously a major factor in his popularity, but it was also the way that they went about it. They were a good team to watch. That is where Alexander should be happy with the Parkinson comparisons.

He's made going to watch Bradford at Valley Parade a more enjoyable occasion than it was prior to the start of his tenure. They're creating chances, having most of the possession.