Marcus Bignot believes that stability would be Chester FC 's greatest success this season.
Bignot, sacked as Blues manager in controversial circumstances three games before the end of last season , is now in the hot-seat at this weekend's opponents Guiseley where he shares the managerial duties with Russ O'Neill.
Having been appointed Chester manager in September 2017, a financial crisis at the football club in January made a difficult task even harder and poor results saw the Blues mired in a relegation battle in the National League - one they would not be able to get out of.
But despite some less than happy memories of his time there, Bignot says there were positives and believes the appointment of Anthony Johnson and Bernard Morley was a good move, but stressed that the duo will need time and that expectations of an immediate return to non-league football's top flight may be coming too soon.
"Obviously my time there was difficult and didn't end how I would have wanted it to. There were obviously a lot of factors going on behind the scenes which made things difficult and I'd be hard pushed to work under more difficult circumstances.
"But the one thing that I did take from my time at Chester was some great friendships that I will carry with me. That's the thing about football, whatever happens, good or bad, there are always the relationships that you make.
"I went to Curzon Ashton the other week and it was good to see some familiar faces. Chester's a club that has been part of my journey and a club that I want to see do well for the fans.
"I saw the pre-season predictions and I thought they were interesting.
"Before I left Chester I spoke about how the club needed to make the right moves in order to ensure that they don't slip through the leagues further. The management duo was a great appointment but you have to remember that this is a rebuilding job. There was loads of positivity around the place and that was great to see, but there has to be an element of realism about this season and that making sure that the club gets settled again and gets some continuity and stability.
"When you throw a new team together it takes time and I think a good season for Chester would represent some stability again.
"Chester wasn't a club that was equipped for the National League, on or off the field. At least the National League North can offer a chance to rebuild so that when they get back there - and they will - that they are in a better position on and off the field. To be successful you have to have success on both fronts otherwise the whole thing just jackknifes.
"The fans deserve some good times again but making sure there is some stability would be a big success for this season."
Bignot is enjoying his new role at Nethermoor alongside joint-manager O'Neill and has brought two familiar faces to aid their cause with ex-Chester players Kingsley James and Andy Halls both part of the Guiseley set up.
But there are challenges for Bignot at Guiseley, too, with he and O'Neill also needing to take part in a rebuilding job that involved significantly trimming a wage bill.
"Last year's budget here ran into six figures and there were 40-plus players on the books," said Bignot.
"They have more liabilities than Chester and there has had to be a rebuilding job here. It is a similar situation to what there is at Chester as the aim for us is to make sure we stabilise the football club and then give ourselves a platform to build on.
"We want promotion and to do as well as we can, but we know, the board know and the fans know that we have to get the club on a firm footing on the pitch. If we approach things like that then we give ourselves a great chance of doing well, but there is a longer term strategy at play.
"We've had a decent start so far and we're hard to beat. I know that people will try and make a big thing about this weekend but it's just another game and one that we want to win."
