Paul Simpson believes Carlisle United would not find another manager who “ticks” as many crucial “boxes” as he does.

And the Blues manager has welcomed the “massively” important backing he is continuing to receive from the club’s owners in spite of the team’s dire form.

Carlisle’s woeful League One results and inevitable relegation have seen calls in some quarters for the manager to go.

At the same time, Simpson retains the support of many fans too – and last week Tom Piatak II, from the Blues’ American ownership family, said the Cumbrian was “the right guy for next season.”

Simpson said he appreciates such clear backing and said: “It's a massive thing for me because, although this is a massive disappointment this season, I do believe I'm the right person for it.

“I don't think they will find another manager who's prepared to go and commit his whole family life to Carlisle, who’s prepared to go and put the work in, who understands the football club like I do, and who understands the area like I do.

“They won't actually find anybody else who ticks all those boxes.

“Now, at the moment, everybody is questioning everything I do, because we're not getting results. That's the way football works.

News and Star: United's defeat at Shrewsbury was their 12th in 13 gamesUnited's defeat at Shrewsbury was their 12th in 13 games (Image: Richard Parkes)

“But thankfully, the owners see the long-term picture. And that's what keeps me going.

“That's what keeps me positive – that I truly do believe that the future for Carlisle United's going to be much better than it is currently.”

Carlisle are 16 points from safety with eight games to go and could have their return to League Two sealed as early as Easter.

It follows a miserable run of results which continued with Saturday’s 1-0 reverse at Shrewsbury Town.

Simpson believes the big picture remains full of potential for United under the Piataks but conceded that the short term must also improve.

“I'll be honest with you, I didn't expect to be in League One, when I took the job two years ago,” he said.

“I didn't expect us to get out of League Two in the first [full] season. So that happened earlier than we were ready. But we weren’t going to turn it down.

“We've just got to try and find some positive things between now and the end of the season.

“We've got to keep working as hard as we possibly can to try and get some positivity, to give the fans something that they and we all desperately want.”