Cardiff boss Dave Jones has criticised the intense scrutiny managers are under but believes it is counter-productive for clubs to hire and fire.

Jones has come under fire during his four-and-a-half year tenure in south Wales despite leading the Bluebirds to the FA Cup final in 2008 and moulding a side that narrowly missed out on the play-offs last year when they appeared well placed for at least a top-six finish.

This year Cardiff have emerged as genuine promotion contenders which is in contrast to Ipswich, their opponents at the Cardiff City Stadium on Sunday.

Roy Keane has seen his side win just once all season which has left them in the relegation zone and depending on the result at Peterborough, Ipswich could start tomorrow's clash bottom of the Coca-Cola Championship.

Jones is supportive of his opposite number and told his club's official website: "I hope he turns it round.

"Every time you pick up a paper and look at the back page, the culture of you lot (journalists) at the moment is that you lose some games - oh, the manager must go.

"Everybody seems to be under pressure. We're under pressure from day one win, lose or draw because the expectation levels at every club are really high.

"It's just sad in today's society that every time something does not seem to go right you want to knock it."

Jones also believes there is little longevity in management adding: "A lot of clubs do (show patience) and some clubs don't.

"You go through some of the divisions and you see how many times clubs change their managers and I don't see them at the top of their leagues.

"So patience and time in football is a commodity that doesn't seem to go together too well.

"But we all know what we go into, we all know the situation and I'm sure Roy will know that better than anybody.

"I think he has come out and said he is building a team for the future and hopefully he will build for the future."