THE COLLINGWOOD board will consider the football department review tabled on Tuesday by football manager Geoff Walsh this week before it reaches a decision on the future of coach Nathan Buckley.

Club president Eddie McGuire confirmed Buckley would coach against Melbourne at the MCG on Saturday and is unlikely to know the board's decision before the game.

Match preview: Collingwood v Melbourne

"He's not going to know if we haven't come to a position yet," McGuire said.

"There is nothing tricky about this." 

McGuire said there had been strong discussion around the board table as the review was digested but board members would need time to reflect on what decisions would flow from the findings. 

He said decisions on the football department structure were not far away, suggesting the board would reconvene in the "next few days".

"It's in play now. We're not going to say one thing and mean another," McGuire said.

"[We'll] start making decisions on what our football department will look like going forward."

McGuire said the decisions ahead were difficult because the board was trying to develop a template for what the club would look like in the future.

The review's terms of reference included assessing the coaching structure, leadership, list management and conditioning components of the football department, with staff and players all consulted for feedback.

Collingwood sits 13th on the ladder after 21 rounds and is going to miss the finals for the fourth successive season under Buckley who has coached the club for six years. 

"It has given us some thoughts to go away [with]," McGuire said.