“I do have a pretty clear picture but I’m not one to sit here and lay out all my plans,”
“I find it’s always a tough question. It can sound brilliant, and sound like I’m finishing my Pro Licence [coaching badge] and putting in how I think my team should play. The reality of football is that it moves on a lot. Last season I think was very positive for us as a team because we had an identity of a team that worked very hard off the ball and created a lot of chances, tried to get higher up the pitch and made a lot of steps forward while also needing to make further steps.
The message cannot always be the same for players with different attributes. So that’s why I don’t want to commit to what would be my ideal philosophy in six months, a year’s time, two years’ time, because in real time you have to work with the players you have and just keep trying to improve.”