“Hopefully those who came last weekend saw a team that played with freedom, expression and were expansive.”
The words of Dan Micciche in his pre-Walsall press conference as he reflects on his first week in charge of the Club in a positive light.
Despite tasting defeat against Coventry City, Micciche was pleased with his sides performance and their eagerness to adapt to his footballing philosophy.
“We saw the players show they were comfortable on the ball and they showed great discipline without it. On another day we would’ve won that game by two or three goals.
“The signs are defiantly positive and I think the Coventry game gives us something to build upon.”
He added, “I know my methodology and the identity I want us to play with. I got that across to the players on the very first day – we now have to hit the ground running.”
Here is what else Micciche covered in his pre-match press conference.
On the transfer window…
“I’m very satisfied, I think we all know we needed to strengthen the defence with Joe Walsh and Scott Golbourne out injured, so to bring in someone with Elliott Ward’s experience is massive. We’ve also got Josh Tymon who has fantastic potential. I think he offers us something different to Lewie and I’m really pleased we’ve managed to get the pair of them in.”
On Josh Tymon…
“Although Josh is only young – I’ve known him for a long time. I spoke to a number of England national coaches, and I’m very thankful for their input. Everyone spoke very highly of him, in terms of his character, his personality and his maturity for someone of his age. If you look at his CV, he’s already got a lot of experience, firstly with Hull, then he got his big move to Stoke. From there he’s played against Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea – his experience can only help us move forward.”
On Scott Golbourne and Joe Walsh…
“We’re hopeful that Scott will be back around April time and Joe we are looking at pre-season. To be fair to the pair of them - I can’t speak highly enough of them. They’ve been superb around the place, they are very professional and are great company in the dressing room.”
On new deals for Callum Brittain and Brandon Thomas-Asante…
“They are the future of this football club, we need to make sure we’ve got the right plan in place for them as they’ve still got a lot of developing to do - as do all the players. The benefit of me knowing them since they were eight should help because hopefully they’ll trust me with their development I’ll enjoy watching them progress in the coming years.”
On the challenge of avoiding relegation…
“We’re in a relegation fight and I knew that when I took the challenge on. I love a challenge, if you look at my track record in my career, a culture needed changing wherever I went and I was successful in doing that. I intend to do that here as well as bringing winning football.”
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Tickets for the clash with Walsall at the Banks's Stadium are priced at £22.50 adults, £17.50 seniors/under-18s while a family ticket (one adult, one under-18) will cost £24.50, if bought in advance of matchday.
Tickets can now only be bought on the turnstiles at the Banks’s Stadium, cash only.
