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Season Four, August 2016
Pre-Season Press Conference
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Q: Just before we start about the current campaign, what are your thoughts on the ending to the last campaign?
A: I thought it was a magnificent end to the campaign and shows that football really is the best sport in the world. That last day of the regular season was heartbreaking considering we were so close to getting automatic promotion but going to Wembley and winning for a second year in a row was brilliant.
Q: Did you want to go up considering you were predicted to finish 24th in the SkyBet Championship?
A: Of course I wanted to go up. The only way the team will improve is by playing against the best week in, week out and now we have that opportunity. I want to do what Blackpool did when they got promoted and build a team which is capable of winning the league below in case we do drop down a division.
Q: Could you have picked a better way to get to the Premier League?
A: I don't think so. To go up to the Premier League in front of nearly 90,000 spectators was amazing. It was a great atmosphere and although Forest outnumbered our fans, we outnumbered them on the pitch.
Q: You've brought five players in for the upcoming season but not spent a penny. Why is this?
A: I couldn't find a player that would fit our system that was under contract at another club so dipped into the free transfer market to pick the five players up.
Q: Do you think you can survive with just those five signings to your squad?
A: That is the aim for the team. Each signing brings a different element to the squad and I'm hoping that we can bring a few more in before the deadline passes.
Q: Did you come close to bringing any other players in?
A: I came very close on a few times with wages being a problem on a number of occasions. We brought in Bangura, who used to play for Celtic, on trial and it looked like we were going to sign him until Sunderland put in a massive offer for him. He went there but I think he's made a massive mistake. We also tried to sign Paddy Madden from Nottingham Forest as I wanted another striker but we couldn't afford his wage demands. Other players that we came close to signing include Jack Stephens, Will Hughes and Jake Cassidy.
Q: How pleased are you to extend Robbie Keane's contract with the club?
A: I'm very pleased by it, it's almost like bringing a new player in. Robbie was fantastic last year in the SkyBet Championship and I'm hoping he'll see his career out with us by keeping us in the Premier League.
Q: One player that departed was Brice Irie-Bi to Alania, why did you get rid of such an upcoming talent?
A: Brice was a good talent but I believe that there are better players out there than him. We signed him from Southport and everyone thought he would be useless but I managed to turn him into a ?1m player. Ismaila N'Diaye had already agreed to come in when we sold Brice so I'd say we got a pretty good deal for him.
Q: What are your thoughts on the upcoming campaign?
A: It's going to be a tough campaign for sure. There are a lot of big teams in this league and I hope we aren't the whipping boys of the division. However there are a lot of teams that I believe are on the same level as us and I've identified them to the squad as games where we need to be taking all three points.
Q: You face quite a tough trip on your birthday against Chelsea, do you think that they'll give you a big birthday present?
A: (laughs) Hopefully they can give me three points otherwise it will be a really bad birthday!
Q: Finally, what are your aims for the season?
A: Ideally I'd like to do what Blackpool did when they were first promoted to their Premier League. I'd like to try and survive but like I previously mentioned I want to build for the future by bringing in some talented youngsters.