Ange Postecoglou enters director discussions intent on retaining position at City Ground club
Ange Postecoglou is determined to persuade Nottingham Forest’s board to keep confidence in his managerial philosophy when he meets with the club’s owner Evangelos Marinakis this week.
Defiant Forest boss sees signs of progress during winless run
The Australian was in defiant, nearly humorous mood after Sunday’s 2-0 defeat at Newcastle. It prolonged his winless streak to seven matches since he succeeded Nuno Espírito Santo recently. Yet the experienced coach, who surprisingly started with a five-man defense, identified indications of improvement as he gets ready for vital talks with club officials.
"Indeed, this is hopeless," he said, with irony. "I see it as an exciting opportunity. One must be up for the battle and the challenge. I’d be silly to be sitting here at the sixty years old if I was without self-belief or fight. Even in the playground I chose battles with people that defeated me."
Top flight theater gently mocked
Warming to his theme, the Forest manager lightly teased the drama of English top division that typically requires that at least one manager is always considered 'in trouble'. "I understand that it’s part of the spectacle of the Premier League that it needs one manager to be in the limelight. If people want to evaluate my work less than a month into the job, there's no words or do that will alter that perception."
"But what I have seen and experienced in this period is that we are moving in the direction I want us to. The results will come. For now it is a battle and a contest and there is nothing wrong with that. Life doesn't give things handed to us without effort in existence, we have to fight. I have fought for things throughout my career. Why must everyone want everything perfectly arranged? The attitude nowadays seems to be that, as quickly as something goes wrong, you replace it."
Embracing the challenge at the club
During the lighthearted exchange, he implied that one reporter might have been "hopeless at some point but your family persevered on you."
Postecoglou then restated that he had joined the City Ground with his eyes wide open and always understood that his effort to alter Forest’s playing style would not be straightforward. "I was aware this was a significant test," he said. "There's nothing wrong with that. I don't know why people think challenges are a burden, I love a challenge. The alternative is staying home watching games and I don't want to do that. Should journalists have a lot fun around it I am unconcerned. I couldn't care less."
