Slade: It's Going To Be An Absolute Battle

Last updated : 22 December 2016 By CNS Sport

New Coventry City manager Russell Slade has said that it is going to be an absolute battle to keep the Sky Blues in League One.

Slade, who has taken the job until the end of the season, told the Coventry Observer: “The important thing is I can only control the controllables. My sole focus is to get the team and club away from the bottom of the table.

“It’s not going to be easy. It’s going to be an absolute battle. We haven’t a second to waste. That’s what I’ve told the players. We have 19 weeks left.

“I’ve worked with tough budgets before. It’s not always all about the money. It doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to be unsuccessful. The numbers are what they are. We’re not in a position to be making excuses.

“We have to be positive and have a positive attitude. Every day the players wake up they have a choice to wake up with a positive attitude if they want to.

“I’ve only been here a few seconds but it’s not a job that can be achieved on my own. It needs everybody to be helping. People have already welcomed me coming in.

“The important thing is I can only control the controllables. My sole focus is to get the team and club away from the bottom of the table.

“It’s not going to be easy. It’s going to be an absolute battle. We haven’t a second to waste. That’s what I’ve told the players. We have 19 weeks left.

“I’ve worked with tough budgets before. It’s not always all about the money. It doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to be unsuccessful. The numbers are what they are. We’re not in a position to be making excuses.

“We have to be positive and have a positive attitude. Every day the players wake up they have a choice to wake up with a positive attitude if they want to.

“I’ve only been here a few seconds but it’s not a job that can be achieved on my own. It needs everybody to be helping. People have already welcomed me coming in.

“I’ve been at clubs before where there have been protests and even where the club changed the colour of the shirt (Cardiff). I’m aware of issues many clubs have. We’re not in isolation at Coventry. I can only control the controllables.

“The January window is coming up. We have one bite at that to get recruitment right. Expect some wheeling and dealing to some extent.

“The style of play is partly decided by the type of players here. As a manager you have to be adaptable. Hopefully there will be things to improve us defensively and in all areas of the pitch. We have to be resilient at the back.”

More on this - https://coventryobserver.co.uk/news/exclusive-new-coventry-city-boss-russell-slade-under-no-illusions-on-task-ahead/

 

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