A powerful idea

We need to remember that we are playing a game that people love.

Not only the fans watching the game, but the people playing it. When you can connect your way of doing things with a desire from the players to play football, you have a big advantage.

When you can find a way to do it that represents who you are as a person, what you are as a team and give an identity to the club, that is fantastic. By the end of my first season with Reading, I think we showed a little bit of what we want to be.

My idea of football is always based in high-intensity moments, especially in defensive actions. We should be very dynamic and defend far away from the goal. Remember: we press to score goals.

In possession, we should be organised and arrive very quick into the final third. We want to be vertical. We must be able to combine to arrive in the final third or, when it makes sense, break the lines with most combinative build-up.

The organisation in possession is very important. My team should be able to apply a high level of counter-pressure, to get a lot from transitions when we regain the ball. We love the ‘organised chaos’.

"my first year of coaching set the standard for the rest of my career"

Growing up, it was clear that my life would be focused on sport. It was also clear that I was not able to be a professional football player, so I needed to get involved in another way.

I studied for a degree in physical science and sport. At the same time, I was coaching and playing in the university team. During those years, I met some interesting people, like Carlos Corberán, who was my teammate in a small team called Burjassot.

At university, I loved the subject of high performance, so my education went in that direction. I did my B and A Licences – and eventually the Pro Licence – and completed my university education studying for a masters under professor Paco Seirul·lo, who has been in charge of FC Barcelona’s training methodologies for the last 30 years. That gave me a knowledge of how to create a high-performance environment in team sports.

I had started a PhD on the ability to repeat high-intensity sprints, for transitions in football, when I got my first opportunity to join a club. Quique Hernández was head coach of Aris Thessaloniki, and I went to Greece in 2008 as the last component of his technical staff.

It was a baptism of fire, because Quique – who has managed more than 20 clubs – was a demanding coach who liked everything perfect. You had to be on point. He was somebody who really understood what a professional football environment is: how to organise the training, how to organise yourself, how to speak with people, how to be respectful, how to have your work ethics and values always in front of you, and being honest with that. That first year set the standard for the rest of my career, even now. 

Since then, I have had great experiences in many countries, including Spain, Russia, Azerbaijan, Norway and Denmark. When the offer came to join Southampton as assistant to Ralph Hasenhüttl, it was an opportunity to test myself against the best teams and coaches in the world, while working with some very talented players.

"The journalist told me i sounded pretty ambitious for a manager in my position. after 20 seconds, we scored our first goal"

I must say, though, it was a really difficult year – and a big disappointment when Ralph left. When his successor, Nathan Jones, left three months later, I was told to look after the team for a couple of days. The idea was to get a new manager, but there were some complications with that. So I was told to manage the game against Chelsea.

That game changed everything for me. We made a really powerful performance and won at Stamford Bridge.

The club decided to give me the rest of the season, knowing that it was difficult to stay in the Premier League. That was something that, unfortunately, we didn’t achieve, but from the first day to the last it was a wonderful challenge.

In an interview before we played Arsenal, I was asked: “What do you expect from the game?” I said: “I expect my team to be front-footed, with high pressure, trying to put them in trouble and win the ball close to their goal. If we take advantage of that, we can make a big impact.” The journalist told me: “That sounds pretty ambitious for a club and manager in your position.”

After 20 seconds we scored our first goal, with 10 players in the opposition half and after winning the ball. We led 2-0 and 3-1, before eventually drawing the game 3-3.

I like it when you have the feeling that you can beat anybody. That was the main thing that I got from Southampton. That I, along with my technical staff and players, could compete with the best teams in the world. That is very powerful.

"I always thought that we had a powerful idea. It was my team"

With one game left, the club communicated to me that they wanted to go with a different set-up for the next season. That was completely fine, and we finished with a fun 4-4 draw against Liverpool. I found myself in a situation where I had the experience of being a Premier League manager for 16 games, but not of being a manager from the beginning to the end of a season. The club that came in for me was Reading. That energetic, dynamic Arsenal game had been the platform for them to meet with me.

We talked, and everything was agreed on how we wanted to do things. I had concerns about what had happened before, with the late payment of wages, but was told those times were gone and we would have a certain budget.

As soon as we started, everything changed.

But I always thought that we had a powerful idea. It was my team, and I had a group of players who were working really hard. I’m proud of the decision and the season that we made.

I was clear from the beginning that we wanted to play high-intensity football. At the start I tried to apply the principles within the 4-2-2-2 system that we had used at Southampton. That didn’t work, though, because of the specifics of League One, among some other factors.

Formations are always in line with principles and the idea, which in this case was to be a high-pressing, energetic team that could make quick transitions to attack. What we found was that there were some teams against whom we could not apply high pressure. We were expecting to win the ball in those high spaces, but it travelled too quickly towards our back four.

"WE JUST NEED TO MAKE SOME ADJUSTMENTS TO ALLOW US TO WIN"

We would look to commit several players to the first press. But with just one ball straight into their striker, the opposition could then have 3v3 situations and be first to the second ball. What was supposed to be our strength became our weakness.

There were circumstances other than the formation. For example, in some games we were equal with the opponent, but conceded because we lacked control of key moments of the game. We lost three games early in the season to goals in added time.

So we arrived at a point in the season where we said: “We have the PPDA, the high-pressure statistics and all the transitions we need. We just need to make some adjustments to allow us to win.”

First, to be more compact. Second, more aggressive on the second ball, probably with extra players in that situation and at the same time. Sometimes the first pressure is not about winning the ball in the first, second or third movement. It is about modifying the kick from the goalkeeper or from the centre-back.

As soon as we identified those things and changed to a 4-3-3, we ended up having two or three players in the press. But now our back four and the three midfielders were always in place to win the second action.

We also found it helped us to get the ball down and find some more levels of transition, in terms of playing forward. There were changes of position for players like Harvey Knibbs, who we moved from winger to number eight. We also modified the spaces for Lewis Wing, and worked a lot with the back four. We played with a line that was really high, with players able to defend big spaces. From that moment until the end of the season, we grew into that idea. 

"In the beginning, we made some mistakes. I paid a lot of attention to whether there would be a takeover"

Our start to the season was not ideal, but it needs to be put into a context beyond the formation. We didn’t have a proper pre-season and were in a transfer embargo. Because the club didn’t pay HMRC, we were not able to register players for the EFL. We had to wait until HMRC were paid before we were able to register players. 

Of the players who were available, the majority came from the academy, with no experience of football at the professional level. One of the biggest decisions that we made was to give them the chance to play, compete, develop and, in the end, to deliver performances and results. How they grew into the challenge is probably the thing that I am most proud of.

So the improvement in our results was not only due to the change of shape. It was also through the process of the dressing room moving forward together. 

During this process, in September and February, we had our second and third points deductions of the season, having started with a points penalty. We also had a situation over whether wages would be paid.  

There were many challenges, but perhaps it being my first full season as a head coach was key. Reading had been the first club to come to me and say: “This is your team.” That is how I always saw them, and the feeling inside me was that I needed to make this team work and compete. Of course, you don’t have the strength every day to always be on top form, but every day you need to give your maximum. That fire is what kept me trying to make the very best of the situation.

In the beginning, we made some mistakes. I paid a lot of attention to whether there would be a takeover. Is this potential owner coming? You meet with them, thinking maybe the situation will change. After a while, I decided to pay no more attention to the rumours, and not to meet anybody who interviews possible new owners. Instead, I kept my full focus on the pitch.

"Our approach when there was a points deduction was always thinking about the human being"

And I don’t know how to explain it, but in the dressing room before the game at Wycombe, in November, there was something different about how the team talked to each other. There was something different about how they behaved.

They went on the pitch that day and made a perfect performance. We won 2-1 – the first away win for the club in a year, and our first away points in the league that season. It was a moment where I thought: “Now I know what we can be. We are competitive.”

It was a feeling that we wanted every single game. I don’t mean the feeling afterwards, when you have won. I’m talking about the feeling in the dressing room before the game – the kind of communication we wanted from the boys every time we played.

The next game, we won 5-1 against Carlisle. All of a sudden, from being 10 points away from safety, in two games it had gone down to five. But more than the importance of the points, it was that feeling that we could compete.

Our approach when there was a points deduction was always thinking about the human being. I tried to communicate with the boys in the most honest way, but never overinformed them about the situation.

Until the deductions were confirmed, we didn’t tell them that there was this potential loss. When they happened, we had a meeting and explained the situation, and that it was not related to what we have done. At the same time, on those days we gave them space in training.

"the biggest achievement of the season was to recover, for the club, a connection with its fans"

They played small-sided games – nothing demanding from me, easy training, a short time on the pitch. They needed to accept the situation, talk to the others, and have space. The day after was when we focused on the game plan for the weekend.

That was massive, because they knew we were always on their side, communicating in the most honest way. In some of the cases, when we needed to give them bad news, we tried to have the solution even before we spoke to them. 

Every time we had a points deduction, we won the next game. Managing those moments was actually a very positive learning. It didn’t matter what happened off the pitch; on the pitch, we were going to do our thing.

The feeling of securing our place in League One was amazing. At one time, we had been 10 points away from safety. With two games left to play, we were already safe. That was a big achievement.

Another success was the feeling that we created together. There were nearly 20,000 at the stadium celebrating at the last game, and I think the biggest achievement of the season was to recover, for the club, a connection with its fans.

At the beginning of the season, the supporters understood a little bit of what was going on, but not fully. You are not able to communicate everything to them, because of confidentiality that sometimes you need to keep. But some things started to be made public by the club, and the fans started to understand the challenge; not only for the manager, but also for the staff and players. 

"Nobody from the club deserves to have a season like the last one"

Staff were being fired, or relocated, or not being paid more than 50 per cent on time. Players were leaving the club without a proper dialogue. But the fans started to connect, to feel that they wanted the club back. And they supported us. 

When we played Oxford, they saw that we had eight academy graduates in our squad. The fans felt that each of those boys was one of them. We also connected the team with the people by the way that we played. Sometimes the games were a little bit too open, but it was energetic and active. These were games where a lot of things were going to happen.

They saw a team that was fighting together to keep the club alive – their club, that they have supported since they were kids. Not just fighting to keep it in League One, but to keep it alive. That feeling started to grow and grow. We grew as a team, built bridges and then, in the last few months, every game at home and away, they grew as a fanbase. It was fantastic, and we really appreciated their support.

Looking ahead, longer-term, my ambition is always to come back to the top level and try to compete against the very best teams. Hopefully, one day, I can complete that by doing it with the national team of my country.

Right now, I have a fantastic group at Reading that I would really like to continue working with. But we need to see what happens with the takeover. 

It can be that the takeover doesn’t happen. Nobody from the club deserves to have a season like the last one, with points deductions, uncertainty every payday, not being able to go to hotels the day before the game, waking up one day and seeing that they intend to sell the training ground. That chaos, we cannot have again.

We need to focus on bringing the love of football to the players, staff and fans. Then I believe we could have a lot of fun.

Author: Craig Bloomfield