Wolves’ Ian Burchnall has worked in four different countries, so is aware of the importance of experiencing different cultures, making the Old Gold’s trip to the US this summer very important, according to the first-team coach.
Burchnall, who joined Gary O’Neil’s coaching staff last summer, arrived having coached or managed in Norway, Sweden and Belgium, and now he’s part of the Old Gold group preparing for the new Premier League season out in Miami.
The coach explained the logistics behind planning the trip, which balances football and new experiences, and says the squad is in a good place at this point in pre-season.
On taking Wolves to Miami
“So far, so good. It was our first day on the training pitch today, at a really top facility with Inter Miami – they’ve been brilliant in welcoming us and opening the doors, having everything ready for us. The players had a long travel, so it wasn’t too high in intensity, but we got some good detail into them. It’s been a really good start.”
On the logistics behind the trip
“We did a lot of double sessions in Marbella, but only had one game at the end of the week, so gave ourselves more time on the training pitch. We’ve got three games in this period, so we’ve got to consider them when we plan the training and we don’t have as many double sessions. There’s also some commercial bits which we can get involved with, which will be good for the players to experience. We’ve got to travel around the country a bit for the matches, but we’re going to see a bit of the culture over here.
“You get used to travelling a lot when you work in football – travel becomes a part of it, you travel for games, you stay in hotels a lot, and we’ve got a great team of people that make sure the logistics are good and the travel is smooth. We’ve got a bit of travel, but it’s nothing that isn’t ordinary for us.
“The medical team and Matt North with the nutrition play a big part in making sure the players know when and what to eat, when they should try to get sleep so body clocks can get as adjusted as quick as possible. We get a lot of impact from the medical side to make sure when the players get here, they’re not jetlagged too much. Then we try to keep on top of them during the flight and it seemed to work OK because everybody seemed to come in this morning feeling good.”
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On experiencing different cultures
“I’ve done four countries now, so I’ve experienced some different cultures. We’ve got a broad set of cultures within the playing group, so it’s good everyone get to experience different places. We’re very fortunate that we get to travel as part of the job and see some brilliant things. We should appreciate it while we’re here.
“On the schedule, there are some meet and greets. We’ve got some different things on the water – the Everglades and a baseball game. There are some good things where, along with the football, it’s quite good for the players to build spirit and connections, spending time together doing something different.”
On the benefits for the staff
“It’s great. We get so much contact time and that’s probably one of the biggest bonuses of pre-season. The weather is really hot, hotter than Wolverhampton, so naturally the climate is more challenging for training, but one of the biggest benefits is the amount of time we get with the players and together as a staff, to make sure we get as much work done as we can this pre-season to prepare us for a Premier League season.”
On the spirits in the group
“They’ve been great. The general atmosphere and team spirit in the building has been fantastic. The players seem to have really connected together well and trips like this really help that. The way they’ve approached the training, and what the gaffer wants them to do has been brilliant.
“It’s a big thing the gaffer wants, a good, positive culture within the football club. We’ve really pushed and developed that, and the signings have helped, they’ve added positivity within the group, and some of the loan players coming back have done that. It’s a big thing the gaffer works on, building the right environment for everyone to learn and develop, and we’re working in that direction. Obviously, some of the lads coming back knew each other from before, so they’ve all come in and added something which has been great.”
On the three games ahead
“It gives us a real good reference point at the end of it. It’s two games against Premier League opposition, plus one against a top German opposition, which means that we get good reference points about where certain individuals might be at this moment and where the collective is, in terms of what we want to look for when we start the season.”
“All of us want to get as much as we can, first and foremost football wise, so we get what we want out of the training and games. Then as a bonus, to get the staff and players spending time together and getting new experiences to become stronger as a unit.”
