After his first outing in the Molineux dugout as head coach last weekend, Rob Edwards understands the challenge which faces him and the fixes he needs to make ahead of heading to Villa Park on Sunday.
The Wolves boss oversaw a 2-0 defeat at home to Crystal Palace in the Premier League last Saturday, and although he praised the fighting spirit and moments of quality his players produced and learned a lot from his first match in charge, he admits he found plenty more things which need to improve than positives.
But during a week of hard work on the Compton Park training pitches ahead of facing Aston Villa in a midlands derby this weekend, Edwards has tried to instil belief and bravery into his players so they approach the match without fear as they look for a first league win of the season against a local rival.
On his first two weeks in the job
“I’ve settled well, but it was straight in at the deep end with quite a lot of the lads away on international duty, so that first week working with them was a little bitty, not having the full group, and then we had Crystal Palace, and now with Villa coming up, they’re probably two of the best coached teams, who know exactly what they’re doing.
“They've had managers that been there for a number of years now and are both brilliant at what they do, so it’s been straight into the deep end because there’s a lot to do and there’s a big job ahead.
“But I’ve really enjoyed the first two weeks, and the lads understand and recognise that we’ve got work to do and they’re up for it, so that encourages me.”
Preparing for Sunday. pic.twitter.com/akdKG89PYj
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On his coaching staff
“We’re still working on bringing a couple more in, but Paul Trollope and Harry Watling have come with me. Harry was with me at Middlesbrough and has been brilliant. We got to know each other when I came out of Luton, and he got in touch.
“I’d just landed in Antigua with the family as we were getting a few days away, and he reached out. We caught up after, got to know each other, and just got on really well, and he was brilliant at Middlesbrough. He was a huge part of the success that we had in that space of time.
“I worked with Trolls at Luton, and I know him really well, and then he’s been at Southampton, so the two of them are really big for me, have really good experience, and both very good coaches, and really good people who’ll be invaluable for me. We’re still working on one or two more people coming in which we’re not too far with now.”
On Matt Jackson’s appointment to technical director
“To have someone around it who knows the club inside and out is important. I’ve been getting on really well with Jacko since we’ve been in the building, so we’re building a really good relationship with him, and he’ll be part of that team that will inform the decision making.
“It’s really good because it probably stops some of the noise and people talking outside and they can see that there’s a plan there now. Matt will be really key player in that role, but he’s part of the team and it’s a really positive move.”
On walking out at Molineux last weekend
“First of all, it was an amazing reception and a great way to come out [into the stadium] and it was quite emotional. It was a great moment for me, the fans were incredible, and they were incredible throughout the whole game.
“I thought we showed some really good bits, some good fighting spirit and moments of quality and bits that we wanted. But if I’m being completely honest – and the lads know this well – there’s more that we need to fix than were positive. Palace looked slicker, they looked more cohesive, and that’s understandable because Oliver Glasner has been with them for a few years, and I’ve had about five days with the lads – and it wasn’t even the full group.
“It’s one game down, so it becomes even more of a challenge and even more difficult now, but I learned a lot. I find that about individuals on a daily basis at the moment, I know who we can really go with and which one or two might need a little bit more time and some more work.
“There are things that we need to adjust quickly, but I saw a good attitude, a good spirit, a team that kept going to the end, which is really important, but there’s things that we need to try and rectify quite quickly as well. I know there’s always going to be mistakes, but that learning and that process has got to happen quickly, and it doesn't get any easier with a really difficult trip to Villa next.”
On facing Villa this Sunday
“I really hope we can get that first victory straight away and in a big game like this. It’d be a great way to start that off, but Villa Park is also a really, really difficult place to go – everyone finds that. They’re an amazing football club, a huge club, who are doing really well at the moment, with a brilliant manager in place, but we’ve got to look after ourselves.
“We’ve got to respect them, so there’ll be a plan in place. We recognise that it is a midlands derby as well, so there needs to be passion, there needs to be a real spirit on show, but we’ve got to be very clever and intelligent in what we do because Aston Villa – especially at Villa Park – are a really strong team.
“A bit like Palace last week, we’ve got real clarity on what we’re going up against, because they’ve got a real identity, with and without the ball, but then breaking that down and hurting them is another thing. We’ll have a really good plan and come matchday, we’ve got to try and carry that out as best as possible, working incredibly hard as a cohesive team, and everyone doing their jobs really well, while also recognising and respecting everything they can do as well.
“We’ve had a good week so far to get a plan together and spend a lot of time on it, but we’re going to need to be a nine-and-a-half out of 10 to get something from the game – but we’re capable of that. We’ve got to go there with zero fear, with bravery and with belief that Sunday is going to be the day that we can that first victory.”
