Press news in...

Good afternoon from Coolknee, Philippe Clement and Ben Knapper will join us from 1.30pm.
----------------------------------------------------------------

Clement: 'I wouldn't have done it two weeks ago, but the talks were really good. The club sent me a video of the infrastructure. Everyone was really honest about what they needed. I had a few days to think about it and give my ideas on how to improve things. We kept on talking for the next few days. I had a long talk with the owners to see what the plan for the club are. At the end, I felt excited by this challenged and that this club has more potential than it is showing.'

Q: "Can you make an instant impact?"
PC: 'What do you mean by instant? I can already see a difference. For me, it is about keeping a balance. Putting new things in everyday without overloading the players. It will be about improving over weeks and months. I'm sure that there has already been impact, but it's like writing a book - we are writing the first pages of this book, but we need to keep going. The players aren't fit enough. There is a lot of work to do.'

PC: 'I need longer than four days (to access the squad). But I'm very convinced that this squad is not where they should be - I have watched every game.

PC: 'Nobody is happy where the team is with the amount of points it has, not the fans, the players, the staff or the owners. It's about seeing this season as a marathon. There are 30 games left. We have to work as quick as possible but also to be realistic.'

PC: 'There is nobody who can put me under more pressure than myself. In football, I want to win every game. If that is not the case, then I will analyse why we didn't win. We go full throttle for the win in Birmingham. It's a good team with good ideas - but we will go full throttle.'

Knapper asked why Clement: 'When we first made contact, we thought it was a bit of a stretch. When we found out it was a possibility, we moved quickly. He's worked at clubs with a similar strategy. The job he did in Belguim and Monaco was similar, albeit on a different level. The work he has done on the physical side is a big strength. He's been there and done it. He's taken over teams in this situation where we are right now.'

BK: 'We've played less than a third of the season. There is a lot of football to be played. We're not sat here in February or March. We think a lot of the stuff we're putting in place will help get us to a completely different place.'

BK: 'It's not about me. My job isn't to think about my situation or position, it's about the club. We're not where we want to be, but it's about trying to get the club in the best place possible. That's where my energy is going.'

PC: 'Football has changed so much. There is always a lot of staff, and in between training (20 years ago), they used to be playing cards. The game has changed and they are so much more involved now. We're in a honeymoon and people want to show the best of themselves. It's about evaluating the team over a number of months and it's the same way with the staff. Who wants to go in the right way with this club? I'm really pleased with the application of everyone.'

PC: 'I'm not somebody who opens up his private life. People in Belgium know, but here maybe not. After Rangers, I took some time with the family. It's been years since I took some time. I had some trips with my wife and the plan was to get back into work. In the summer, I had a lot of pain in my hip. I tried to go through it, but I went to a specialist and I needed an operation. I couldn't even walk anymore. I had a new hip in August and then three months for my rehab. That is now done. Then I started talking with teams again along the way. There has been contact along the way, but I wasn't available. If I engage myself, then I engage myself fully. I needed that time.'

PC: 'Of course (I'm aware of the risk to my reputation), but it shows how much I believe in this. that's why it was important to have a good talk with the owners. They manage a team in the sport where they had three managers in 21 years. That shows they want to believe in people. They use data alongside short-term results. We need to turn around results, but it's about improvement across the board.'

Q: Any soundings from anyone about the Championship?
PC: 'I have a lot of games in management across Europe. We didn't have many players who went away. I know the league and have followed it for a long time. I know Vincent Kompany really well who has managed in this league. I know players who have played in this league. It's physical. It can turn around really quickly. There is a team who finished third that are now near the bottom. I like the challenge and I'm looking forward to it.'

PC: 'Everyone is critical. It's normal. No-one is happy where we ask. I only ask one thing now, I demand from the players to give their lives on the pitch. I hope the fans recognise when the players do that and get behind them. To get that synergy between the fans and the players again is important - but that is about what happens on the pitch.'

PC: 'It's not the first time I've come into a club during the season, which means the situation isn't what the expectations were inside in the club. It's a very important point for me. I'm engaged in the environment - not just the team - but also about the fan. I'm from an era where we had fans forums with supporters in between games. The people here have been open and honest about the difficulties. It's easy to sell your club to get your manager in and hide everything, but they haven't done that. They've been open. I'm confident we can turn the situation around.'

On fitness: 'It's a difficult challenge. We need to look at the players' programmes and what they're doing. It's something that I've experienced in the past with other clubs. We have the data about how we did it. It's one of the reasons that the club are interested. It would be nicer if we had six weeks preparation for tactics, technical, physical and mental work - but it's not the case. That's why I've thrown myself into this with the staff. We've had a lot of meetings. I've been here four days but it feels like four months, but in a good way. Everyone is engaged to make this better. I want to make this story better. It's not just picking out the first XI for the game, there is a lot more to be done here.'

On squad quality - PC: 'It's a white page for everyone. There will be players who are overperforming now because there is a new manager. There will be players underperforming because they are nervous. I gave the players a questionnaire to get to know them a lot faster than normal. Usually I have 45mins to an hour with them over pre-season, but we don't have time now. We have to work quicker. I want to find the key for every player to get the best out of them. It's not just aboout how they kick the ball, but it's about how they tick.'

PC on non-negotiables: 'That they give their lives on the pitch. They can make mistakes as long as their intentions are good. I've met a lot of players in my career who made really big steps. There is one line that runs through them all - they are hungry and self-critical. When I came into Monaco, all the staff told me that between two midfielders, one was the best. They were both good players, but one of the two were always in my office to ask about small details, with the performance staff and he did that every day - extra video sessions, exercises - six months later the club sold him to Real Madrid because he made a big evolution. It needs to come from the staff, but it needs to come from the players. The ones that do it themselves will have a big career in football.'

PC: 'I need to prioritise the right things. There are many things in my head that need to improve. Defensive organisation and getting principles into the team is a priority, but I want us to know what we need to do on the ball. I don't believe on just defending and then kicking the ball away. We're implementing the play we want. We use video, ask questions and I'm very curious about what this result in against Birmingham. I want to see the things we have been working on this week at Birmingham, it won't be flawless, but I want to see it.'

PC on recruitment: 'It's about together. There can be no egos. The owners are engaged with the club and this is not a short term thing. It's a long term thing. That's a massive and important thing. You see clubs bought and sold in a few years, these owners are not thinking in that way. We will work with Ben and the recruitment team. We have ideas and have spoken about those this week. It's about working together. Everyone wants one thing - the result for Norwich.'

PC on profiles to add: 'It's difficult after four days. It could be that some of the profiles are in those who are injured. You can have nice surprises that you didn't expect including from the academy. In December, we will sit together and look ahead from January.'

PC on Birmingham: 'We worked on defensive principles. We worked on a never give up mentality. In every club in the world, you need this and to react well after a mistake. I've seen players needing five, six or even 10 seconds in recent games. I want quick reactions. I want the team to be solid. I want better communication and all the team engaged. I cannot say everything because my colleague in Birmingham will be listening.'

PC on McLean: 'It's a clear one in this club that he is the captain when I see about how he behaves around the group.'

PC on injuries: 'Nine players still out. I still believe that we have players who can do the best for the team. You can have really nice surprises. I had one moment in my Brugge time that my captain was injured and I put a young boy (17 or 18) in a cup game and then against PSG. He kicked on. Let's hope we see that again.'

BK on backroom team - particularly Roberts: 'We're still working on a few things. It's possible that Tony is one who could move on.'

BK on JDT interest: 'Jon Dahl was in the process. He was in the latter stage of the process. At no point was that formally offered to anyone else. It was only offered to one person, that is the person to my right.'

BK on fans now: 'The fans have been unbelievable all season. We've got 2,000 travelling tomorrow. We need to pull together, focus on solutions, moving forward and climbing up the table. Philippe comes in with a great energy, a great work ethic and he is a machine. We're only going to do it if everyone is together. It won't happen with a disconnection. We need to focus on what comes next together.'

--------------------------------------------------------------

That draws the presser to an end.

Posted By: DrDublin, Nov 21, 14:09:36