Ange Postecoglou was quick to distance himself from any comparisons to Brian Clough but did vow to win trophies at Nottingham Forest.
Clough led Forest to the league title in 1978 and backed it up with two European Cup successes in 1979 and 1980 to cement his status as one of the greatest managers the United Kingdom has ever produced.
Every new manager at Forest is asked about Clough and Postecoglou was quick to pay tribute to the former Sunderland and England striker who died in 2004.
He said: “There will never be any comparison between me and Brian Clough. He is a standalone legend and a figure you cannot compare to. I am a student of the game. He did it at a football club where no one expects that sort of thing. It means it’s different.”
I’ll win trophies here – Postecoglou
Postecoglou was ribbed while at Tottenham for claiming he “always wins trophies in his second season”, although he had the last laugh as he led Spurs to the Europa League title shortly before he was sacked.
Asked what his ambitions were at the City Ground, he said: “I’ve said already I want to win trophies and that’s what I’ve done my whole career and that’s what I’ll do here. Every club wants to be successful but what I’ve seen over the last few years, those ambitions are backed up with actions.
“I don’t see it as a point to prove. I don’t have to prove anything to anyone. You let your actions speak for themselves and you understand the responsibility you have. You have to provide joy to the supporters – that’s why football clubs exist. They are the lifeblood of this game. That’s all I care about. I’ll win things here and people will still have doubts about me.
“I just want to keep doing what I need to do doing because it brings joy to people and allows me to live my dreams.”
My tactics do work – Postecoglou
Postecoglou confirmed there would no immediate shift to his all-out attacking philosophy but he defended his tactics after widespread criticism of its merits as Spurs finished 17th in the Premier League last season.
“If you look at my first year at Spurs we finished fifth,” he added. “Fifth would’ve got you a Champions League spot any other year. And we were really aggressive with our football. People say it doesn’t work. But finishing fifth after taking over a team, and we’d just lost a generational talent in Harry Kane. My last year was a different year for sure and we had to adjust the way we did things, and it bought us success. But I’m never going to go away from my principles.
“I want my team to play football and it’s exciting, it gets people talking. From my perspective I’ll always try and do things a little bit differently.”
Postecoglou promises Forest fans an exciting ride
Forest finished seventh under Postecoglou’s predecessor Nuno Espírito Santo last season and will play in the Europa League this term.
And the Australian insists it’s an exciting time to be a Forest fan.
He said:”Hopefully they’ll get behind the team and be excited about the possibilities about what we can achieve. The club is back in Europe and that is really an incentive to create something special. The players have been fantastic. They know they have a responsibility to perform for this football club.
“Every club I’ve been to, I’d like to think I’d be welcomed back because I left a mark. That takes time. One thing the fans will know with me is that if I set my mind to do something then I’ll see it through.”
