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It’s the 26th of June, 2013, and Rui Alves, chairman, escorts Essex into the room for a quick meeting.
I just have a one year contract, for 5250 a week.
Director of Football Bruno Patacas will handle our transfer activity I send him.
I agree to take a full report on the club’s history, They want a comfortable mid-table finish (There are 16 clubs, so our previous positions of 7 and 8 would fit.) I agree. We get 55k in budget and 150k in transfer. The club has no philosophies, but I ask for a meeting in a few days time to discuss them. I agree to a press conference.
In walks our Assist Man, Basilio Marques. I agree to an intra-squad friendly tomorrow, I take a report of all of the players, arrange a meeting with the staff, and agree for biweekly reports from him.
We are currently spending 46k a week on budgets.
I meet with our players. I begin by calmly introducing myself, then assertively saying we can finish in the top-half, which gets mixed results. One is passionately and agrees (Rondon) and another (Djaniny) calmly things its too ambitious. How do I handle Djaniny? He’s disagreeing with me five seconds into our first team meeting? I don’t back down, but calmly disagree with him. Another, Bruno Maura, cautiously agrees with my expectations. I affirm his reaction.
Eighteen players reacted well, Four not at all, and three worsened – Freire, Djaniny, and Kayke.
Freire, in particular, was bad.
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