A free week with no game on Saturday has allowed Oxford United to enjoy an uninterrupted week of training as new boss Liam Manning looks to make his mark.
As defender Stuart Findlay told iFollow, the new boss is quickly making his mark.
“We have worked hard this week and I felt we played well in the first half at the weekend” he said. “ I thought the first half was really good, sort of what we were looking for with the new Manager. But I think the second half showed a mixture of things. Maybe that was a little bit of nerves, maybe a little bit due to the fact we only had one week to work on things under the the new Manager.
“But the fact that we have now got two weeks, uninterrupted, to properly learn how he wants his team to play and for us to work on things is good. It’s not going to come overnight but the first half on Saturday showed us evolving and I think that now with a full week of training, plus next week as well, it will really stand us in good stead for when we do play again.
“Football’s a very emotional game where winning and losing becomes a habit. We maybe got too emotional at times. You can never try too hard but you’re trying to push things instead of just maybe sticking with the principles that will get you the win.
“ I think the new Manager has been really clear on that; we have to try keep our emotions at a stable level and just let the plan take place on the park. The first half at Morecambe, we did that really well and we were unlucky in the end not to hold out but now we have time to get it right and make sure we have a forward trajectory from here on in.
“You have to be careful what you say, you don’t want to sound delusional, but against Derby, away at Lincoln and then on Saturday I don’t think the performances were too far away from where we need to be. There are obviously things we can work on and get better at, we know we have to do that and we know the time of the season but the belief is still there and we aren’t as far off as the table is showing at the moment.”
See the full interview in iFollow now.