Selected quotes from Tuesday’s myriad of interviews with the new gaffer, for those who didn’t see any coverage, can’t be bothered to look for it, or simply want to re-live it again….
“I used to feel that I would turn into this kind of mean machine…when I was going to work it was like going to war. That was the only way I could describe it. I was playing for the biggest club in the world and I had to lead by example and that was to win at all costs. I was maybe football mad and a bit . . . psycho is too strong a word for it.”
“Football means a hell of a lot to me. It was like an acting job. Even when I would drive up to Old Trafford for any game, I just felt I could turn on to this mean machine. But I think I probably didn’t help myself with a lot of that stuff. Maybe that was just part of the picture I needed to paint for opposition, for lads I was up against. Sometimes you can play with people’s minds and maybe that was part of my game.”
“People have this impression of me but it’s important to move on.”
“When I used to argue with my wife, we wouldn’t speak for days. Now when we argue I don’t want it dragging on for too long. That’s just from experience. Not talking for two or three days is no good for anybody. I’m not saying I have a halo over my head, far from it, but, if I’ve done wrong, I’ll be the first to apologise. I’ve always been like that.”
“I crossed that line but I cared about the teams I was involved in. But I need to get the balance more and I hope with experience the penny will drop. I am learning all the time.”
(On whether or not he’d apologised to Quinn) “Yes, without a doubt. That was in discussion when we first met up. If you are going to beat around the bush and say did I apologise for stuff like that, of course I did. But that was irrelevant to what was going to happen here in terms of whether I was going to get the job or not…it wasn’t a case of apologising to get a job. I have apologised to lots of people and I am sure I will have to a few more times.”
“I’ve apologised to Niall and we’ve made up. It’s amazing when you apologise to people, there is a sense of relief. A lot of people make a big issue of what happened in the past, but when I met up with Niall and the potential owners we sorted it out there and then.”
(On what will happen when Sunderland face Mick McCarthy’s Wolves): “Will I apologise? We will see what will happen. I would have thought I would shake his hand, but it is a long way away. We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. I will do if I feel I have done something wrong, but it’s stuff I weigh up on a daily basis.”
“I’ve never lost any sleep over the World Cup, never.”
“I’ve had my disagreements with literally thousands of people but I’m humble enough to apologise if I’ve done something wrong. What happened at the World Cup, I would do again tomorrow. The Saipan thing was a completely different issue in terms of disagreement with managers. The bottom line is that if a manager accuses me of faking injury I will not accept it. And I won’t accept it to the day I die. I won’t be accusing my players of faking injury, I know that.”
“Some players might need a kick up the backside, and I know some players need an arm putting around their shoulders because players react in different ways. I can put my arm around a player’s shoulder, without a doubt. Listen, I have done that many times as a player, but of course it is very rarely heard of. I’m aware I can’t be going off the handle as much as I did, but if I feel something’s not right I will nail it — just hopefully a bit more subtly.”
“I won’t be training, I won’t be joining in. My boots will not be coming out. I’ll have my boots on in terms of on the training pitch, but not joining in, absolutely no chance.”
“I decided when I retired that would be it, there would not be any of this messing about with coming back for testimonials or trying to relive the good years.”
“Until you have signed the contract (to be a manager), you are maybe going to have things cross your mind. But then meeting the players on Sunday and coming to the game, it just feels right. Sometimes you have to follow your gut feeling.”
“When you are a player, you are spoilt rotten. You come in, you look after yourself and that’s it. But now, there’s a bigger picture for me to look at. But what probably got me into the hassle at United, I was probably getting a coach’s or a manager’s head on me when really I should not have been. Really, when you are a player, you are a player, that’s the bottom line. It will be different as a manager. It will have to be different.”
“When I did my UEFA B a couple of years ago, they said you have to get in your mindset whether you are going to be a coach or a manager. I knew straight away, anyway, what I wanted to be, and that was a manager.”
“All I expected from team-mates was 100 per cent. I’d never criticise people for mistakes or bad games, but I did for slacking off and not focusing on the job.”
“I’ve told the players that if they take their eyes off the ball or aren’t prepared to give 100 per cent, then there’ll be a problem. Listen, if a player does well for me and he gives 100% for the team, I will be the first to congratulate him.”
“I had my three or four months out – you have to remember my last game was probably the second week in May – so I have had that break, and it was brilliant, I really enjoyed it. I was in no hurry, but when the phone call came (from Sunderland), it changes your mindset and you start thinking, ‘why not?”‘
(On getting the Sunderland offer) “I was sitting in a beautiful villa on holiday when the call came and I just thought I needed a challenge in life. I played up here many times and they love their football. They’re passionate and I need that in my life.”
“I believe Sunderland have the structure and the potential to compete with Newcastle United – of course I do. There is Middlesbrough and there is Newcastle just down the road, that is where I think we belong, competing with them. If I didn’t believe that, I wouldn’t be here.
“One of the reasons I met with Niall in the first place was because of the ambition he has for this football club. Lots of clubs have ambition, but he has a plan.”
“There are lots of clubs in the Championship who believe they should be in the Premiership. Sunderland is one of them and I believe we can get there.”