 Brought to you by DIS, keeping companies connected with cloud-based solutions. Come on, City! Thank you for chatting with us and good to see you again. Two days away from the start of the new season, how prepared as a side do you feel? Yeah, you know, obviously there's another week before the league starts, but it's a cracking game to start with in the Cup away to Bolton. But yeah, as ready as we can be, I think the one good thing, just looking up at my board now here, then we've got 23 professional players and all of them are available. So that's a good, that's all I'm managing once, is everyone to be available and fit and ready for selection. So I think the sports scientists, Ben and the physios have done their work over the last five weeks. We've had, don't attempt fit, but we've had a couple of minor knocks. But other than that, muscle injuries, we've been very good. So hats off to the lads who've been working on that. But yeah, no, we're ready to go. We're looking forward to playing a competitive game now. I'll ask you more about that game in particular, but just how challenging of a pre-season has it been for you? Given all the regulations that have been in place because of the current COVID climate, they're now salary cap that's been enforced, the finances that the club are facing as well. It must have been one of the most challenging pre-seasons you've had in your time as a manager. Well, I'll tell you what was challenging, sitting at home and kicking my heels. And obviously with the really early days in COVID, when there were a lot of people losing their lives and that naturally, that was a real sad, sad time for everyone, for the country. But listen, once we're back playing football, we deal with it. We're doing what we love. We're out on the training ground. We're out in the fresh air. We're playing. Yeah, there's little things that are certainly not like normal, but we're lucky, we're back doing what we love doing. The salary caps and all the things that have gone, we deal with it. It's no big issue now. And we just look forward to, we can only influence what we can influence. So all we're doing is concentrating on what we can affect. And we're all ready to go now. How is the mood in the camp there? You say that the players are raring to go. There must be champion at the bit to get back out there and play some professional football again. Yeah, there certainly are. I think since we've come back, the attitude applications being first class, they're under no two minds what we're after as a group, what we require from them on and off the park, and where they conduct themselves around the place. And we want to have that work ethic and team unity, that all successful sides need. And we've seen a real good upturn in speaking to some of the staff that were here previously. And I think we've got everyone wants to be here, wants to do well for the club, and are all sort of pushing in the same direction. Up first for you is the Carabao Cup, the League Cup round one of that. How do you approach that competition for you in this season? You mentioned at the start that the league is not only until next week. So how do you approach this one when you put your team together? Oh, flat out for a victory. Yeah, no, it's against one of our rivals, not slain in the same division as us. Just came down, new manager. But no, it's a game that we desperately want to progress in. So we'll be looking to go there and be very, very competitive and do the very best we can. So no, we'll probably treat it as if it's a first league game. It's an important game to us. Yeah, naturally it will take, I don't know, another five, six games. And so we're fully up to speed with everyone. I think most of the lads have got one 90 minutes under the belt. So, you know, there will still be a lot of things to improve on naturally. But no, no excuses. We're going there to be very competitive and hopefully win the game. With the preparation that you've had, Stuart, and the pre-season results that you've had as well, are you confident in what your best team and best formation is now going into the new season? Yeah, we've done some good work on the training ground since day one. You know, we've risked different systems naturally. But even in one specific system, we've got players who can play it differently. There's all different manners to go about things. So they're all, you know, we've got strengths, you know, in playing a certain system and then we've got strengths playing a different system. But yeah, no, we're all very comfortable. We'll learn as we go naturally, even on the training ground today. There's a couple of things that got flagged up and we have to reiterate. But it's good that that's happening and then we can write, this is what happens from now on, and we all know what we're doing. And I think you do have to keep, you know, reiterating it to the lads, you know, you've got to keep on top of it. I think the higher you go, the higher level you go, obviously ability is higher. But I also think the focus and concentration in your top players is a good quality when you go higher up. And that's what we've got to try to instill into our lads. Yeah, we want to help them be, you know, we can help them physically and tactically and technically. But we also want them to be focused and concentrated mentally. And that's a thing we've got to keep chipping away at. Concentration, knowing your roles and responsibilities and carrying them out. I remember speaking to you after the Huddersfield game and, you know, the four players in the box going forward were something that stuck with me. And that's been reflected in the goals that you scored in preseason, but you were very well aware of the goals that had gone in at the other end. So have you been working hard to try and show up that part of your game? Yeah, always, you know, I think, you know, the lads know how myself and Kenny and we want to play. We do want to be a tap-minded. There's no doubt about that. You know, balls in the box and have shots at goal and crosses and, you know, everything to give you an opportunity to score goals, which win games. But we obviously got mindful, you know, defensive responsibilities and that starts from up front all the way back through the team. And, you know, we have played a high-caliber aside this preseason and, you know, you know, you look at the individual players we've been up against have been good quality. There's been goals we've lost where, yeah, we've worked on and we need to improve on. There's also been a couple of goals that have gone well. Listen, that's the quality we're playing against and you have to accept it sometimes. But as a balance, yeah, we need to be cut out the mistakes like every club needs, every team needs to, but keep doing the things that will keep, not only scoring the goals, but we've had good opportunities in most of the games as well. So keep playing the way we'd like to play, but just being focused, you know, defensively. Recruitment-wise, I spoke to you about that as well after the Huddersfield game. You said that you were still active in the window. You were looking to try and bring the right players in was the predominant word there. Are you still on the search for that right player and it being the right fit for your side? Yeah, always, we're always reviewing things. But I think when we came in, obviously with the four young lads joining us, but we had lads coming back from loans from last season. I've not seen play Sam Humber, obviously Jackson Longridge, Tyler French, so we need to have a good look at them. Obviously the new lads have come in, see how we all mull together. So I've been pleased with a lot of things we've seen in the games, but certainly on the training field as well. So I think it's important, you know, we give the lads opportunity, we're here. But yes, we are obviously looking to strengthen if the right player comes about, you know, plenty of time before the window closes. But as always, we are mindful. And we're waiting back on a couple of players, decisions from higher up. We can't press Premier League teams for answers here and now. But yeah, we're waiting for a phone call. We might get somebody in. If it doesn't happen and he don't come out or he goes to another place, there's two or three lads, then yeah, we move on. But we're also mindful that we're giving the lads a chance to show what they can do. And as I said, we've been really impressed where they've gone about their jobs. Suppose it lends itself to the question, then, if you were to come to the end of this transfer window mid-October with your squad as it is now, would you be happy taking that into the new season? No, I think we'd like to strengthen. You know, at the minute, as I said, we're fortunate. We've got nobody injured. We've got all 23 outfield players available, which is terrific. But no, I think once we come, what is it? Not only six weeks or longer even. We will have brought another couple of players to the football club and I would be assured and confident of that. Final one from me, Stuart. You touched on Bolton earlier. He'll be behind closed doors. The EFL, I don't know if you've seen this in the last hour or so, have announced some pilots. Runs for fans being back at Cambridge. Positive news, isn't it, to have fans potentially coming back? You must be confident on that front. Yeah, it's great. Obviously, I think Cambridge are going to have the league game and I think we're going to play Carl Isle as well for the league game, the EFL game. So, yeah, that's what we want to hear. We want everything to go well at them games. Naturally, we're looking to get, I don't know, five, six, seven thousand demons. We can get the clearance and then, you know, in an ideal world, in a perfect scenario, you know, soon into the new year, we can get back and get Ballet Parade rocking again and get lots of bodies in. But at the moment, every person or every supporter has allowed in the bonus, because it is, you know, it's about players, but the game's, you know, it's for supporters and, you know, they make it, they make it the great sport it is. Well, good luck for Saturday, Stuart. Cheers. Yes, thank you, Jamie. And on that, behind closed doors, have you ever played any time in your career a competitive match behind closed doors? Oh, probably. By the way, I can't remember last week. Never mind. You know, we're going back how many years after that. But I think we had a couple in, I think we had one with Scotland, but we had one with Rangers where it was played in the Russian side. We had to play in Germany. So one had to be on closed doors, but I think we had about 3, 4,000 Rangers fans travelled over, but it was a big massive stadium and there's only about 3, 4,000 people, isn't it? All supporting us, thankfully. That was like a neutral venue. But other than, I suppose sometimes the Johnson paint or the Simard coat, what it used to be, it was like being playing behind closed doors with a lacquered crowd. But no, not that I can think of off top made. And obviously for the players, it's different. How is it for you as a manager when there are no fans there? Obviously the players can hear you and everything you say. Yeah, it's the worst for the players, that's for sure. But no, and you can also hear the other, not that you'd say, I'm focused, I'm fully focused on myself, but you can obviously hear the other coaches and the other players, you know, you can hear them shouting on if they've got a problem with certain things. And you know, so it's always a learning curve, but I think you've got to just take everything in and listen, but yeah, it's different. It's not what we want naturally, but it's better than, you know, what we were doing, like I say, six weeks ago, which were nothing. So it's the first step, getting back, getting playing the competitive games. And I say, sooner the better we can get fans back into the interstadiums would be great. But for now, we just want to make sure we do the best we can and we're in the best possible position when we do start letting fans coming back into the grounds. As you said, all 23 players fit at the moment. It's more than any other season. It's going to be a squad fixture list of necessity this time, isn't it? Because of the late start and the number of games you're going to have to cram in. Yeah, definitely so. You know, we've straight away, you know, we've got a game Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday. Now, obviously, depending on if we progress in the cup on Saturday, we'll have midweek games until we get knocked out now. You know, we'll take that on the chin and see how many games we've got in that. I think it just looks like, I don't know if it's October or November, we've got about eight games already in one month. So it certainly will be. And especially early on until the lads get to full speed, we don't want people getting to 80, 90 minutes and hanging on and, you know, getting muscle injuries then. So we will rotate. There's no doubt about that. And we've got, you know, at the minute with everyone fit, we've got strength that we can do that. Obviously, the time comes when we pick up a few injuries on the natural. And then we will, you know, we'll have to then look at things. But I'd say we've got everyone fit, but naturally, obviously Levi's something misses out this week with the suspension carried on from last season. So everyone's fit. And we've got 22 to pick from because Levi's suspended. Okay. Thanks very much and all the best for the season. Cheers. Thank you. Let's do it. Let's cut. Go on, Sam. You've got two questions. Make them good. All I can see is Pete's face in front of me. I don't like to see his nose. What is it? You're saying about you can hear, you can hear sort of what the other coach is saying. Have you got someone on your bench who's having a bit cocking a, you know, cocking an ear just to hear if anything going on? No. No, we haven't. No. But it might be somewhere we might start doing. I always, I always say to Kenny when the other opposition are making substitutions or, you know, changing people, just listening to see, you know, what they're doing if they're changing shape. But I've never even thought about it. No, I just, I usually just focus on myself. But yeah, I might have to have a spine that can listen to what's going on next. And obviously you're talking about, you know, managing and coaching behind closed doors. I mean, how do you sort of get it over to the players that they're playing in a proper competitive game? Because obviously, you know, the atmosphere is good. It's going to feel exactly the same as it was at Huddersfield. Exactly the same as it was against Wigan, you know. Yeah, listen, we've seen it since he got up and running. We started off, obviously, Germany were back first and I watched a couple of first games of that. And I thought, oh, this is going to be hard work. It got better. And obviously the premiership and the championship, it's still, it's still not how we'd like it. But we just, listen, we've just got to get on with it. You know, there's nothing we can do about it. You know, they probably think they've got a few thousand in the crowd on the air. My boys bell them in for 90 minutes. I'll certainly be a lot more horse than I normally am, I would imagine. But no, it's just, listen, it's the times we're in at the moment and it's the same for everyone. And we've just got to crackle down and knuckle down, crack on and do the best we can. It's both, simply both sides. But, you know, we've said since day one, since we've been in, you know, football, obviously there's a lot of different facets to it, but communication's huge, you know, and, you know, definitely now when you will hear voices, a lot clearer. There's no excuses for not being heard out there on a pitch. Encouragement, yeah, but also information, whatever it may be, stay with the runner, turn, want to, whatever it may be. But to have a good voice is half the battle and helps your teammates. So they're always been encouraged to be vocal. And that's what we need from every one of them. And obviously Bolton brought a lot of players in. I mean, they're going to take a while to gel like every team. I mean, is it possibly handy you're playing them first week rather than perhaps, you know, a month in, when they've had a chance to formulate? I don't know. Listen, I think Ian's done a, obviously it meditated getting a good job like at a ball because he had a terrific season last year with Barrow and, you know, well done to him and, you know, they've recruited well. But they had a lot of players to bring in, you know, they had to fill a squad and, you know, good luck to him. You know, that's, you know, every manager wants to make his own stamp on it, which I'm sure he's doing there. I'm fully focused on what we can do. But, you know, we know, you know, we're in for a good competitive game. Yeah, they've got, you know, certain individuals that are, you know, a good quality for this level without a doubt. But sort of we, so it's going to be an intriguing game on Saturday, one where, you know, possibly formations might be very similar. And then it's so best who comes out in their own 1v1 battles. Brought to you by DIS, keeping companies connected with cloud-based solutions. Come on, City!