Fri Mar 04, 2016 4:21 pm
The secrets of the Cardiff City dressing room revealed: Napoleon, the code of conduct and religious blessings from monks.
WALES ONLINE
Friday March 4th
INSPIRATION
Slade uses the oratory of Napoleon and Winston Churchill to fire his players up for their play-off push, while CEO Ken Choo has been asking monks to bless the Bluebirds before games.
In a wide-ranging interview with Henry Winter of The Times , Slade discussed his attempts to rebuild the club, revealing his motivational techniques as Cardiff try to finally secure back to back wins in the Severnside derby tomorrow.
He said: "I looked at a wide variety of motivators like Winston Churchill - 'we will fight them on the beaches', all thats backs-to-the-wall stuff. I use that saying of Napoleon: 'courage isn't having the strength to go on. It is going on when you don't have strength.'
I look and learn from Arthur Ashe and Muhammad Ali when they were up against it.
"I regularly use words like 'relentless', 'determined', 'winner', 'together', 'desire', 'belief', and 'attitude'. I sometimes start very quietly and then build, more intensely."
The Cardiff City boss also revealed that he has introduced a code of conduct for his players to follow, believing that many in the modern game don't appreciate their position and fortune.
The booklet contains details of fines and philosophy, while the cover photo is the iconic image of Cardiff players being presented to King George V at the 1927 FA Cup final. The book begins with the words of “The Guy In the Glass”, Dale Wimbrow’s poem about being true to yourself.
He said: "You’ve got to question how many are actually in love with the game. I am. That saddens me. Every day you wake up, remember it’s a fantastic life.
"I say to them, ‘Go and show the quality you’ve got, for goodness sake don’t leave it here in the changing room’."
The former Yeovil and Leyton Orient manager also discussed the religious influence of Ken Choo and owner Vincent Tan.
He said: "They are very, very religious, I speak to Ken Choo about it and he's very strong on the prayers, [monks] giving us blessings before a game to give us every chance, to take care of the players to be lucky and be able to win."
SLADE CONTRACT TALKS
Slade said his relationship with the hierarchyis 'like a marriage'
Read More: Cardiff City stay cool ahead of Severnside derby as Russell Slade eyes victory against rivals Bristol City
With Slade's contract due to expire the summer, he spoke positively of his relationship with the club's hierarchy, saying: "I have a good relationship with the owner, chairman and Ken Choo. We don't always agree. It's a bit like marriage really, but we're still together! We come to an understanding.
"Sometimes I stick to my guns and other times I accept the advice I'm given."
And he also revealed how Tan has sent him messages questioning certain decisions and asking about team selection.
“He’s very keen to know who’s playing, who’s on the bench," he said.
"He has all the games streamed in to Malaysia. Then we’ll have a chat. Or he’ll send me a message about what he thinks, wondering why somebody came off.
With his team sitting just three points of the crucial sixth position in the Championship table, Slade believes he can bring the fans flocking back to the Cardiff City Stadium sooner rather than later.
He said: "If we got to Wembley [in the play-offs], we'd sell out the 40,000,
CITY NEED PREMIER LEAGUE FOOTBALL
"The city is crying out for Premier League football. The fans are passionate here, the expectations are high, especially having been in the Premier League [in 2013-14]. It's a Premier League stadium, the training facilities are Premier League although we could do with more grass.
"There's a longing here to be successful,
"If the fans see good performances consistently, they'll come in their droves. They'd be nudging each other in the bars, in the clubs, in the coffee bars and at work, saying: 'We've got to get down thgere.' That could happen."