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Ipswich Town manager Mick McCarthy explains how recruitment in football nowadays goes well beyond just the players.
When trying to recruit players to a team at any time you have to be convincing in what you are trying to achieve – how you will play them, how the team will play and the ambitions of the club. It is such a competitive industry and players have to believe in you, not just when they sign but afterwards too.
“That belief and respect can only be maintained by being consistent in your approach and working with your players to continually improve. Belief grows by winning games and you do that by achieving a mutual respect between you and your players and as a group demanding high standards of yourselves.
“Recruiting players becomes easier as you gain experience as a manager. When, for example, I was recruiting players when I first joined Ipswich, they may have been attracted by my track record of being able to win the Championship twice, taking Sunderland and Wolves into the Barclays Premier League, and decided that they had a good chance of success by working with me.
“If you are at a club that doesn’t have the resources to offer large financial incentives, you have to have a bit of a reputation or a CV that will be attractive to players. Word of mouth can also come into play.
“Any player I am looking to sign could ask around to find out what I am like to play for, so they are effectively recruiting me as well. I’d like to think my past players would say that they’d enjoyed working with me, had learned from me and that I’d always tried to help them improve.”
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