Sunderland players won’t be getting an easy ride under Mike Dodds, with him already demanding improvement in five different areas.
As he gets ready for the first game of his third stint as head coach in interim roles, Mike Dodds says he already has a list of five areas in which he is determined to make improvements in the Sunderland team.
This season, Sunderland has been incredibly frustrating. Under Tony Mowbray, they were exciting and strong, but they were also toothless. Under Michael Beale, they are rigid and defensively vulnerable.
Dodds was a member of the coaching staff under both of those guys, but he will now have the opportunity to take the team’s reins for the final 13 games of the season, and he already has a long list of issues that need to be resolved.
I am very hard on myself when it comes to my coaching style,” Dodds remarked.
“So it’s not just the away form. There are many areas in which we still need to improve, including our set pieces both for and against, our structure when in possession of the ball, and the quantity of goals we have scored.
Therefore, if I had to make a list of the things for which I would be critical of myself at this point in my career, that would be a short list.
However, the fact that I have to assume those responsibilities is perhaps what makes my position so attractive. I have to accept that responsibility, and I feel quietly at ease making improvements in every one of those areas.
Despite his remarkable humility in expressing it, Dodds seems to possess a strong sense of confidence.
However, he admits that a large part of that stems from his rapport with the players and his awareness of their confidence in him.
“In terms of how I work, I am quietly confident in myself,” Dodds remarked.
“I feel like I get along well with the group. They seem to like me based on the vibe I get from them. I enjoy them. So I am confident that we will adequately prepare. I therefore have a great deal of confidence in that.
The part that makes you anxious is when the whistle goes off because there are things that happen on the field that are beyond your control. That’s the bit that gives you a little bit of anxiety.
“I feel pretty confident and at ease with everything else.”