Chapter 8

The next day was another introduction but one with a wider reach than the previous one. This was to be the day that Yusuf would be introduced to the world, and it was already overdue. He had deliberately put it off by saying that there was work to be done and now that the main staff had been recruited and set to work, he no longer had another way to weasel out of it. The press had been hounding them almost daily to get any information on the current situation and it had created an atmosphere of uncertainty around the fans. This was to be the day where he faced the music and paint the grand dream he had for the club.

Maxi was to be the one who would be presenting him to the crowd, and it was slightly reassuring to know there would be a familiar face. He took a moment backstage to calm himself and adjusted his clothes before walking out into a barrage of camera flare. Taking his seat with all the grace he could manage, he allowed himself a single sip of water before facing the crowd head on. The introductions were carried out by Maxi and then it quickly turned to free questions by the gathered journalists.

" Good afternoon, Yusuf, Brian Dick from Birmingham Mail here. What does it mean for you to be back at Birmingham City and how big a challenge is it for you? "

" I'm extremely honoured to have the opportunity and it feels like I've come home finally. I anticipate it will be a huge challenge because I know the fans have expectations and I hope to take the club in the right direction."

"Sky Sports here, what is top of your list in terms of priorities to bring the club back to that level?"

" The priorities are manifold but first of all I believe it comes from belief and culture, to succeed on the pitch it is vitally important to do things in the right way off the pitch and that would be the first thing I would look at. The club have had some poor results in recent seasons, and we need to bring a positive energy to the club and translate that into performance on the pitch."

"What do you believe is the cause of these poor results ?"

"It is difficult to diagnose from the outside, but it looks to me that the club is not pulling in one direction and that would be the first thing I would investigate. This means having the board room, staff, and players in agreement on where we are going and how to get there."

"The rumours have it that you've already started shaking the tree, how much truth in that is there?"

"It's still very much early days but when the results haven't been up to the standards they should be change must always be expected. This means analysing what hasn't been going well and finding new ways of working rather than attempting the same thing over and over."

" What do you say to the fans who are worried about your lack of experience?"

" The concern is understandable, but I wouldn't be sitting here if I didn't believe I could do the job and I have been preparing myself ever since the day I left the club previously. The club have full faith in me and that also helps to allow me to do this honour the justice it deserves. "

"Who do you believe you've learnt the most from between Claudio Ranieri & Nuno Esperito Santo?"

"Both managers are meticulous students of the game who've taught me much about the running of a football club. The main thing being that consistency and repetition are key to the players understanding your philosophy and nurturing the right mentality."

In that manner the interview proceeded with Yusuf tactically answering the difficult questions while being clear about his plans for the future. The interview was viewed well by the fans according to the new social media engagement team. The new engagement team was an initiative planned by Yusuf who felt the team didn't communication well across social media. The revolution he was instilling in Birmingham would fall on deaf ears if no one could see the work they were doing. It had always been a policy of his to build in public as many people enjoyed watching the period of growth and that would make them feel more connected with the success. The rest of the key staff members would also be interviewed exclusively on the club channel which is why he had requested no questions to be asked about the new faces at the club.

The next order of business was the organisation of preseason matches to be held before the start of the following season in two months. Yusuf wanted his team to aspire to promotion so for that it was important to show them the level they were currently at so he had organised three matches against teams that would be in the premier league next season. These were the newly promoted Brentford, Leeds United and his former club Wolverhampton Wanderers who had managed a top half finish in the premier league last season. He had also organised games with Charlton Athletic and Milton Keynes Dons to round out a jam-packed preseason schedule. The only problem was that he had little idea who would be playing those games and his team was in dire need of recruitment.