Aggressive, intense, brave. Those are the three words that Miron Muslic will live by during his time at Plymouth Argyle and he expects that from the players too.
The 42-year-old new Pilgrims’ boss gave a powerful, motivational speech when he introduced himself to his new squad at Home Park on Monday morning. A video of it was posted on the club’s X account soon afterwards and a lot of the Green Army were impressed with what he had to say in it.
Muislic started by paying tribute to long-serving first team coach Kevin Nancekivell and injured club captain Joe Edwards for guiding Argyle to their shock 1-0 Emirates FA Cup third round win away to Premier League club Brentford, which the Austrian watched from the directors’ box.
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He addressed the Argyle squad for the first time in the Video Analysis and Media Suite at Home Park. “Good morning lads, good to be here, very good to be here” said Muslic.
“Usually I address my words always first to the team but this morning I will address my first words towards Nance. Your courage, your commitment, your selflessness is an inspiration. There are moments in life and on the football pitch where the heat is on, and the pressure is on, and people just disappear, run away, hide, but other people like Nance step up.
“That’s courage. That impresses me a lot. When I saw the celebration after the game (against Brentford) it was pure. It was from the heart, not fake, pure from the heart. Goose bumps all over my body.
“When I saw Joe sprinting towards the fans, goose bumps, and I thought ‘This guy is going to pull his hamstring again!’ Take it easy Joe, I need you on the right side.
“I know it has been difficult for you over the last weeks, suffering, struggling. It’s part of our job. You are professional football players, it’s not easy being professional football players. We have to perform day in day out, every single weekend.
“We don’t have a private life, they can do whatever they want with us. They can destroy us every single day, every single game. That’s why it’s difficult to be a professional football player.
“That’s why we are here, because it’s hard. Nothing in the next weeks will be easy for us, no problem. Let’s face this challenge in front of us, with commitment, with heart, with a togetherness because you impressed me also two days ago in Brentford, going there and delivering a performance like you did.
“Well done. Showing this passion, this conviction, this togetherness, this will be the ingredients we need also to face all the challenges in front of us, no doubt, and it’s going to be hard, no problem. Aggressive, intense, brave. This will be our core principles every day in, every day out.
“These are not ingredients to win a beauty contest, but a football game. Every time they are going to face Argyle, regardless Home Park or away, it will be hard. It will be annoying to play against us. I have a clear style of play, I have a million ideas how to progress with you, how to develop you but step by step.
“First of all we need simplicity and clarity, and the first thing we are going to do is get this thing tight, compact, together and high up on the pitch.
“We have a lot of quality inside this team, we need to get this team high up on the pitch so that we can show that quality. I’m very demanding towards you, and I’m going to try to raise the bar in everything. In everything, to improve you, to develop you, to make you better.
“I’m very demanding. We had the last three years the highest physical output in Belgium (at former club Cercle Brugge) and it’s a physical league, the same like the Championship, so it’s not easy but everything I will demand from you I will give you every single day 24/7. Then it’s easy for me to sell this because I will give you everything.
“We can judge you, we can rate you, we can feedback you, we can criticise you. You are football players, only to help to develop and support you. I will be straight and honest with my communication. I have to be, and this is my right as a head coach, this is the right for us as staff but as human beings you are untouchable. I will never cross that line, I give you my word.
“So I’m very much looking forward for everything that is in front of us and we are going to face this with a big heart, with conviction, with courage, and everything will be fine.”
Muslic then handed over to Nancekivell to take the rest of the meeting ahead of the Championship match against Oxford United at Home Park tomorrow night.
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