ryan sessegnon
Blades players will be eagerly anticipating their first training session under new manager Slavisa Jokanovic following his unveiling at Chris Wilder’s full-time successor at Bramall Lane. But what can they expect when they do return for pre-season training to get themselves ready for life back in the Championship? Jokanovic has a reputation as a demanding manager who places an emphasis on an energetic, attractive football, and those who have played under him have backed up that view down the years. Here’s what some of Jokanovic’s former players from his time at Craven Cottage have had to say about the new Sheffield United boss.
Matt Targett on his loan spell at Craven Cottage: “My experience at Fulham was fantastic, I cannot speak any higher about the club and the people that work there, they made me feel very welcomed from day one. I loved every single minute of it. … Jokanovic was amazing to play for! A really good manager and I believe one day he will be the manager of a top four side.”
Ryan Sessegnon on his emergence under Jokanovic: “For someone to have faith in you at the tender age of 16 is massive. This season he has had total confidence in me and I just want to repay him with my performances. Credit to the gaffer for playing me in a higher position. My debut season was a good one for me, especially at 16, but I said that I want to improve. That is what I am doing at the moment and I want to keep on going. The way we are playing at the moment has helped me develop as a player. The football we have been playing, especially in recent weeks, is a very attractive brand and I am grateful to the gaffer that he keeps choosing me.”
Fulham skipper Tom Cairney on Jokanovic’s style of play: “I believe in that way of playing. If you look at the teams that have dominated football for the last five or 10 years, that’s the way they are playing. Everyone is different but I love to watch that type of football: the clever players, the technical players. The beautiful game. It’s incredibly brave. To play out from the back, to take it into hostile stadiums. You can easily go into your shell and kick it long, but it is harder to take that extra touch and calm everything down. It’s about believing in your ability, and believing in the right way to win games. You need to stick by that, no matter how loud the crowd is or how big the game is. The manager does not panic, and we always play the same way. He has to take a lot of credit for that, because playing the football that we do, in this division, is not easy.”
Sone Aluko on Jokanovic’s approach to training: “The manager has been very disciplined with us, telling us how to play and getting that point across. It’s something we’ve worked on a lot, the shape, breaking teams down, how to press and how to get the ball back, so that’s been good. It’s shown in our organisation and it’s shown in our results. That’s why we’ve kept so many clean sheets in pre-season.”
Kevin McDonald on Jokanovic’s demanding personality: “At training, everything is about winning the ball back. Press after loss, press after loss, all the time. We know we have to earn the right to play and the manager drills it in us every day. We will try and win the ball back as soon as we lose it and then keep the ball, make them run around and try and create chances, tire them out. He can be a bit intimidating, I’m sure, for certain people. I wouldn’t say he’s scary but I wouldn’t cross him. He puts confidence in you and when you go out on the pitch you feel like you’re going to win. That’s what he wants. But if we’re drifting away from that, he’ll do whatever it takes to get back to it.”
Aleksandar Mitrovic after Fulham sacked Jokanovic: “It’s bad news for me, since everyone knows what impact he had on me and on my career in the previous 18 months. He did a lot for my career. We spoke yesterday, and he comforted me more than I did him. I was very, very sorry and I think everyone at the club is very disappointed, because of everything he gave to the club. In four years he brought the club from the club that fought for survival in the Championship to the Premier League. Everyone respects, appreciates and they love and everyone always thinks everything is wrong, but that’s football, that’s the job and that’s the market today.”
