Pressley will get away from it all – literally!
As Scottish clubs prepare to head abroad for warm- weather training, Steven Pressley has revealed his Pafos FC squad will have to leave Cyprus this summer – because it’s too hot!
And when they return to the Mediterranean island, the former Celtic, Hearts and Scotland defender will have to train his players early in the morning, and late at night, to escape temperatures that can top 40 degrees Celsius.
Pressley has agreed a new deal to stay on as manager of the Cypriot top-flight outfit after impressing since taking over in February.
The ex- Falkirk, Coventry City and Fleetwood Town boss has already snapped up freed Dundee full- back Kevin Holt as he oversees a major overhaul of his squad in time for next term.
With the Cypriot season due to kickoff again in mid-August, the 44-year-old will gather his players back for their pre-season preparations on July 3.
But they will then spend a month away from their sub- tropical home before returning in time to “warm- up” for the league kick-off.
Pressley explained: “I’m looking forward to starting again with the new squad that is being built at the moment.
“We start back on July 3 in Riga, in Latvia. We are there for almost a week before going to Slovenia for another three weeks.
“Those places will be hot enough, but we have to get away from Cyprus because the temperatures are so high at that time of the year.
“Even when we go back tot he island, we will have to train early in the morning and later at night because of the difficulties of the heat.
“So it’s not ideal. But these are the types of challenges we have, and these are the things you have to learn to deal with when you go to work in a different country like Cyprus.”