Danny eyeing mix of grit and talent
DANNY Whitaker has said he wants to sign players who will “roll their sleeves up and have a fight” for his Macclesfield FC squad next season.
Whitaker, who made over 400 appearances for Macclesfield Town, became manager of Macclesfield FC in October last year - much to the delight of the Silkmen faithful.
Since then, he has set about planning his squad
‘In the short-term I need to be successful... but I also want to look long-term’
for next season, but Coronavirus restrictions have added an extra level of challenge.
“It’s been frustrating really because we’re not allowed to get out and watch players. That’s how you gauge players best,” he said.
“You get sent loads of video clips of players, but they’re all the best clips… you need to see the other parts of his game and you don’t get to see that unless you watch them live.”
Despite that, Whitaker is confident he can build a squad that will deliver short term and long-term success.
“The good thing is that I watched quite a lot of players and games before Christmas so I’ve already got a good list together of players,” he said.
“In the short term, I need to be successful… but I also want to look at the long-term picture as well because we need to be looking at the long term and producing our own players.”
Whitaker said that the character of a player is foremost in his thinking when assessing a possible signing.
“Having a good mentality is crucial because the type of football we’re playing isn’t going to be pretty every week because of the level we’ll be going in at,” he said.
“We’ll play on a great surface at our place but then the following week we could be on a park pitch.
“We need players who will roll their sleeves up and have a fight.”
The prospect of league seasons ending early due to the pandemic could also provide a challenge, but Whitaker is optimistic it could offer an opportunity as well.
“If it [non-league football] doesn’t continue it’s not the end of the world because we’ll be able to get in touch with players straight away.
“It might give us a little bit of a head start in that respect, it’s swings and roundabouts.”
Despite the unique nature of the job, the Macc boss has said he is excited by the unique opportunity to build a squad from scratch.
“It is rare in football that you get to take over a team and effectively build your own from the start,” he said.
“It takes time to bring the players in to be able to play the way you want them to play and get your philosophy across.
“But if you can get the players in that you want from the start it will be a bit of a quicker process.”
He says that the board has given him their full confidence and support which has helped him make plans for next season.
“From day one I spoke with the board about my vision and about the way I wanted to play and that fit in perfectly with what their vision was. It was a perfect fit,” he said.
Praised as a player for his control of the midfield and for driving his team forward, Whitaker said that his philosophy as a manager will be rooted in the way in which he played, regardless of the level the team start at.
“I always played football with the ball on the floor, always playing forward looking to score goals, break the lines and attack,” he said.
“We’ll be looking to play out from the back, possession based, looking to play forward and always on the front foot.
“Away from home it could be different problems that present themselves, but we’ll prepare the players.”
Asked about the prospect of him putting on his boots and playing again, Whitaker laughed off the suggestion but revealed he did not want to retire when he did two seasons ago.
“I was forced into retirement by the manager and the director of football at the time,” he said.
“By the start of next season I’ll have not played for two years but who knows, stranger things have happened. If we lose a few games I can always register myself!”