In this exclusive interview with new Cheltenham Town manager Michael Flynn, he explains why he has had to adapt as a coach, his changing relationship with players and why he is always learning as he prepares to face former club Newport County
Friday 2 August 2024 12:59, UK
Looking out over the rolling hills that surround Cheltenham Town's training ground, the racecourse in the distance, Michael Flynn is reflecting on his journey. "I am always learning," he tells Sky Sports. "The day that I say I am not, just tell me to retire."
They are more than just words. This is a manager with a diploma in leadership and management, who has studied business with the Welsh government. He is learning Spanish and is planning to do a master's degree with the League Managers' Association.
Back in management with Cheltenham, he spent his period out of the game on study breaks. He visited Como just before they secured promotion to Serie A and spent time with Manchester City, his connection to Pep Guardiola dating back to a cup tie in 2019.
"You look at trends and try to pick up new ideas. Look at what Pep did at Bayern. He got players who thought everything was perfect, having just won a treble, and convinced them to believe in his philosophy. Taking people with you, that is the challenge."
Flynn did his UEFA Pro Licence with Arsenal's Mikel Arteta. He is another he looks to. "I knew back then that he would do well because of how intelligent and hard-working he is. He was very good but I was more impressed with the human side as well. No ego."
In a wide-ranging conversation, he talks of meetings with CEOs to find out "what they are looking for, the amount of data they use" and being inspired by coaches across the spectrum, everyone from Guardiola to Kenny Brown, his old team-mate at Barry Town.
There were courses with Pep Lijnders and trips to Benfica to see Joao Tralhao, Thierry Henry's former assistant. Henry is another he saw work up close. "Those courses are a brilliant mix. They all have their own challenges. I instantly became a better coach."
The hope is that he can put all this knowledge into practice now he is back at the sharp end with Cheltenham. Flynn retains a strong reputation within the game, having saved Newport from the drop in 2017 and twice taken them to play-off finals at Wembley.
But trickier times at Walsall and Swindon followed. "Even though the last two jobs did not end the way I wanted them to, I 100 per cent believe I am a better manager than when I was at Newport. But I have not had a top-half budget in any team I have been at."
Cheltenham feels like an opportunity. The location appealed, and not just because of the view from the training ground but the proximity to family and the club's culture. "This is more traditional. I think I will get the time to build something here."
That is what he was able to do in his five years at Newport. "For the first two-and-a-half years, the pitch was awful," he recalls. That shaped the style of play. "You work with what you have got. That is why you need time. The last 18 months, it was total football."
He hopes that flexibility counts in his favour. "We got to the play-off final playing direct and playing football, so we have done it both ways." What will the approach be at Cheltenham? There are a few non-negotiables, things he has learned along the way.
"One thing we will definitely do is press high." He will also play two up front. "It gives us a better opportunity to score if we have got two strikers on the pitch. The supporters appreciate that. They want us to show attacking intent not just possession intent."
Perhaps that is a little surprising given his admiration for Guardiola and his many followers but there is a logic to it. "If you are winning it back high up, or in the other half, you are better set to get at the opposition." And we are all a product of our environment.
"I grew up a certain way. My football was to get it wide and have as many crosses and shots as you could. If you are on the edge of the box, get your shot off, do not just be looking for the perfect goal. You want to get the fans on the edge of their seat."
To help him do that, he has brought in some promising talent but also experienced defenders Scot Bennett and Ryan Haynes, who he knows from his time over the border in Wales. "People I can rely on, people I trust on and off the pitch," explains Flynn.
"But we have also signed some younger ones with potential who fit the model of the club. It is a hybrid model because we needed to replace some experience that we have lost but hopefully we can also sell a couple on and make some money too."
Cheltenham were relegated last season despite their best efforts to recover from a miserable start. Change was inevitable. "A lot have left. You can almost sense there are one or two who have still got a hangover from last season, which they will never admit."
His task is to alter the trajectory. Flynn still wants to add another centre-back but is navigating an awkward transfer market. "It is not just because of budget, we have lost out on players because of location as players do not want to move their families."
What he can seek to change is the culture. At Walsall, he took pride in increasing the number of community visits. More than once, members of his Newport squad won the community player of the year award for the entire league. "That is really important."
Now 43, he is increasingly conscious that management is about more than coaching a team. "There is a lot of pressure on players with social media, trying to stay popular and not get slated online. It is tougher for them. You need to be aware of that," he says.
"You cannot just sledgehammer them now. They are not built for it. It is about being a guardian. I have a 23-year-old daughter who is older than a lot of my players. You almost have to go into parent mode. How would I speak to my daughter in this situation?
"You are not just a manager, you are almost that guardian to these young players. It is about guiding them on the pitch and off it. They have this fantastic opportunity. Out of every 1.5 million who play football, only 180 make it. Do not waste that chance."
As he matures as a coach, Flynn can feel that relationship with his players changing. When he was first appointed caretaker manager at Newport, he had been in the starting line-up just a fortnight earlier. Maybe the growing age gap can be a positive thing.
"At times, I have probably been a little closer to the players than I am now," he admits. "That connection can help build team spirit but they also need to know not to push the boundaries so I am being slightly more reserved here. And they are a good group."
He has not been joined by long-time assistant Wayne Hatswell at Cheltenham, due to family reasons, but he is on the end of the phone. Aaron Downes takes on that role. "He has been good to work with so far. But it is my neck on the line and I back myself."
Flynn talks openly about a frustrating period that his side endured in pre-season against Bristol City but he even views that as a positive. "It was a good day, a learning day, because I found out things that I did not want to find out on the first day of the season."
In particular, because of the identity of the opposition. A quirk of the fixture list pits Cheltenham against Flynn's beloved Newport on that opening weekend. "You could not have written it. It is a club I love. Apart from two games, I hope they win the other 44."
He is looking forward to seeing old friends and meeting Nelson Jardim, Newport's new manager. Most of all he is looking forward to continuing his own coaching journey. "I am not the finished article," he stresses once more. "I am always trying to educate myself."
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