The Wins of the Father

Let’s face it. Derby aren’t out of trouble yet. But the appointment of Nigel Clough as Derby’s new manager makes most of us hope that the sins, or rather the wins of the father are the wins of the son and that this is the beginning of a new great era. But Nigel Clough stands before a tough challenge if you ask ex-Ram Morten Bisgaard who once again and despite a cold has taken time out of his busy schedule to give derbycounty.dk his view on Derby County. 

(photo by Anders Rex)

The issues
The issues are plenty. Since the last derbycounty.dk interview with Morten the Rams have been doing extremely well in the Carling Cup (“the pressure was off,” as Morten says) but awfully in the Championship (“the pressure is really on,” as Morten says) and Nigel Clough has replaced Paul Jewell who never was one of Morten’s favourites.
Furthermore, Derby have been battling against relegation with a side that according to Morten seem good enough to be in the play-off zone. And Morten himself have started wondering what he’ll spend his time on when he hangs up his boots. So these are the talking points …

Morten on Derby
“I haven’t met Nigel personally but I’ve played against his Burton side once or twice in the pre-seasons and I remember they played football on the floor. It wasn’t the ordinary kick’n’rush that one would have expected. I think his Continental approach will suit Derby and I’m sure the Derby board never would have approached him if he wasn’t man enough to do the job.
“Now we need consistency. Billy Davies signed a lot of players, so did Paul Jewell. These days we’ve got like 36 players on the pay-roll. 36! This proves you can’t buy yourself out of troubles. It doesn’t get you anywhere. Consistency is the key word.
“You have to believe in your players and you have to understand it takes time to blend. We’ve got enough quality to prevent relegation. In fact, we’ve got enough quality to be fighting for promotion but we’ve lacked self-confidence until now. In Nigel Clough we’ve got the manager who is going to give the players a confidence boost and eventually guide us back to the Premier League. With players like Hulse, Green, Commons, winger Davis, young Addison and Albrechtsen – well, most Championship clubs envy us these guys.”

Michael on Morten
Morten is in the reminder of his career. From time to time the gifted midfielder is still turning out for Odense, one of the strongest sides in Denmark, and though Morten has publicly demanded a transfer if he doesn’t get more first team football he has been denied a transfer so far.
“You have to realize that Morten’s trademarks are hard work and professionalism. He isn’t in it for the money or the fame. He is in it for the love of football and he’s a true pro. He is also an intelligent bloke who might as well could be a musician or a teacher of the arts. You don’t give away a clever straight A football student like that.”
These are the words of one Michael Buchholtz, second to the Director of Football in Odense, who points out Morten is too important behind the scenes to let go. To Michael Buchholtz Morten’s experience and straight forward personality are highly valued as well as his professional approach is a lesson to be taught.
“I realize Morten has moaned about regular first team football which is great because it shows he’s still ambitious but honestly, his spirits and talents rub off on the younger players and unless we receive a proper offer he isn’t going anywhere.
“Though I am a Liverpool supporter myself I truly recognize Morten’s “love affair” with Derby. Derby are one of the great sides of the 70s. You know, back then the peak of the Saturday was the live transmission from England. Derby were great and won the league twice. I might be wrong but weren’t Liverpool and Derby the only teams to do that in the 70’s?
“Anyway, I wish you all the best. I wouldn’t mind seeing Derby in the Premier League again someday soon …”
The kind Michael is right. We used to be that great. Back in the 70s.

Scouting in Scandinavia
So Morten is probably going to stay with Odense until he hangs up his boots. Therefore I ask Morten about his plans for the future, i.e. when he’s retired as a pro. I mention that Derby don’t seem to do any serious scouting in Denmark, let alone Scandinavia. He has never thought of scouting before but is willing to support Derby in any way he can.
“I’m ready if Derby call me. I don’t know how or where Derby scout these days but if Derby need me, well, I’m ready. I could provide Derby with the names of potential Academy players if Derby want my assistance. I’d gladly give it a go if they want me to.
“I remember Simon Hunt used to scout in Scandinavia and maybe there’s still a web of Derby scouts in Scandinavia. I don’t know and I haven’t heard Derby needed me.
“Anyway, scouting is about the club in the long run and these days I suppose everybody’s busy making sure we won’t go down.”

Morten’s advice
“We can still go down. Players that lack self-confidence lose more than they win. We’ve played well in the Carling Cup where the pressure was off but we haven’t played well at all in the Championship where the pressure is really on. The players may be great footballers individually but if you don’t believe in yourself as a team you don’t go anywhere – except maybe down.
“No matter what, I hope we stick to the manager and players now. There is no point in buying new players over and over again to replace the other players that didn’t get half a chance. It doesn’t make sense. You don’t blend with the others overnight. It takes quite a while.
“My advice is, let the boys blend and let Nigel have his say and let’s start believing in ourselves again. That’s the way to re-build the Rams.”
We agree on this before saying good-bye. Morten is probably going back to bed with a cup of tea whilst I sit here thinking that if by chance the Derby board read this interview I hope they call on Morten and ask him to start scouting in Scandinavia. And I hope they listen to Morten’s advice and bring back consistency. As well as I hope the next time I phone Morten I’ll have to start like this, “hi, Morten, what is your view on Derby’s promotion?” – i.e. to the Premier League …