Glasner urges balance between 'Woodstock' and 'military' after Forest loss
Nottingham Forest lost 2-0 at Brentford last weekend in the Premier League, their sixth defeat in 10 games in all competitions this season, manager Oliver Glasner said. He added that the side cannot survive on "flower power" and that he is seeking a combination of trust and respect from his squad.
Forest sit 19th in the Premier League and are winless and goalless at home in the top flight, with the 2-0 defeat at Brentford marking a fourth loss in five games. Glasner, who arrived in the summer, told players there would be no more compromises and has emphasised the standards he expects.
"These are my two values I will never negotiate about, this is trust and respect," he said. "It can't be one, so if it's just respect, I would say that's military. Then, after a few months of the national service, you are pleased when you can leave.
"When it's just trust, it's a flower power, just flying. Everybody can do what he wants and it's nice and great - Woodstock - but it's not high-performance Woodstock.
"Military is [high performance], to be honest, because otherwise this huge organisation couldn't work, and I felt we had too much Woodstock.
"We need a good balance between Woodstock, having fun, but also military, high performance. That's the most important thing, high performance, because that's what we get paid for, that's our job. If we have this - fly."
Asked whether he should have delivered the message earlier, Glasner said: "I always ask myself this question - should I have done it earlier? "Of course, maybe two or three times I felt it's time and then I thought 'no, come on Oliver, be patient and maybe things change'. "Then it seemed to be the same game [Brentford] like the last ones, so I felt I have to say it now because otherwise things won't change."
"I'm always in contact with the ownership," Glasner said. "It's not always Mr [Evangelos] Marinakis because he has other stuff to do, but there is his son [Miltiadis], George [Syrianos, chief football officer] and Pedro [Ferreira, technical director] here at the training ground, and Theodore [Giannikos] the CEO. "There's always communication - and that's a good thing, because everybody understands better why I am how I am. I never say what's best for Oliver Glasner, because I don't feel important. I will always say what I believe is best for Nottingham Forest, for the club. "I don't like to accept things if I feel they are wrong. My addiction is to succeed with Nottingham Forest and, right now, I have failed. Then I get really upset with myself because I want to meet the expectations of the players, owner and the fans. "Right now, I've failed and that's why I blame myself most."
Glasner is not under immediate pressure and remains in close communication with the Forest hierarchy, with stability desired after four managers last season.
