Rini Coolen has revealed he is not nervous ahead of his debut game in charge of Adelaide United as the Reds prepare to take on Newcastle Jets at Hindmarsh Stadium in the Hyundai A-League season opener.
Coolen admitted he isn’t any more nervous than the normal pre-game jitters every player feels before taking to the pitch.
“No, I don’t have nerves, no,” he said.
“I think every game you feel something in your stomach, you’re happy to play the game and I think you have to feel like that.”
“I don’t feel nerves, just the pressure of the game which is what you like as a professional footballer. You need that pressure and it feels good.”
Coolen returned to Holland after his appointment in early July and returned a couple of weeks later to begin his tenure as head coach.
The Dutchman acknowledged he has had limited time with the squad and preparation hasn’t been ideal, with the Reds only rejoining in full for the first time this week.
Matthew Leckie and reserve keeper Mark Birighitti returned from international duty with the Young Socceroos, World Cup shot stopper Eugene Galekovic had his first hit against North Queensland Fury after minor knee surgery and there are still a host of other big names out including captain Travis Dodd and Fabian Barbiero.
Coolen said despite the limited preparation, the players are ready for the clash against the Jets.
“We’ve just had two training sessions together with the squad that are going to play tomorrow,” he said.
“Normally we would need more but we are ready. Everybody that is playing is fit and we have 15 players that are ready for tomorrow so no problem, we are ready for the game.”
Coolen is well aware of Adelaide’s poor domestic 2009/10 campaign, where they finished bottom for the first time in the history of the club, and knows the players are keen to make amends this season.
The Dutchman praised the work ethic of his squad, saying they have a real thirst for knowledge and said with a full complement of players to choose from, he expects the Reds to be genuine finals contenders.
“Yeah I think so. I think the level of the squad especially when everybody is fit, it is good enough,” he said.
“They really want to work really hard. I’ve given them a lot of information but they want that information. They want to work hard and they understand the situation.”
Coolen admitted seeing United play the Dutch ‘Total Football’ system still might be a while away but added he is confident of the product the Reds are currently producing.
The former AZ Alkmaar and Heracles Almelo player said the three points against Newcastle is paramount but if the Reds show some Dutch influence it will be an added bonus.
“That is something for the future but if it can be tomorrow then fantastic,” he said.
“For tomorrow, though the most important thing is that we win the game. I don’t know if you’re going to see it (tomorrow) but I hope we’re going to see it in the future, we want to show that to the public in the stadium.”
“I don’t know if it will be there tomorrow but I hope so. We’ve had a lot of training but we need many more sessions to play like that. Winning the game is important and if we can do it in a way that we prefer to play would be fantastic.”
