Watford v Leeds United: Jesse Marsch press conference every word - Gelhardt, Phillips, Summerville, Meslier, Klaesson, Victor Orta meeting

“Yesterday we had that meeting and to be honest we didn’t go into too many details about what our needs are, what players we are thinking about either that need to go or come or whatever. It was more about educating the scouting department on what we are trying to achieve tactically, what kind of players we are looking for, creating profiles of players in each position, also then updating where we think we are with our current group and then each individual and their adaptation to what we are doing. I think it was a very useful meeting and then for me to continue to think about as we go forward, how to continue to squad build in a way. For me, what I like to do is to look at where we are now, where we want to be in six months, where we want to be in a year, where we want to be in two years and then kind of map out how that all starts to play itself out.”

“I would say congenial, maybe too congenial for me! “But I appreciate that manager respect - I call it a shared misery - and the respect for that shared misery is pretty strong here in England. “We had Adrian Heath in the US and so he coached at Orlando and then he coached in Minnesota and he was always really good with me after the match to say ‘come and have a beer’. and hesitantly I did it and I found it incredibly rewarding. “I want to acknowledge the work that other people do and I do respect and appreciate the work that other people do in this business. “It’s hard for me to sometimes be friendly with competitors because in my mind I want to not like them. “But when I wind up liking them, usually I think the respect grows. “But I like the motivation when I am driven to want to beat someone. “But sometimes, like I said with Ralph Hasenhuttl, my respect for him is so high and when we played against him...I never want the players to feel the personal situation between me and the coach or the other manager but I certainly feel the competitive juices on those days. Certainly, I had a really nice talk with Ralph Hasenhuttl after the match, Brendan Rodgers was very generous with some time after the match, Dean Smith was mad at me for not shaking his hand so we didn’t spend as much time after the match but in general I know the level of respect for the managerial work in this country and in this league is so high so it’s nice to be apart of that.”

“Yeah. I like to run training sessions, if we do little exercises and we need an extra man then I can jump in and play sometimes. I am very, very limited and I hate being that guy that looks so old on the pitch but that’s the reality of what I am. But in everything I do with the group I try and convey an energy that’s about being positive about being aggressive, about enjoying our work together but also getting better every day so that includes when I step out on the pitch and play a little bit.”

“No. Anyone in the world knows that this is the best league in the world and all I need to do is watch opponent video when I prepare to develop high levels of respect for every team and every manager because this is I think the biggest headache I have every week is watching the opposition and trying to find weaknesses and identify strengths. “It means that the work that we do has to be at such a high level to give us a chance so I appreciate that it makes me better and it keeps me on my toes and I certainly have to put a lot into every week but it gives you headaches.”

“One of the reasons I respect that tournament so much is because when we were at Salzburg we had to fight like hell to be a part of it. Even the leagues like that like the Austrian and the Czech Republic and Switzerland, they have to fight as a league to gain places in the tournament. That is what I love about the tournament is that you have to earn your way in and there is a little bit of a David Goliath in the group phases and how you manage those situations. “To do anything to compromise the integrity of the tournament like they were trying with the Super League, for me, doesn’t make any sense. Certainly, in football, and if I come from an American sports perspective, we are all about parity and salary caps and making sure everybody has a chance. “I think that already the heavily weighted clubs are heavily weighted enough and if in a year they have a down year and they are not able to perform at the way that they should then they shouldn’t be included. “You have to earn your way into the Champions League, that’s my opinion.”