MATTHEW Pennington has lots of experience, including a goal in a Merseyside derby and a season with Leeds.
The 30-year-old centre defender has played for ten different clubs in his career, most recently joining City from Blackpool.
Pennington has been around the block long enough to know exactly what is expected at this level.
But Graham Alexander has urged him to disregard a lot of things.
The manager’s suggestion is not intended as a slight, but more as a reminder that City’s playing style would most certainly differ from anything he has done previously.
The same is true for all eight signings made since the club’s promotion to League One. That is why every minute counts in the pre-season buildup to the Valley Parade curtain-raiser against Wycombe, which is only 23 days away.
“We recruited around how we play,” Alexander explained. “They aren’t perfect matches, but their profiles are ideal for what we want.
“The formation is not new. Many clubs use a back three and wingbacks.
“Josh (Neufville) played that all season as a right wing-back for a different team, and they did it and pressed in different ways.”
“There’s a lot of work to be done with Josh, so he knows how we do things.
“Ibby Touray played left wing-back for me at Salford, and we were a very aggressive squad. I don’t think it will be very different from what he has done before.
“I understand he’s been playing in a back four, but he’ll take it up quickly.
“I was speaking with Matty Pennington following his initial visit with us. I told him that how we play is clear and simple, but you’ll have to forget a lot of what you’ve done before.
“It’s more about the team than the opponent. There is a difference in our mental attitude.”
The summer signings got their first taste of competitive action as they all played against FC United. They will get more minutes in against Chorley on Friday before the entire squad departs for Austria this weekend.
Alexander and his coaching staff want to make sure the team’s strategy seems more natural to them by the time the big game rolls around.
The City manager added: “We’ve already done some analysis from last season to demonstrate the boys how we press, how we connect with one another, and how much trust we have.
“We provided them with a lot of data that was very encouraging in terms of regains, counter-attack shots, and the like.”
“We now have plenty of time to work with them.
“When you get players that have been playing for nine or ten years, there are certain good tactical tendencies, but they don’t always work for us.
“We must tear them down in order to form a single team.
“It took us some time to do that with the players last year, but we only had a six or seven-game collection to work with from the prior season.
“This year, we have a full season of success at the conclusion of it. There is a reward; this is about winning, not merely picking up a style of play from somewhere.
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