NOTTINGHAM, England :Sean Dyche was delighted with how the Nottingham Forest players reacted to his recent arrival, giving him a winning debut in the Europa League against Porto on Thursday, but the new manager warned that there is much work to do.
Dyche had a mere two days with the players after he replaced the sacked Ange Postecoglou on Tuesday, but he did what the previous boss could not manage in his 39-day spell, and found a way to get Forest winning again.
Forest had not won since the opening day of the Premier League back in August, when Nuno Espirito Santo was in charge, and then went 10 games without a win, eight of those coming under Postecoglou.
“The players have been through a lot and the fans have but just to give something back to them, it meant a lot,” Dyche told TNT Sports after the 2-0 win.
“We have been with them for two days and they have applied that very quickly.
“It is a start. There is a lot more to come but it is a start. A good start.”
While Postecoglou ran into trouble for sticking with his footballing philosophy, Dyche is a more pragmatic manager, and will do what it takes to find success.
“I don’t want to be a purist, I want to play long and stretch teams,” Dyche said.
“That gives you more room to play in. We had a chance second half to stamp our authority. It was nice that we got the second goal to settle it.”
Dyche was happy with what he saw from the players, and also content to see the side manage not to concede a goal for the first time since April 1.
“To get a clean sheet and a win for the crowd and the players and give them a bit more belief was great,” Dyche said.
“The shape was good and we had to make sure that we kept it but also with the ball, can we stretch them? We managed to find the balance and we will get fitter and sharper. It will take a little bit of time.
“I said to the lads it is a start and there is a whole lot more work to go. Now we need to keep building and keep working. We can’t think that’s all the questions answered. It is a journey and that is a good start.”
Forest begin their bid to climb out of the Premier League relegation zone on Sunday at high-flying Bournemouth, who are third in the standings, with Dyche’s side 18th on five points.
