Walter Mazzarri shared his thoughts and principles for his tenure, which begins on the Heraklis bench, with reporters today during his introductory press conference. After receiving a warm welcome and best wishes from Panagiotis Monemvasiotis, the Italian coach began speaking about Heraklis and his role with the club.

“I thank the president for what he said about me. I’m here because I love Greece; I’m a man of the… sea. I was offered opportunities from countries, some of which were even… at war, but I never considered going there. I’m very excited about this position, and when I spoke with the president… I started in Livorno 23 years ago. I was offered a job with other teams in the middle of the season, but I didn’t want to take it. The last time this happened, of course, in Turin, we set a points record. I prefer to take over teams in the summer and start from scratch. That’s the main reason I’m coming here with such enthusiasm; I feel like… I’ve been reborn. I’ll pay even more attention to detail than when I first started. I’ll do what needs to be done to keep us focused on the field,” he emphasized, adding:

“Heraklis is a historic club. We were in the Super League, and we’re returning there this year. The fans should be proud. But they shouldn’t put too much pressure on us. I deal with the stress—I’m talking about the players—they don’t need any pressure. I prefer that we play calmly so that the results will follow. That’s my job: to make sure we play well and earn points. I had players at Napoli who had never played in the Champions League and faced Manchester City and Villarreal. I could see how tense they were before the matches. My job is to make sure the players don’t feel pressure—and, of course, it’s about… actions, not words.”

Finally, he addressed everything related to the transfer window:

“The players shouldn’t have limits, but I don’t want to set… crazy goals. Matsari’s philosophy is that the management handles the transfer market, and the coach must bring out the best in the team. A team that functions properly must respect each other’s roles.
The club handles transfers and manages the budget; the coach must train the team and make the most of the players at his disposal. I’ll say it again: I’m glad I came in July. I’ll have a month to evaluate the players. I’m Italian, and we’ll be playing against Italian teams, whose high level of play I’m well aware of. We’re taking it step by step so we can make adjustments moving forward. We shouldn’t rush into the transfer market. There’s still time before the big matches. I’m new here, and so are quite a few of the players.

Both I and the players will do our best. I’m not jumping to conclusions; I don’t like to ask for information. I don’t limit myself; I don’t want to be biased in the locker room, and I trust my instincts quite a bit. I studied sociology and psychology. When I look at the faces around me, I see emotions. “I want to have my own sense of things,” he concluded.

*photo source: iraklis-fc.com