Hellberg looks to top names for inspiration

HEAD COACH OUTLINES HOW HE WANTS BORO TO PLAY - WITH BIELSA A BIG INFLUENCE

- By CRAIG JOHNS

KIM Hellberg gave a detailed breakdown of how he wants his Middlesbrough side to look, citing former Leeds United boss Marcelo Bielsa as a huge influence.

The new Boro head coach will take charge of his first game at his new club today when they host Derby County at the Riverside. It is hoped Hellberg can have a similar impact on Teesside as he’s had at past clubs in Sweden, including by implementing his attractive brand of attacking football.

However, the 37-year-old arrives more than a third of the way through an active campaign and therefore does not have the benefit of weeks of training in preseason - or even much time at all on the training pitches over the coming weeks - to coach the ideal way he wants to play.

Asked about his style, he said: "That’s a little bit tricky coming in the middle of the season. I have two sessions before the Derby game and you don’t want to change too much. You want to create an environment where they also feel safe. We're in the middle of the season and they've done things that are very good.

"It’s that balance of starting working with some things and thinking that okay, maybe here I can adapt something or I can change something. For me over the long term, it’s maybe a different answer. And then you start to work towards that.

"But maybe you also need to balance that with what has been good here. If you look a little bit further ahead, I want to play aggressive, high-defending football. I want to win the ball back as quickly as possible if we don’t have it.