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The badge is more significant than every manager,” Sean Dyche stated at his unveiling as Nottingham Forest’s manager, sporting a training kit with his initials. He then, corrected himself. Actually, there was a single manager who was likely as big as the badge – we all know who that was.”} Following that, an impression of Brian Clough, an attempt at that unique accent. “‘Young ginger, well done,’” he said, reliving his three years as a trainee at the club's stadium, the days he spent strolling down the Trent, with Del Boy, dashing past him and his manager’s voice invariably within hearing range.

Dyche shares a story of how, as a youngster, he and a couple of mates tended the manager's garden at his home in Quarndon. Our weekly wage was minimal and he paid you a tenner to tend his lawn. So we actually thought: ‘This is decent.’ He’d cook for you and ensure you were cared for. It was quite fun, not too much yard work.”

For Dyche, the appointment has been a long time in the making. He resides in the city and has a affection for the team. In lately, he and his longstanding coach Ian Woan, who was a member of the Nottingham Forest squad the last time they were in Europe, in 1995‑96, have occasionally popped into the local coffee shop where club icons such as a former player, another stalwart and Garry Birtles gather every week to discuss stories from past and present. He will have to give it a miss this week to get ready for the arrival of Porto, undefeated this season, in the Europa League on Thursday evening.

I can't wait to meeting the miracle men,” remarked Dyche, who succeeded the previous coach to become Forest’s third manager of the season. I'll get an earful if I don’t do too well, so I must win some games for them. Those fellows are important to me. A great deal of Forest fans recognise the history of this institution. I’ve got my own and now I’ve got a opportunity to reinvent my personal story, I suppose, as manager.”

The new boss oversaw Forest training for the first time on Tuesday, a short while after his predecessor oversaw a 3‑0 at home defeat by Chelsea that placed the club in the top division drop zone. the club captain, who joined as a child, admitted these are just the start but he and his staff have eased some of the negativity.

Dyche’s backroom team includes one more Forest hero in a former player, as well as Billy Mercer and Tony Loughlan, who played for the club. “I feel like a huge strength of this organization is getting the connection between the fans, players and manager and, frankly, the last few weeks we lacked a good feeling around here,” the captain stated. “The new manager and his assistants have introduced that sense of life and enthusiasm.”

He made clear he doesn't “know the club like the back of my hand” given his most recent experience at Forest has been as an opposition manager, but he thinks he has a wider understanding of the place and expectations. The guidelines have been laid. “I’ve let them wear light-colored footwear, for heaven's sake,” the manager said. “I’ll have my ex-players criticizing me on messaging. But they’re forbidden to wear neck warmers or headgear … I had to do a deal somewhere.”

Forest have lost their past four matches and failed to secure a victory since the start of the season. The coach mentioned the owner, Evangelos Marinakis, understood the importance of steadying the situation. He encountered the Greek billionaire in the European competition with his former club, when his side lost in a playoff against the Greek side in recent years. After the first leg he expressed frustration at Olympiakos dignitaries, among them Marinakis, confronting the referees at half-time in the stadium. “We had a bit of a giggle,” Dyche recalled.

One aspect of his attraction is his image for constructing teams with strong foundations, pertinent for a team without a clean sheet in 20 matches. People categorize me, I’m not concerned,” he said. “I’ve never tried to hide behind what’s effective. It’s no badge of honour to me. In the past people were going: ‘Why do you depend on set pieces?’ Now they’re popular. Tight trousers, flared jeans, slim fits, bell-bottoms … my child criticizes me for any jeans I wear. It seems on social media even I got some stick for my shoes arriving at practice [on Tuesday] … couldn’t believe that. Tom Ford [trainers] but, regardless, prefer not to mention it.”

Dyche is proud that his formative years were at Forest but thinks that should not mean he or his team are judged differently. No easy path with the fans, but we are committed, that’s a point I believe can ever be questioned,” he remarked. My only aspiration was wearing the shirt, but I never got to do it. Steve Stone and Woany did, Billy Mercer did as a loan goalkeeper, Tony featured and netted a strike. I was the sole person who failed to and they keep reminding me of that.

“In my case to have that connection of it is a big thing for me individually. But it doesn’t give me a special privilege, believe me. The supporters expect me to win. If I’m not winning, the fans are going to come at me because how fans behave and I’ve got no issue with that because that’s the reality. I was here as a kid and didn't get to wear the shirt, the emblem. Now, currently, I’m here with it on me.”