Bristol Rovers Boss Inigo Calderon Talks On Relegation, Wilson’s Comment And Other Issues

After Bristol Rovers were beaten 2-0 at home to Reading, but before kick-off in Burton Albion’s game against Cambridge United, head coach Inigo Calderon spoke to local media in what was a very honest press conference.

The Spaniard looked visibly dejected with relegation to League Two looming following an eighth defeat in nine winless games. Following the press conference, Burton’s 2-1 win over Cambridge saw the Gas all but relegated.

Although Calderon spoke before relegation was confirmed, the Rovers boss made some interesting comments and confessions.

Here is a full transcript of everything the Gas head coach said after Saturday’s defeat to Reading…

Well, Calde, obviously not a great situation. Let’s talk about the game because it was a better performance, but just couldn’t get that goal.

Yeah, and again. I think it’s been unfortunately too many like today, and then you start to talk about the unlucky or what you deserve, but I’ve said that thing that many times that I start to think that I’m a liar, you know, because when that happens that many times and you still don’t win games, it’s something that is not working.

But it’s true that, especially the first hour, I was really, really, really happy with the performance of the team. I think it was not easy to perform that way because the last defeat was, again, you know, it’s been [a] terrible circumstance in terms of trying to lift everyone up to face again and again and again and trying again and I ask the boys to try and show passion and obviously against a difficult team.

The first hour, I think we did that. I think we were better than them. We have more chances than them, but then it’s about what you do and if you score and we didn’t score, and they score. It’s true, after the goal as we knew, we are not that strong to come back from that.

So listen, I don’t think today was the problem. I think today, as I say, I cannot fault too much. Obviously, you can do things better, but I think today was not the problem. Obviously, there’ve been 44 more games and we are in this situation. It’s because we have done something bad.

Goals have been hard to come by all season. I mean, you’ve had injuries in the striking department, but ultimately do you think you haven’t got the players within the squad to score enough goals at this level?

Listen, as I always say, sorry because I repeat myself so many times, but I say that I’m not going to put excuses. I didn’t put excuses when I was nine points clear. I have to find the solutions. Today, the last solution was to put Ollie [Dewsbury] who’s 17 and Connor Taylor up top. That’s what I have to do, try and find solutions.

Listen, I love Kofi. I mean, I make him come [back]. I think it was just a tactical change. It was nothing. I was thinking that he was a bit tired. I understand.

I love that the fans love someone. He is probably the most positive thing we have in the last couple of months.

Listen, I respect the fans. As I say, I was thinking that I want someone to get the second balls in that situation and listen, I take whatever they say and maybe they’re right. Maybe I didn’t have to take him off. I think he was tired. But as I say, trust me, there’s nothing against Kofi because I love the guy and, as I say, he’s probably the only positive thing we have in the last couple of weeks.

James Wilson has been in, obviously the captain. He says he doesn’t think the squad as a whole is fit enough. He says he thinks the squad struggles to get through games in terms of fitness. What do you make of that comment?

Well I think it’s true that in the second half of a lot of games, the performance start to drop and that happened today after the 55th, 60th minute, I start to see the team start to drop the level of concentration and the willing to do things right. I don’t know if [it]s fitness levels, I don’t know if it’s concentration, I don’t know it’s just quality, but it’s true that it’s been happening a lot of times that we start to drop the level in the second half and even when we try to change, we don’t affect as much as I would like.

It’s obviously close now. Burton play Cambridge this afternoon. A Burton win would effectively mean you’re relegated because the goal difference is so much worse. Are you going to be across that or just be checking it at five o’clock to see what happens?

Yeah, I will. I’m not going to lie to you. Obviously I have to check that. That’s not good when you have to just wait for someone to lose and, listen, I don’t know what I’m going to do in two hours. Hopefully, if I can disappear, I disappear.

It’s so, so tough. You’ve just got to hope that the results go your way and that something will be riding on Blackpool next Saturday.

Yeah, listen I’m sorry but I cannot even think about that because, as I say, there have been so many, so many knocks and you have to live and knock and you have to live up again and again and again. So listen, if that happens, I know that we will try to do the best again and it will be a good week again, and we’ll be ready again. And if not, that means that we are not good enough to stay in the division.

You’re brilliant with us Calde. You come out and talk to us all the time, but just how is it for you? I mean, I can see on your face, this is so, so tough. You came out of Brighton. You came to Bristol Rovers to be a football manager, but this has been an incredibly tough few months, hasn’t it?

Yeah, it’s been difficult. I knew it was my first chance in senior management and the fact that I am not getting success has been frustrating for me. But at the same time, I’m, I am really, how do you say, I sleep well in terms of, I think I’m trying to do everything possible. I mean, you can imagine the hours I am trying to put in to make this team stay in the division. It still hasn’t been enough. So maybe I have to do better. No, 100 per cent I have to do better.

You talk about all of those hours that you have had to put in, but are there factors when you came into the club that are just out of your control. We’ve had James Wilson come in and he said the problems started from pre-season way before you were at the football club.

Yeah. I say that I don’t want to criticise the previous manager. I didn’t want to say that when I came, but it’s true that when I arrived, I felt that there were a lot of bad things that weren’t because of the previous manager. I respect him a lot. But it’s true that when I came to the club there were a lot of things that I didn’t like. Too many. It was not just football-wise. It was more the atmosphere and obviously the bad run.

Listen, at the end, when you are that long in that situation, everything looks worse and it’s true that I was quite happy that I think we stopped the falling down when I arrived and I think things were going better. Still, I remember saying that we are not safe when we were nine points clear because I knew that football is too long, especially the division, and you can have injuries and bad runs. I obviously was not expecting this long [a] bad run.

But listen, it’s been difficult. It’s been really difficult, a lot of things, and as I say, in key moments it’s not about luck, it’s not about unlucky or it’s too bad. It’s true that in key moments, I always say it’s not about luck, but we don’t have that extra push.

I remember the games against Mansfield, key games, because at the end, you can lose against Birmingham, you can lose against Reading today, but there were games where I thought that we deserved more. But as I say, I haven’t put excuses. We were in the situation because we put ourselves in there.

There have been Bristol Rovers teams relegated in the past where the players just haven’t been good enough. They’ve finished bottom and they’ve not been able to compete. This group clearly seems to be good enough to compete, but are there other factors, maybe beyond just individual quality that have contributed to this endpoint?

It’s a difficult one because it’s too early to talk about the conclusions because there are still games to play; hopefully still one more game. But it’s true that something is not going well in this football club.

When I arrived here I thought, ‘well, why hasn’t this football club been higher?’ Why hasn’t [it] been in the Championship with the fanbase, the stadium, with the training ground. Everything looks [like it] should be higher. But the reality is that [it] hasn’t been higher for a long time. I think it’s something that I would like to know why.

But listen, I obviously feel responsible because I am the head coach at the moment and I haven’t done anything to change that. It’s not that I feel sorry, but obviously I want to apologise because I don’t think as a head coach I have contributed to make this club stay in the league where I think it should be, at least in League One. So I take responsibility.

You had that moment with the Thatcher’s End at the end. I saw you put your hands up to them. Just how important did you think it was to go over there and just share that moment?

Yeah listen, it’s nice to go when you win and you do the [fist pumps], I haven’t had to do that too many times. But I think at the same time, it’s fair to go [over]. Obviously, you don’t want to listen to them say that you have to go to Spain, that they don’t want you in there.

But listen, I cannot say anything bad against them. I think they’ve been much better than us and that’s the reality.

As I say, I’m not going to say sorry because I think I tried everything possible, obviously it hasn’t been good enough. I do apologise because as head coach of the football club, I haven’t, or at least at the moment, I haven’t done my job.