John McGovern
Everybody that knows about Nottingham Forest’s success in Europe will know about Brian Clough, but he wasn’t one of these managers that had absolute, total belief in what he was doing. He wasn’t always the good guy. So, you had to behave yourself!
But when he spoke to you about football, he made it perfectly simple. There were times when he spoke to me, even as the captain, and he would say, “Listen, I pay you to play in midfield, and if you can’t play in midfield, I’ll get someone else that can.”And that was his way of explaining that you’ve got to be on the ball with your job.
Callum Hudson-Odoi
That’s a bit scary, that! How did you find playing under him? As you said, he wasn’t always a nice guy. Was he always strict?
JM
Well, you never actually knew what kind of temper he had. You didn’t know whether he was going to play the good guy or the bad guy, so that always kept you on your toes.
But the main thing, I think, was that when he spoke to you about football, he put it down to basics. You’ve got the ability to be in the side, and he just expected you to show that ability when you went out on the field.
CH-O
Which you lot did. Which you lot did.
JM
Which we did. So, he was an amazing man. Everybody said, “Well, how did you put up with this really strict discipline?” And I said, “When it comes to strict discipline, you never met my mam, did you?” Because she frightened Brian Clough once.
CH-O
Yeah? That means she must be proper scary then!
JM
It was an education working for Clough. An education and a very good one. Because, like yourself, you’re playing in a good side at the moment. I played in a good side and you sure enjoy it, as well.
A lot of people forget that. We really enjoyed playing the game, we enjoyed training and it just becomes part of your life.
CH-O
So, the day before the final, how [were] you feeling? [Were] you nervous?
JM
Well, you can’t wait to get started, really. That’s the way I think we all felt. Obviously, [we were in] a relaxed frame of mind because the manager wanted that to be the way. He was different from a lot of managers because a lot of managers go in the dressing room and they’ve [got] clenched fists and, “We’ve got to get into the opposition. We’ve got to…” You know? But we were slightly different…
CH-O
Just relaxed.
JM
What (Clough) would usually do in a home league match, I’m not saying he did it in the European games, but his approach was, he would ask whoever was substitute, “Go and get Peter (Taylor) and I a whiskey and a cigar”.
CH-O
Before a game? No way!
JM
Before a game. So, Peter Taylor, his assistant, and him would get the apprentice (and) he’d get back with whiskeys and cigars, and they’d light up, and as you walked past them they’d blow smoke in your face.
One of my team-mates, Larry Lloyd, didn’t like that. So, they blew smoke in his face all the time! And then when it came to five minutes before kick-off, he would just look at his watch and say to me, “Come on, Skipper, get the lads out. Five to three.”
CH-O
That’s it!? No team talk, nothing?
JM
That was it. No clenched fists. No determined speeches. Just totally relaxed.
CH-O
Wow. Wow.
JM
I think he realised, when you run out there in front of 30,000 people, they’re going to be a bit of motivation for you, as well.
CH-O
And then the day of the final, how was that?
JM
The day of the final, well, it’s actually come, because the build-up is very long, and you just can’t wait to get out there.
CH-O
You’re just excited.
JM
I mean, I used to feel excited. Some players said they felt nervous, but I just got excited.
CH-O
It came, obviously, victorious for you, as well, so there wasn’t much in it, but it must have been an amazing feeling.
JM
Just enough strength to climb those steps!
CH-O
It’s a lot of steps, isn’t it?! A lot of steps to get up there. But it’s a feeling you can never get rid of, it’s amazing.
JM
Some great days.
