Mick McCarthy is not a man to trifle with: just ask Roy Keane.
And the Ipswich Town boss has never been backward in coming forward about what he thinks.
And now he has let rip at the critics of his team in a press conference rant best described as searingly honest.
After his side drew 1-1 with local rivals Norwich City in the Championship, McCarthy had this to say:
Ipswich manager Mick McCarthy on fans who criticise him. These quotes… pic.twitter.com/iBh0or52D9
— Kieran Gill (@kierangill_DM) August 21, 2016
Fans immediately questioned whether the quote was accurate, but Daily Mail journalist Kieran Gill insisted they were. “Yes. From his press conference half an hour ago,” he tweeted.
After the match McCarthy also said: “I thought we were the better side and I am really pleased with the performance. I expected a scrap but there was also a lot of quality in the match from both teams. We played well and we were solid for most of the game.
“We started really well and I am delighted with how we have responded, against Norwich today and Wolves in midweek, after I was annoyed and angry at Brentford last Saturday.
“I am disappointed we didn’t win. We played well enough to win but we didn’t manage to get that second goal against a team who will be at the top all season.”
All well and good, but that’s got nothing on the rant above, which was presumably saved for the print writers.
You can’t beat Mick for honesty, and it definitely beats anything you’ll get from the carefully marketed, carefully stage managed Premier League, that’s for sure.
Hopefully we’ll see more of this kind of thing – Arsene, you’re up next.
Meanwhile, we’ll leave you with this from Mick’s time at Wolves. It’s a long one – but it’s worth it.
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