Former Newcastle United and Tottenham midfielder Scott Parker returned to management when Club Brugge appointed him as their new manager on New Year’s Eve.
The 42-year-old has been in charge for six games and the Jupiler Pro League side have lost only one of them.
Parker came up through the ranks of Charlton Athletics’ youth system and then had spells at Chelsea, Newcastle, West Ham United, Tottenham Hotspur and Fulham.
Het Laatste Nieuws interviewed the new Club Brugge manager, where they pointed out to him that he was considered as a ‘model pro’ during his playing career.
They then quizzed Parker whether his experience of playing in the Premier League would come handy while managing players at Club Brugge.
“I smelled it, I saw it. I know what you have to sacrifice to get into the elite, to walk around in an elite environment. You can only get there with pure dedication. That’s easy to say, but you have to show them,” he said.
Parker has brought in the mental coach, Rudy Heylen, along with him to Club Brugge.
The ex-England international spent two years between 2005 and 2007 with the Magpies. He has now revealed approaching a psychologist after his time at Newcastle and how it has benefited him.
“I joined Chelsea in the early years under Abramovich. And I wasn’t ready for that competitive environment. After my time at Newcastle, I realised I could use some help mentally,” Parker explained.
“As a player you face a certain amount of pressure. I stepped into an arena with 40, 50,000 people every week. That was crazy.”
“Then I approached [psychologist] Mike Griffiths. He changed my mindset. Gave me perspective. Because the impact of the outside world on a footballer can be huge. Especially with young guys. They read a title. They open their phones and sometimes criticism can hit very hard.”
