Wednesday 12 October 2016 16:25, UK
As Steve McClaren makes a shock return to Derby, we chart the ups and downs of his career in his own words...
“I said to the players: 'You're winners now, you'll be treated like winners and people will want to beat you'. That's good.”
After being Sir Alex Ferguson’s No 2 and England assistant, McClaren was appointed Middlesbrough boss in 2001 and won the Carling Cup - the club's first ever trophy - in 2004.
"I fully understand their frustration and anger. Some players were in tears.”
McClaren after Boro’s 4-0 defeat by Aston Villa in 2006. During the game, a fan ran towards the dugout before throwing his season ticket at McClaren.
"This is just the beginning. It is a stepping stone, a platform to achieve more. They have the backing of a tremendous chairman, the resources and the talent coming through to compete at this level. The club must take it forward. They must not let this be the end. It must be a new beginning. I go with my head held high.”
McClaren after leaving Middlesbrough in 2006 to become England manager. He had just seen Boro beaten 4-0 in the UEFA Cup final by Seville.
"I am results-orientated and I'm here to do a job, win matches and make sure England over the next four years win a major trophy."
McClaren after being announced as Sven-Goran Eriksson’s successor at England. That major trophy never came…
"Eighteen months ago was the proudest day of my career and I was honoured to be the England head coach and for 18 months I've enjoyed every minute. It is a sad day to have been relieved of my duties but I understand the decision of the FA.”
McClaren after his departure from England. The 3-2 defeat by Croatia at Wembley meant England had failed to qualify for Euro 2008, and the sodden night included an unforgettable image of McClaren on the touchline holding a brolly. The press coined him the “Wally with the brolly”.
“The biggest thing that hurt me that night, and ever since, was the failure to qualify. That is the biggest thing. It was nothing about anything else. As I said on the night, it felt like I’d let the nation down. That’s what I’ve had to live with. That’s the hardest thing. Nothing else – like 'The wally with the brolly.' The disappointment will not go away and that still hurts, but you have to get on with life and football.”
McClaren admitting in 2014 that the results hurt most with the national team, not the nickname.
"I thought it was funny actually. My kids said: 'Bloody hell, Dad'. I'm afraid it is a natural thing. You get caught up and I try to change it. But now I speak English differently. They understand you better if you speak the way they do rather than just chatter on."
McClaren on putting on a Dutch accent while starting out at Twente in the Eredivisie. Understand him they did…
"Winning the Carling Cup with Middlesbrough was special but this is pretty much right up at the top of anything I've ever done. To win a championship in a foreign country with foreign coaches, I think it's made me stronger.”
McClaren after winning the Eredivisie with Twente, their first Dutch title, in his second season in charge in 2009/10. He moved on to Wolfsburg that summer, but lasted only 24 games.
"We agree the club is bigger than any one individual and Twente is too big in my heart to stand in the way of its progress."
Back for a second stint at Twente, McClaren lasted just 13 months, before taking a seven-month break and joining Derby.
"I'll tell you something. I won't be taking a bloody brolly."
McClaren before his Derby side travelled to Wembley to face QPR in the 2013/14 Championship play-off final...
"I've lost some games in my career but that is the cruellest. We didn't deserve that."
...But the experience was equally as painful, losing 1-0 to a late Bobby Zamora goal.
"I'm really annoyed, angry, and frustrated about the last two months and am really determined to do something about it."
McClaren after Derby missed out on promotion in 2014/15. He had been routinely linked with the Newcastle job, while the Rams won just two of their final 13 games.
“I always wanted to have this job - always. I’ve had two or three opportunities... It wasn’t a case of turning Newcastle down at all. It was a case of staying loyal to Derby and that’s what I wanted to do.”
After his appointment at Newcastle, McClaren explained he had always wanted the job at St James' Park.
"The objective is top eight, to win a trophy. That's something that has been transmitted to me through meetings with (managing director) Lee Charnley and the rest of the board. That's what we want to achieve, that's what we must achieve together."
McClaren outlines his aims at his first press conference as Newcastle boss. His team would go on to be embroiled in a relegation scrap and knocked out in the third round of both the FA Cup and Capital One Cup.
"Is the job harder than I thought? Absolutely. Without a doubt. People say it's a crisis and it's getting very close to it. We deserve to be criticised."
McClaren, without a win in the Premier League, concedes his team are up against it less than two months into the new season, after being knocked out of the Capital One Cup by a Sheffield Wednesday team which had made 10 changes to their previous line-up in the Championship.
"I have had it before, it's not pleasant and I don't like it. I am as frustrated and angry as the crowd with the performance but we can't say that's it, we have to fight and solve it. I fully believe that what myself and the staff are doing is right. We need to perform better and do our jobs better."
McClaren reacts to a 3-1 home defeat to Bournemouth, in which the Newcastle fans called for him to be sacked.
"I have a great affiliation with the club, having been here on three previous occasions, and I am really delighted at the prospect of finishing what we started back in September 2013. I regret how my time at Derby ended back in 2015 and I am very motivated to put things right for the club and our supporters. My ultimate aspiration remains exactly what it was before, to take Derby County back to the Premier League."
McClaren outlined his ambitions for promotion to the Premier League upon returning to Derby in October 2016 - 17 months after he was sacked by the club.
