Charlton boss Jones responds to Birmingham counterpart’s ‘spent a fortune’ comment and tactical approach

Charlton Athletic manager Nathan Jones has addressed the suggestion that his team is purely set up to nullify the opposition.

The Addicks boss brought up the point early in his pre-match press conference previewing Saturday’s home game against Stockport County.

It appears to be a response to comments made by Birmingham boss Chris Davies after his League One leaders were completely nullified at The Valley before the international break.

The Blues failed to have a shot on target with Matty Godden’s excellent finish sealing a 1-0 victory for Charlton, who had lost three on the bounce before that.

Davies, speaking after the game, said: “We just didn’t seem ourselves. We didn’t have the same zip, energy and fluency to our game. In the first half we were playing backwards too much.

“Charlton were man-to-man pressing us. Their job was to stop us, rather than do too much with the ball – and they did a good job of it, in terms of trying to stop us playing at times.”

Jones, speaking today, said: “We play a certain way – regardless of who we play. We have certain principles that we don’t come away from. How we set up is how we feel we can hurt the opposition.

“Contrary to what some people say, we don’t set up just to stop people playing. We have to be very good in possession and then have more than them in possession.

“Regardless of how people want to see it, we are ourselves in every game. That is what we will be on Saturday – regardless of formation or personnel.”

Asked if his words were based off what opposition bosses had said this season, the Welshman then told the South London Press: “I don’t tend to listen to other interviews because they can sometimes cloud your thinking.

“All I’m concerned about is making sure my team is in the best position to win a football game. Birmingham, for example, are the most fluent League One side.

“They are fluent and fantastic in terms of the way they play, they are well-coached and excellent in possession. But if you are sloppy and say: ‘Okay, we’ll take you on in a footballing game – we’ll try to be good at what you are good at as well’ then invariably they will win the game.

“But if we say we have these strengths and we’re going to impose those strengths on you, now what are you going to do? That’s basically what we do.

“We try to play and we had more shots on targets. We created the clearer chances. So, realistically, I’m not sure what anyone can say about that performance, other than it was a fantastic performance. Regardless of perception you have to stop Birmingham playing, because if you don’t they score goals.

“I don’t want to go into a game and think we need three goals to beat Birmingham, or any other side for that matter. In and out of possession we are set up to be Charlton Athletic, regardless of anyone else.”

Davies also said post-match that the Addicks had “spent a fortune” on their squad.

Birmingham’s outlay on their squad since relegation from the Championship in the summer transfer window is estimated to be anywhere between £20-£25million. Jay Stansfield is understood to have cost more than £10million alone.

Asked about Davies’ comment on Charlton’s expenditure, Jones said: “There aren’t many Championship clubs who have spent what they spent.

“I don’t know what he classes as fortunes. We have spent more than a lot of League One sides, but I wouldn’t quite call it fortunes.

“We have been very thrifty in the transfer market. I don’t like commenting on others. Birmingham spent fortunes but if they can do that then there is no problem with that, from my point of view. I don’t want to get into an argument about it.

“We know how much we have spent and we can’t spend fortunes because there are restrictions at the club – financial fair play. So we can only spend what we can spend. Have we spent money on players? Absolutely. Is it fortunes compared to a lot of sides? It’s healthy, compared to other sides, and minute compared to others. It depends how you want to look at it.

“They are entitled to their opinions, all managers. I try not to get embroiled in arguments.

“I try to keep everything in-house about speaking about Charlton – when I get angry I get angry about Charlton, not anybody else. I very rarely get embroiled in what is going on elsewhere.”

PICTURE: PAUL EDWARDS