After one press conference, The Observer's football correspondent Paul Wilson remarked: 'Ian Holloway wasn't trying to be especially interesting, he just can't help it. The stream of consciousness stuff... came long after most present had filled their notebooks to overflowing with quotes.'
In newspaper interviews, press conferences and a regular column for the Daily Mirror, Holloway has never been afraid to share his opinions.
Holloway's authenticity and passion are a godsend in an age of cautious and overly media-trained mundanityDanny Rogers Editor-in-chief, PRWeek |
When asked how he felt about managing Blackpool, he said: 'I love Blackpool. We're very similar. We both look better in the dark.'
On Cristiano Ronaldo: 'He's six-foot something, fit as a flea, good looking – he's got to have something wrong with him. Hopefully he's hung like a hamster – that would make us all feel better. Having said that, me missus has got a pet hamster and his cock's massive.'
On women: 'We want women to come and watch football don't we? I think they're f*****g pretty, a damn sight prettier than any bloke I've ever seen anyway. You talk to women about footballers, yeah, what do they like? They like legs. So why are our shorts getting longer? It's crazy.'
The past 18 months have been a rollercoaster for Holloway. Blackpool was promoted to the Premier League in May 2010 and returned to the Championship a year later. Last October, he openly criticised football authorities for Wayne Rooney's threatened exit from Manchester United and Liverpool's £4m initial offer for his star player Charlie Adam. He supports the use of video technology in refereeing.
Holloway is also careful to express his thanks to fans. In an interview with Blackpool's Gazette, he said: 'All I can do is be very proud that the Blackpool people have adopted me the way they have. I am very proud of my team and my club, and of everything we are trying to achieve.'
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