United boss Greg Abbott (GA) spoke to BBC Radio Cumbria's James Phillips (JP) at Thursday lunchtime's press conference for the local media, Abbott in the second part of a lengthy interview initially talking about the latest situation with former Blues loanee Liam Noble :
JP
Has anything further developed with Liam Noble? A player who we gather you want to bring back here if you can?
GA
No, he has not resolved his contract situation and Sunderland, and again, as we said right the way through the summer, we can't do anything. I spoke to the manager at Sunderland (Steve Bruce) and said that we will stay out of the way until he is resolved there and then I will speak to Steve to see what his plans are.
JP
One of the bigger clubs to have come down into in the division, Sheffield United have we gather are about to begin their strengthening, Lescinel Jean-Francois from Swindon coming in. Do you think it is important for the clubs coming down to have players from this level to understand it more perhaps?
GA
Erm, it can work that way, I just think you buy the best players you have got, good players are good players, it doesn't matter, I think there is a mentality that goes with League One, some people might find the early part of that situation as different to what it is like at Championship or Premier League level. But, I think good players are good players, they will adapt, but Danny (Wilson) knows the level and he will get the best possoible squad he can for his team. To be honest I am really not too worried about what he is doing, I have got enough on my plate wondering what I am going to be doing.
JP
Just on a few of the other broader football stories, what have you made of this Alex McLeish shenanigans with Aston Villa and Birmingham City? I know you have just said you are more bothered about what you are doing, but it is a strange one that isn't it? Especially the fans' reaction at Villa?
GA
Yeah, I mean, again, it is nothing.............. It is none of my business, Alex has done something there he thinks is right for him and Birmingham and Villa are trying to do the best for their clubs. It doesn't really interest me that much, it is something that goes on in football, fans' reactions are fans' reactions, fans because he has managed to a team that is close to them, apparently some of them don't want him. Villa have got 50,000 fans by the way so there might be another 47,500 actually do want him, so we don't really know the full story there.
JP
As a man though who has had a lot of time in the Coventry area, can you see why the Villa fans wouldn't want the Birmingham manager? Can you understand that sort of tribal policy?
GA
Erm, that is what supporters are like, supporters are like that, supporters have their own team and obviously if it is a close neighbour then there is a bit of competition there and a bit of rivalry. But, if he is going to be a good manager for Aston Villa then let him manage, I think he has managed Scotland, he has managed Glasgow Rangers and Aston Villa comes not even into that category. So, somebody said he is not big enough to manage our club, well his credentials suggest that he possibly is. But, again, it is something that I am not really too bothered about what happens at Aston Villa and Birmingham to be quite honest with you, whatever happens will happen.
JP
Do you think it would be nice for Carlisle, I mean obviously they are not going to pluck one out of thin air, but it would be great if they could have one of those local rivalries? I suppose the closest they have got is Preston and they are in the division this year, so that will add a touch of spice?
GA
No, I think that Preston is a big rival for here, I think a lot of people are pleased that they have come down so that they can pit their wits against them. I don't know, when I was sort of like supporting Coventry I just supported Coventry, I wasn't really bothered about anybody else, and I just wanted to see Coventry win, that was my team. But, now you are actually in the business first hand it is something you don't think of too much. I like the fact that there are a lot more local games for us, infact the division is going to be a lot more northern based, so it gives a chance to more of our supporters to watch and less money to watch those games, I think that is a big situation that is better for us this season, certainly better for the fans.
JP
And just something that we have asked a number of the guests on the Friday Night Club is about the state of the future of English football. I know that you have spent some time working as a coach with the young kids, looking at England again over in the European Championships, the under-21s there, struggling against Ukraine last night, what do you think England needs to do differently to try to produce the sort of players of the nations of Spain etc?
GA
I think what we have got to do is try to get more English players playing in the Premier League, simple as that, that is my big......... That is my opinion and I will stick to that. You are talking about the Ukrainians and the Spanish players and the rest, they are all playing senior football in their Premier Leagues, a lot of our players aren't getting Premier League football.
You are talking about the Danny Rose's and the Ryan Bertrand's and people like that, there are too many of them not getting regular Premier League football, and that is our under-21 team. So, the experience they are getting is not the quality of the experience that the foreign players are getting. So, we have got to try to find a way of getting these lads playing a better level of football if they are going to be ready to compete against the rest of the world.
JP
And there was a suggestion that when England, the full England team, played Switzerland recently that watching the two teams, one side looked a lot more comfortable on the ball and better technically, and that was Switzerland, how do you think we get that into our game, that technical ability?
GA
I honestly don't.......... I think we are technically as good as anybody, I really do, I think it is the level of opponent and the level of football that the players are getting at home on a consistent basis. You are looking at our strikers in the England national team and not all of them are playing regular first team football in the Premier League. Certainly our back four, not all of them are playing regular first team football, the midfield players are not always playing regular football, certainly not the depth of squad playing regular football.
Past the first eleven a lot of them are struggling to hold down first team places and I think for me that is the biggest key, that we need to get more playing. I think technically there is nobdy much better technically than the (Wayne) Rooney's and the (Steven) Gerrard's and the (Frank) Lampard's and people like that. We have got good full-backs that technically are decent, but I think the level of football that they are playing in week in and week out is the big issue. Goalkeepers is a massive thing isn't it, we have got top goalkeepers, or we did have top goalkeepers 20 years ago, now you are looking at the top English goalkeepers and they are not all playing regular Premier League football, I think that has got be a big factor.