Matt Bloomfield interview: Bouncing back from Luton heartbreak and why leadership is in his coaching blood | Football News

Christmas at home for Matt Bloomfield is a rarity having spent his entire adult life in football but it does not mean time off. Having also visited clubs in the Premier League and Championship since leaving Luton, even reading is research to him.

“I have just started Gareth Southgate’s book,” he tells Sky Sports. “I admire the way he conducts himself, how he treats people. I am also reading Eleven Rings by Phil Jackson.” Studying the career of the legendary basketball coach is not about escapism.

“All I read about is leadership because I feel like I am learning,” explains Bloomfield. “I read books and I go on courses. I cannot just sit at home and do nothing. When I go into the next job, I want to feel like I have a higher chance of success because of this break.”

A conversation with Bloomfield, 41, offers an insight into just how absorbing the job of football management can become. He is particularly driven, having worked with a mindset coach and a sports psychologist during the latter part of his long playing career.

“I didn’t want to leave any stone unturned on my playing career. I wanted to drag every last drop of potential out of my playing career. And I played in the Championship for the first time at 36, achieved the most I possibly could in the last years of my career.

“Before that, I put in so much effort in the gym, on nutrition, on tactics, but I never worked on my mind. During my twenties, I probably played with fear. I never put any effort into what my mind was telling me.” The change has served him well in coaching.

His departure from Luton Town in October, with the team three points outside the playoff positions in League One, represents the first real blip of his managerial career after promising work at both Colchester United and Wycombe Wanderers prior to that.

“Heartbroken.” That is how Bloomfield describes the emotion after his time at Kenilworth Road was cut short. He had done good work last season, with only the top two in the Championship, Burnley and Leeds, picking up more points from March on.

Having inherited a dire situation, it proved not quite enough to keep Luton in the division but he was proud of his impact. “We really turned it around. The run of form that the club was on, it took a lot of work. It felt like we changed the mindset of the whole club.”

He adds: “The previous three away wins had come in three different calendar years. But we went to Cardiff and won. We went to Derby and won. To be the third-best team over the last quarter of the season was no mean feat considering where we came from.”

There was optimism in the summer but the scale of change was a challenge. “A double relegation means many players moving on. It was a huge amount of work over the off-season to persuade players to come and sign for us. We got a lot right. Maybe not everything.

“With any rebuild, it is never going to be linear, it will take time to settle. I knew that it would not look perfect, how I wanted it to look, but we had to be patient. Ultimately, with 13 players unavailable, 11 games in, we ran out of time. It was terribly disappointing.”

There is still frustration that he could not see his vision take shape. “When I went into Luton, the formation that fitted the players the best was not the formation that I went in there to play but I was flexible with that.” Now, he sees it all as a learning experience.

“The three jobs that I have had so far have all been groups of players that were coming to the end of their cycle and we had to rebuild. I love developing young players and we have reduced the average age each time. At Colchester, there was a lot of work to do.

“When I went to Wycombe, everything had Gareth Ainsworth’s imprint, which was absolutely correct because what a magnificent job he did over there over 10 years, what a legacy he left. But the team needed to look different so that was an evolution too.”

At Luton, there were unusual challenges too. When goalkeeper Thomas Kaminski lost his father, Bloomfield made a point of travelling to Belgium to support him and meet with his mother. It was described as an “unbelievable gesture” by the player.

“You are looking after the person. That is always the first concern. You have to make them feel comfortable with trusting that you are there for their best interests. You have to build a bond with footballers, with people, so that they know how much you care.

“My whole philosophy around leadership is built around people. Be empathetic towards the person, but lead with courage and lead with bold intensity because if you have got a happy, comfortable person, you are going to get more out of them on a football pitch.”

The end of his own playing career, enforced following a series of concussions, was tough but has helped him with that empathy. “I do not do contact sports now. I have literally walked away from anything that could give me a risk of any more concussions.”

But management is something that Bloomfield will not be walking away from. “I am really trying to use this opportunity to reflect on my journey so far but also to expand my knowledge. I am keen to be better, to improve, so I am looking at how I work.”

The club visits, one day at a Premier League club and four at a Championship club, have been part of that self-analysis, including staying up to date with set-piece advances. “I have written a lot down,” he says. Some of it affirming ideas, others challenging them.

As a result, there is every reason to believe Bloomfield will be a better coach when he returns. The appetite remains. “This is what gets my juices flowing. I know the right job is out there where I can build long-term success. I love it and I want to do it again.”