Source: PA
Hughes: Holloway has a football brain
Fulham manager Mark Hughes insists that beneath Ian Holloway's comical persona lies a sharp footballing brain.
Hughes' friendship with the Blackpool boss started before the Tangerines' expectation-defying debut season in the Barclays Premier League.
Holloway, who takes his team to Craven Cottage, is a colourful figure but Hughes refuses to be deceived by his antics.
"I known Ian reasonably well. We have some mutual friends so after games I'd spend a little more time with him," he said. "I really enjoy his company, as you'd expect. He's a great personality and a great guy to spend time with.
"He's not at all removed from his public persona in private, he's exactly the same!
"What people have to understand is that although they laugh at his comments - and I think bravado has much to do with his comments - he knows his stuff. He's a very knowledgeable football man and sometimes when the statements come out that make people chuckle, that can be lost."
