'Tom from London' is Leicester's motivator
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Your support makes all the difference.There is nothing quite as desperate as a desperate manager. As if to prove this truism Micky Adams allowed a young psychologist known simply as "Tom from London" to give a team talk to Leicester City on the eve of tonight's Premiership match with Bolton Wanderers.
Tom turned up at the club's Belvoir Drive training ground unannounced yesterday morning and refused to leave the reception until he had spoken with the Foxes manager. Understandably keen to end a run of 10 League games without a win, Adams listened to what he had to say and then had his squad assembled in the canteen.
And then Tom began. For a full 15 minutes he let loose his wisdom, capping his performance by smashing a piece of wood in half with his bare hands.
Adams admitted that Tom "could have been anybody". "This young psychologist aged about 25 turned up at the training ground today and said he could get me a win over Bolton," he said. "He wouldn't go away until I had seen him. I don't even know his name apart from the fact that he said he was Tom from London and had driven up to Leicester to try to help us.
"He said he had seen my comments before and after matches and felt that he could help. I put him in the canteen with all the players and staff. He spoke for about 15 minutes and actually smashed a piece of wood in two with his bare hands.
"There was a certain amount of laughter, a bit of disbelief amongst the players but it is like everything else in the dressing room - you are either a believer or a non-believer. I was prepared to give it a go. I'd had letters from psychologists and professors of psychology but somebody actually turned up.
"I did warn the players that this gentleman could be anybody and I've never done anything like that before without having them checked out first. But I told him if we won to give me a ring on Wednesday morning. He asked to come into the dressing room half an hour before the game but I declined that one."
Adams will have Nikos Dabizas on his side as well as Tom tonight as the Greek returns after missing Saturday's 3-1 defeat at Newcastle . The former Tottenham midfielder Steffen Freund will make his home debut, while Steve Howey has been excluded from the Bolton squad as part of a contractual agreement with his former club.
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