Paul Wellens admits Pep Guardiola can help him win four trophies at St Helens
PAUL Wellens hopes to channel his inner Pep Guardiola as he aims to go one better at St Helens – by winning FOUR trophies.
The coach cheered on the Blues as they lifted the treble of Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League.
But he hopes to be missing their opening game of the upcoming season, as that means they will be at Wembley to try and complete leg two, the Challenge Cup.
And the man who already has the World Club Challenge in the bank and is eyeing the League Leaders’ Shield and a fifth Super League crown in a row admits he can take plenty from the City chief.
Grudgingly, he can also use Manchester United legend Sir Alex Ferguson for inspiration too.
Wellens said: “What you see at City is a team that despite having achieved success has a thirst, a hunger and a desire for more.
“The path they’ve trodden is very similar to the challenges we face at Saints. You can always draw comparisons and hopefully we can finish our season in a similar manner to them.
“You’ve always got to look to evolve and improve and that’s even more important when you’ve been successful. When you’ve had success, you can be at your most vulnerable.
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“And Fergie’s someone who did the business for a long, long time. To have a hunger and a passion to do it year on year like he did is remarkable.
“What you learn from people like him is it’s got to be more than a job, it’s got to be an absolute passion.
“I’m a huge sports fan and I look at different teams and coaches. What you quickly discover is there’s no one way of doing things.
“I listen to podcasts and watch documentaries about different teams. You learn as much as you can and a little snippet may add value to what you’re doing.
“And having won the World Club Challenge, we want to build on that and the Challenge Cup is the next step.”
Wellens will have to take on Leigh in Saturday’s semi-final without legendary hooker James Roby after he failed a Head Injury Assessment against Catalans.
But his task of reaching Wembley is a lot more than just ‘Do it for Robes.’
He added: “We’re hugely keen to make James’ last year a successful one but at the same time, year on year we want to perform in big games and win them.”