After the success of the seven week series looking back on my former managers at Leicester City, it’s time to get back to the bread and butter of my weekly blog.

What a few weeks it’s been for the club. Firstly, we were all surprised at Nigel Pearson’s departure and the speed at which the deal went through for him to join Hull City. Nigel did a fantastic job at the Walkers Stadium, but we’ve all got to move on and get right behind new boss, Paulo Sousa.

The word that I’m getting from people around the club and people in the game is that Sousa is a good appointment. Like the fans, I’m intrigued by what he’s going to be like, the players he’s going to bring in and they style of football he’s going to play, and I can’t wait for the beginning of the season.

At least we’re settled with time to prepare for the start of the campaign and the chairman did well to act fast and get his man. It means that Paulo will have time to assess the squad and get to know the players. Every manager is different and the players will have to adjust to him. He looks to be quite a sharp dresser and hopefully his team will play with the same style.

Sousa’s brought young Portuguese defender, Miguel Vitor, on loan from Benfica and has been linked with plenty of other players already. He’s obviously using the contacts from his playing career and that should benefit the club. I’m not sure how much money he’s got, but it will be interesting to see who comes in. I’d imagine the loan market will be key again.

I think the main issue will be getting goals and that’s something he struggled with at Swansea. I suppose that’s to be expected when your primary dangerman is Shefki Kuqi!

Obviously we’ve got Matty Fryatt and he’ll be raring to go, but it’s a lot to keep relying on him for goals. There’s DJ Campbell too and it’s looks as though he’ll be given the chance to impress. For me, if we can get some money in by selling DJ then we should take it. I think Blackpool might come in with a late bid at the end of the transfer window, maybe when they’re a little more desperate to bring players in.

There’s no doubt that we’ve got the basis of a good team. I’ll be interested to see who Sousa picks as captain and whether Matt Oakley remains a part of his plans. If not, there’s Jack Hobbs, who impressed when he wore the armband last season and the extra responsibility of captaincy might bring even more out of Richie Wellens.

I’ve heard that there’s been a lot more ball work in training, rather than the more traditional running and endurance work, and I’m sure the players will be enjoying that. However, it’s important to remember that fitness was a big part of their success last season.

The work done by the coaching staff and the sports scientists was very important. The high levels of fitness and the way the players’ physical condition and diet was monitored protected a lot of them from injury through the rigours of a long Championship season. I was so impressed by the sports science and coaching team last year and I think that was the key to our success.

I just hope the new regime maintains that and players don’t start picking up injuries. I’m pleased that Chris Powell has stayed at the club and he’ll help bridge the gap between the manager and the players. Powelly’s a great lad and fantastic person to have around the dressing room.

There’s obviously been speculation about a takeover or new investment coming into the club. Like any City fan I’d welcome new investment, provided they are the right people and have the club’s best interests at heart.

I’m pretty confident for next season, although before I make any predictions or go on record with my expectations, I’ll wait and see what happens with the new manager and the signings he makes. I’d like to think we can challenge for the play-offs again and if there’s significant investment into the club, then that’s the minimum we should be aiming for.

City are currently in Slovenia on a pre-season tour and that will certainly help the manager and players get to know each other. We went on some classic tours during my playing days, including one unbelievable trip to Trondheim in Norway. We did shooting, canoeing and all sorts. I remember Gary Mills and me tipping former Mercury journalist, Bill Anderson, out of his canoe!

Bill used to get himself on all the tours, which is nice work if you can get it! On one of them he was reading this book that he used to take everywhere. When he wasn’t looking I grabbed it and ripped out the last six pages! When he got to the last chapter he went mental, absolutely mental! It was hilarious. Bill got so much stick on those trips.

We had a pre-season game in Greece against PAOK, who Theo Zagorakis used to play for, before one of our European campaigns. The idea was to get acclimatised to playing in a hotter climate against a team with a slower, more patient passing style. It was absolutely baking hot and so humid. The game was played literally at walking pace and we completely wilted, losing 3-0. I think it’s something like 40 degrees in Slovenia now, so I imagine the players will be feeling it like we did.

The fans were very hostile in Greece, which was surprising for a friendly. As we walked off after the final whistle they were spitting at us. One of them spat right at me and boasted about how he’d got quite close to my mother the night before. So I shouted that I’d got quite close to his too!

I’m looking forward to my first pre-season game this Sunday as I line-up for the Leicester Legends team against a Nottingham Forest Legends side in a special charity fixture to raise money for local charity, Wishes 4 Kids. It’s a great cause and we want to go get as many people in through the turnstiles as possible, as all proceeds go to the charity.

I’ll be joined by the likes of Matt Elliott, Gerry Taggart, Julian Joachim, Muzzy Izzet, Carl Muggleton, Matt Piper, Gary Mills and Jersey Budd (pictured above). The Forest squad looks quite strong too, with Steve Chettle, John Curtis, Des Lyttle, Steve Hodge, David Johnson, Nigel Jemson and Jason Lee all set to play.

The game kicks off at 2pm and is being held at Quorn Football Club’s Farley Way Stadium. You can buy tickets on the day with admission costing £5 for adults and £2 for children. I’m sure it’ll be a great occasion, with plenty of banter and hopefully some decent football too!

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