They don't know 10 per cent of it... this guy is a one-off': Ken Way

[davieG]

Leicester chairman Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha was a 'one-off' who had a profound impact on the club and the community, according to the psychologist who helped Leicester to their historic 2016 Premier League triumph.

Vichai was tragically killed alongside four others in a helicopter crash outside the King Power stadium following last Saturday's match against West Ham.

And Ken Way, who was part of the backroom staff during Vichai's tenure, believes the Thai billionaire's contribution to the city remains under-appreciated.

 

He said: 'All the stories about what he did, charity-wise, giving away his money, I don't think they know 10 per cent of what he did.

'I did a talk on the outskirts of Leicester at an education establishment, I walked through the doors and there was a little plaque saying 'this building was built with donations by Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha'.

'My wife is Thai and she tells me that everything that we experienced about him was true exactly as he did in Bangkok. The guy is a one-off.'

Leicester beat Cardiff 1-0 on Saturday in their first match since the chairman's death amid emotional scenes at the stadium, having had Tuesday's Carabao Cup clash against Southampton postponed.

 

The Foxes' first-team squad have now flown to Thailand for Vichai's funeral ceremonies, which are due to last four days in line with his Buddhist beliefs.

Way believes the players would have found it incredibly tough to walk back out on the pitch following the tragedy.

He said: 'I totally understood about the Southampton match, there is no way the Southampton match could go ahead.

'I do see why there is a case for getting back on the horse. It's tough, tough. You can see from the outpouring not just in the city, but from the players too.'

Way has also been employed by clubs including Ipswich, Derby and Hull during 20 years in football, estimating that he has worked closely with more than 100 players of 45 different nationalities in his career.

 

He first joined Leicester as part of Nigel Pearson's backroom team in 2008 and helped the club rise from League One to the Premier League across two spells.

Way also paid tribute to Vichai's character, and his role in making success possible.

Way said: 'He was always there but never pushing. One word I used to describe him to people who didn't know him, and I mean this positively, was 'unassuming'. I mean it really positively.

'You have a guy who is a billionaire and he could throw his weight around but he never, ever did that.

'He was such a sweet, gentle guy.'

 

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/sportsnews/article-6351209/Former-Leicester-psychologist-says-Vichai-Srivaddhanaprabha-profound-impact.html

[MrsJohnMurphy]

Do we currently have a psychologist at the club? I'm sure the players could have found someone like Ken Way helpful this week

[Beechey]

21 minutes ago, MrsJohnMurphy said:

Do we currently have a psychologist at the club? I'm sure the players could have found someone like Ken Way helpful this week

Well they've been offered counselling on a person-by-person basis, so presumably, yes.

[Claridge]

 Thai billionaire's contribution to the city remains under-appreciated.

Seems a stupid thing to say

[davieG]

1 minute ago, Claridge said:

 Thai billionaire's contribution to the city remains under-appreciated.

Seems a stupid thing to say

I think maybe he means the breadth of it, how far reaching it was hence the "They don't know 10 per cent of it" headline.

[smr]

I think it's just a poor choice of words by him to say that he remains under-appreciated. Infact in one of my tribute messages this week I mentioned the generosity and donations and also that there are loads of things we as fans won't have heard of that he did for others. I think I speak for everyone in saying that. Obviously we can't know every single donation he did, but we know more than enough, and that's what matters.

[lifted*fox]

I get the sentiment and yes we probably don't know the half of it but it's a poor choice of words and you'd have expected them to have edited it a bit so it didn't seem so condescending. 

 

Still, I'm certain he didn't mean it like that and he did some great things for our club in terms of giving the players great mental strength during our stressful periods. I'd like to think we still have someone like this as the club, I think it's invaluable. 

Edited 4 November 2018 by lifted*fox

[davieG]

4 minutes ago, smr said:

I think it's just a poor choice of words by him to say that he remains under-appreciated. Infact in one of my tribute messages this week I mentioned the generosity and donations and also that there are loads of things we as fans won't have heard of that he did for others. I think I speak for everyone in saying that. Obviously we can't know every single donation he did, but we know more than enough, and that's what matters.

Maybe he knows more than you despite your obvious knowledge but his 10% (obvious cliche) could well be true.

 

Anyway seems a pointless debate and is in danger of detracting from his obvious admiration for him.

[Itsthejoeker]

14 minutes ago, smr said:

I think it's just a poor choice of words by him to say that he remains under-appreciated. Infact in one of my tribute messages this week I mentioned the generosity and donations and also that there are loads of things we as fans won't have heard of that he did for others. I think I speak for everyone in saying that. Obviously we can't know every single donation he did, but we know more than enough, and that's what matters.

 

Hes not saying that at all, he’s saying despite us only knowing “10%” of what he’d done we still appreciate him like the fantastic man he was. 

[Countryfox]

Mr P Green ...   read and weep ....    1000 times the man you are ...

[katieakita]

Would not be the first time someone has been misquoted in the tabloids after giving an interview, think we all can see the admiration and respect he had for the Boss certainly not under appreciated by the Fans but probably correct in we only know a fraction of all his deeds, have struggled to post anything about this but Vichai really was a class act and an inspirational leader of men. He graced us with his presence and truly made the world a better place, 

[David Lowe]

He is saying how amazing it is that he is thought of in such high regard despite the average supporter not knowing about much of his generosity.

[Out Foxed]

21 hours ago, Claridge said:

 Thai billionaire's contribution to the city remains under-appreciated.

Seems a stupid thing to say

not really. there's loads of stories that have come out that most people were unaware of. 

[Buce]

22 hours ago, Claridge said:

 Thai billionaire's contribution to the city remains under-appreciated.

Seems a stupid thing to say

 

22 hours ago, smr said:

I think it's just a poor choice of words by him to say that he remains under-appreciated. Infact in one of my tribute messages this week I mentioned the generosity and donations and also that there are loads of things we as fans won't have heard of that he did for others. I think I speak for everyone in saying that. Obviously we can't know every single donation he did, but we know more than enough, and that's what matters.

 

22 hours ago, lifted*fox said:

I get the sentiment and yes we probably don't know the half of it but it's a poor choice of words and you'd have expected them to have edited it a bit so it didn't seem so condescending. 

 

Still, I'm certain he didn't mean it like that and he did some great things for our club in terms of giving the players great mental strength during our stressful periods. I'd like to think we still have someone like this as the club, I think it's invaluable. 

 

You’re misunderstanding the context of the verb. 

 

‘To appreciate’ has several meanings; in this particular instance, ‘to under-appreciate’ is meant as ‘to not fully grasp the implications of/to not realize’, not ‘to fail to recognise the full worth of/not value’. 

 

 

Edited 5 November 2018 by Buce

[Captain...]

16 hours ago, Gerbold said:

I don't believe there's any pressing need for counselling at this time.

I don't agree with you on this point, we all experience loss and death and normally handle it without the need for counseling, but we do not have our grief broadcast nationwide, our private moments beamed into everybody's living room in 4K resolution so we can all see the light glint off Schmeichel's tears. Being a footballer is not normality and having every moment scrutinised affects the way you grieve. I'm sure some players feel under pressure to show their grief more publicly or even be more affected by the accident than they are. I'm sure that Evans and Soyuncu and Ricardo are upset by the passing of a chairmen they have known for a few months but they risk being consumed by it or excluded from the shared grief of the longer serving players. Add to this the nature of the crash and the proximity to the players and the ground, I would expect they all could do with a good counseling session.

 

Winning on Saturday was probably the best thing that could happen for all of them and the reaction of the fans afterwards was amazing all of this will help. We've had the "We did it for Vichai" cathartic moment, or at least the first. But imagine they lost on Saturday, just got turned over 2-0 by a pretty average Cardiff side. The fans applauded in sympathy and understanding and just left the ground. Then the pressure starts ramping up for Burnley the expectation and the pressure to honour his memory at home in front of 30,000 people in the remembrance day fixture.

 

A huge part of sport is mental and we should be doing everything to get these players mentally ready and prepared for what will be an emotional and intense occasion.

[Foxy-Lady]

18 hours ago, Gerbold said:

This is a vastly complex subject.

This morning I reflected on what I'd written, when reading of Kasper Schmeichel's resort to counselling. But he witnessed the crash, in all its shocking, uncontrollable destructive potency. Not only did he witness the death of a man close to him but possibly was also brutally reminded of the ephemeral and fragile nature of life.

My learned response is to keep a stiff upper lip but that is typical of my generation and those before it.

My reply was to someone who expected every player to turn to counselling - but, as you have pointed out with great perception, there are those who will not be as affected by his death (or his absence) as others. There will be those who have known him for a significantly long time who won't be as traumatised as equally long-serving comrades. You're absolutely spot on as well,  in observing that those who have recently joined the club will be affected by feelings of exclusion or by feeling an unwanted obligation to adopt a mien of sorrow or trauma. What we feel we want to do in such circumstances can be compromised by what we feel we ought to do. Football clubs (or squads) have to have a heightened sense of camaraderie - putting aside personal antipathies for the good of the team. I suspect, as you do, that in such a turbulent emotional situation a number of them will need guidance and advice as to how to balance their individual emotions with the need to be part of a team - those now occupying either end of the spectrum. Puel and the staff are in exactly the same situation.

Again you're right to indicate that the Cardiff game is merely a step back towards emotional equilibrium - which, in itself, isn't exactly typical of football. One day at a time, eh?

 

 

 

 

Very good post sir...!

[Foxy-Lady]

On ‎05‎/‎11‎/‎2018 at 10:19, Captain... said:

I don't agree with you on this point, we all experience loss and death and normally handle it without the need for counseling, but we do not have our grief broadcast nationwide, our private moments beamed into everybody's living room in 4K resolution so we can all see the light glint off Schmeichel's tears. Being a footballer is not normality and having every moment scrutinised affects the way you grieve. I'm sure some players feel under pressure to show their grief more publicly or even be more affected by the accident than they are. I'm sure that Evans and Soyuncu and Ricardo are upset by the passing of a chairmen they have known for a few months but they risk being consumed by it or excluded from the shared grief of the longer serving players. Add to this the nature of the crash and the proximity to the players and the ground, I would expect they all could do with a good counseling session.

 

Winning on Saturday was probably the best thing that could happen for all of them and the reaction of the fans afterwards was amazing all of this will help. We've had the "We did it for Vichai" cathartic moment, or at least the first. But imagine they lost on Saturday, just got turned over 2-0 by a pretty average Cardiff side. The fans applauded in sympathy and understanding and just left the ground. Then the pressure starts ramping up for Burnley the expectation and the pressure to honour his memory at home in front of 30,000 people in the remembrance day fixture.

 

A huge part of sport is mental and we should be doing everything to get these players mentally ready and prepared for what will be an emotional and intense occasion.

You make some very good points....and certainly not ones that I had previously considered!   

Thank you for a very well considered view!