AFTER barely four months as Nottingham Forest manager, it is already abundantly clear that Sean O'Driscoll is not one for cliches or stereotypes.
He does not adhere to the norm, nor say what is expected of him.
But even he must have joined a fairly exclusive club among football managers when he warned that Forest must be wary of spending big; cautious about making marquee signings in January.
It may sound like the exact opposite of the message Billy Davies would traditionally noisily begin to articulate at this point of year.
But, as is frequently the case with O'Driscoll, his point was not quite as basic as it may first seem.
His appeal, as January approaches, is not for Forest to avoid making new signings during the transfer window, but for them to tread carefully if and when they to.
The Al Hasawi family have thus far shown themselves to be ambitious supporters of their manager, with the money that has been spent on assembling a squad that feels like it is starting to gel nicely.
And, on the face of things, it appears that they have largely listened to his judgement, since he first walked through the doors back in July.
Now, following early talks about their plans for the future, for January and beyond, O'Driscoll hopes that continues, as he himself ploughs new ground, as manager of a club who, for once, clearly have the resources to spend if they wish.
"We have not asked for anything," said O'Driscoll, whose new-look side will be looking to secure a place in the top six when they take on Ipswich tonight.
"We have not gone to the owners and said 'we need this, this and this'. What we have told them is that we can develop this team further. We need patience for that to happen. But it is their club, their money.
"If they want something different, we have to sit down and make sure we do things right.
"If they want to bring in three or four players, we have to make sure they are the right players; players who can help.
"We do not want to do things for the sake of it."
In recent months, potential deals are understood to have been offered to bring several big-name players to Forest – including Nottingham-born winger Jermaine Pennant.
"If players are forced upon you, it is ridiculous. You cannot work in an environment like that," said O'Driscoll. "That has not been the case at all.
"But we have to be mindful of the fact that this is not my club. If it was I would have the final say. But it isn't, so I haven't.
"We are heading in the right direction, but we need to take little steps. You cannot make massive leaps in this division.
"It will be little steps and then January will decide whether one or two players can come in to make a big improvement to the squad. There will be a lot of players who want to come to Nottingham Forest, because it is a good club.
"But we have to make sure they are the right ones. That is the conundrum."
Forest's most recent addition, Alan Hutton, is certainly a big-name addition. But, in his case, O'Driscoll believes the move works for both parties.
"Taking lads from Premier Division clubs is difficult because, when you have been the top flight, you don't always want to step down," said O'Driscoll. "But he is out of favour at Aston Villa and needs to play some games, in the same manner as Jermaine (Jenas).
"In six weeks time he might have four or five Premier League clubs looking at him. He might be outside of our reach.
"But you never know. With loan players, they have to come in and do well and, if they do that, they will do well for themselves as well as the club."
O'Driscoll hints that Forest might look at the possibility of making the loan moves of Daniel Ayala and Billy Sharp permanent in January.
"We have two season-long loans in Daniel and Billy and the rest are all short term. It is not ideal," he said. "If you can get your own players, that is better for everyone.
"We have seven loan players now so, if they are all fit, two of them cannot even be in the squad. That can create an atmosphere – an unhealthy one.
"In the January transfer window we will look at the various possibilities, whether that be trying to keep what we have got, to develop things or bring in more players and reorganise.
"In six weeks time, we will have a clearer picture of what we want to do."
Equally, if Southampton or Norwich do want Sharp or Ayala back in January, O'Driscoll says Forest will have to be realistic.
"If Southampton politely ask to have Billy back in January, we would have to have a discussion. If both parties agree, a season-long loan can be brought to an end in January," he said.
"I think you could actually say 'no' to Southampton, if you wanted to.
"But you have to be mindful of how you would feel if the boot was on the other foot.
"I always think you should treat people how you would like to be treated yourself."
Again, that is hardly an excerpt from the average football manager's quote book.
But O'Driscoll's grounded sense of logic has stood Forest in good stead so far.
And managers who throw around cash as enthusiastically as they do cliches are not automatically a success.
