With Orient 20th in League Two, Wellens took over the Club in the most challenging of positions when he joined in March 2022, with relegation out of the EFL a genuine concern.

But how did his side go from relegation threatened to champions elect?

“The first thing I said to the players when I came in was, ‘let’s go back to when you were all little boys, when you used to play for free and with a smile on your face’. From day one, that’s all I wanted to do.

“When we did that, we drew my first two games, won the next three and all of a sudden, we were safe. I stuck to my principles and I think the players respected that. We created an environment where people enjoyed coming in every day, the players relaxed and I started to see their true qualities.”

By March this year, the O’s were one of England’s best-performing sides since Wellens had taken charge, only second behind Sheffield Wednesday in England’s top four divisions for points won (95) in the 12-month period.

In addition, only Newcastle United had conceded fewer goals across the top four divisions as Wellens oversaw a rapid turnaround in the Club’s fortunes.

One of his great strengths is his communication – with players, fans and the Board of Directors. In fact, it was his communication skills that were a key reason he landed the job at Brisbane Road back in 2022.

But it was Wellens’ previous failures that made him an attractive candidate for the job, according to Chairman Nigel Travis. Having gone through “the most complex process of any manager”, Travis took the view that you learn from every situation and one of Wellens’ best attributes was his willingness to learn, and with that, improve.

Wellens reveals: “In my interview, Nigel asked me why I’d had success in the past and why I’d had failures. I was honest, and that’s always been a great thing about our relationship – we’re honest and our communication levels are really high. That’s so important in football and maybe where it’s gone wrong in previous jobs.

“I’m always open and honest in everything I do and hopefully the supporters, players and the owners see that I’m authentic in that way and maybe can relate to me because of that. Every decision I make is for the benefit of the group of players here and the owners back me with that and trust the process.

“The people here are some of the most approachable and knowledgeable people I’ve ever worked with. They’re really good guys. You never know where you’re going to be next in football. If you lose your next five games, you could be gone, but I will consider these people friends for life.”

Did Wellens feel like he had something to prove after the spells at Salford and Doncaster? “Maybe,” he says. “I wanted to win.

“I wanted to prove I could manage a group of men and people knew what I could do. Twice now I’ve pulled a team from 20th in the league and within 15 months we’ve won the title. I take massive satisfaction in that.”

There’s no doubt that this is an exciting time for Leyton Orient. And this is just the beginning, according to Wellens.

“Under no circumstances am I going to sit on my laurels,” he affirms.

“The Club had a six-year plan and this was the last year of that plan. We’ve achieved promotion in that final year, so now I want a new plan; where are we going and what comes next?

“I thoroughly enjoyed what’s gone, last season was absolutely amazing and I’ll go on holiday in the summer, but as soon as I comeback – I can already feel it now as I’m talking – I want to win again.

“I can feel that desire and hunger inside of me. I love that taste of champagne at the end of the season and I love lifting trophies. I’ve only been a manager for five years and I’ve lifted three trophies. That’s what I want.

“So, we need to come up with a new plan, we need to recruit well, make sure we’re not in any relegation trouble next season and show that same hunger, that same quality and those same principles that got us to where we are now. If we do that, it will stand us in good stead going into 2023/24.”

This feature originally appeared in the summer 2023 edition of the EFL Magazine.


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