New Brisbane Roar coach Frans Thijssen says he will swing axe if players don't perform to his level New Brisbane Roar Coach Frans Thijssen at training. BRISBANE Roar coach Frans Thijssen has warned his underperforming players if they lose the ball they could lose their spots. A day after taking charge of the A-League champion following the dumping of Mike Mulvey, Thijssen sent a message to the team that only those who showed cool heads and precise skills on the ball would have a future at the club. We have to improve there. If we have the ball the other team can't do anything," he said. Good players don't lose balls. Bad players lose balls. For all the talk about Brisbane's philosophy, Thijssen made it very clear that the Roar's recent performances were not in line with his vision. Thijssen was part of the famous Ipswich Town team that won the 1981 UEFA Cup. As a player he admitted struggling to adapt to the long ball style in England and it is a similarly frantic, back and forth pattern he has observed in the A-League. After countless hours of cramming for Saturday's home game against Perth Glory, the Dutchman conceded his mission of turning around the team's fortunes will not happen in a week. "It was not easy because it's difficult names, and strange names," he said of his swotting for the clash with top of the table Perth. If you want to get back in the race you can't afford to make mistakes I like players who are good on the ball. Hopefully we can start playing. I like to play football from defence We have to have good players who don't lose balls. The 62-year-old has taken charge of an outfit down on confidence and frightened to play the knock-around style that carried the side to three of the past four championships. There are no plans yet to change the starting XI or the formation, but another loss at home will increase pressure on the incumbents. New Brisbane Roar coach Frans Thijssen at training. Moving on a coach just six months after winning a title has undoubtedly tarnished the Roar's reputation but captain Matt Smith vowed to repair the brand with deeds on the pitch. "What's happened hasn't enhanced the reputation of the club," he said. We pride ourselves on a culture and certain behaviours. We have to play. We set a tone five years ago. The only thing we can do now is train hard and play well. Originally published as Roar coach warns: "lose ball and face axe"