Nick Dasovic, head coach of the Whitecaps FC Development Squad, spent nearly two full years earning his UEFA Pro License, the highest coaching license in world football. Many don’t know the work, dedication, and degree of education that goes into this course. In this blog, Daso will tell us about people he met along the way as he went through his program with the Scottish Football Association, and the lessons he learned from each person.
Today, Daso discusses former Scottish footballer and manager, and current Asian Football Confederation technical director Andy Roxburgh.
PROFESSIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
- Former Scottish footballer and manager
- Former UEFA Technical Director
- Current AFC Technical Director
FOOTBALL TODAY
Andy discussed the issues surrounding modern day football. The increasing financial uncertainties cause issues with player power, constant stress and big money. Because of the public scrutiny and demands to gain instant success the time limit of a coach is quite fragile. You are dependent completely upon the talent that you can secure for your club.
Although there is a financial crisis looming in the football industry, there are certain attributes that a coach must learn over time and cannot be bought.
- Coaching Know-how
- Winning Mentality
- Leadership Skills
- Experience
- Respect
- Time
- Energy
- Curiosity
Within your team building philosophy, there are many aspects that can be worked on such as winning mentality, teamwork, harmony, health and fitness, and consistency. Every team needs a little bit of luck to gain success.
SUCCESS, WHAT IS IT?
When you achieve success within your club, you help to improve the financial conditions and ensure that there is a healthy future for everyone involved. Some of the key ingredients which help with success are: find the talent, coaching, leadership, teamwork and a winning mentality. As a coach it is your job to establish a talent system. Within this system you must identify, attract, develop, manage, motivate and keep the talent.
TECHNICAL TRENDS
In today’s modern football we have seen a change in the technical trends in the way the game is played. Some of these key features are:
- Short-Passing Game
- Fast Combinations
- Effective Counters
- Countering the Counter
- Match Intensity
- One Striker
- 4/3/3 (4/2/3/1)
- Long-Range Shooting
The counter-attack, otherwise known as a fast break, is one of the most effective ways to exploit a disorganized defense. A few of the key elements of the counter-attack are: the speed of transition, explosive running, quick ball speed and fast finishing. Arsène Wenger is quoted as saying: “With counter-attacking becoming increasingly important, countering the counter has become the main trend.”
TOP COACHES
As coaches we have two roles to play – one as a manager and the other as a leader. As a manager we are accountable for setting standards, establishing targets, planning and organizing, assessing people and solving problems along with many other tasks. As the leader of a club your responsibility lies within inspiring and influencing your players and staff through clear communication and decision making.
WINNING MENTALITY
The foundation of a winning mentality includes determination, pride, and optimism. Attitude and action plus confidence provide the pillars to which any goal can be accomplished. One of the greatest clubs in the world, FC Barcelona, carries a culture of work and family ethic, fast technique, tactical philosophy and most importantly, humility.
CRISIS MANAGEMENT
When an inevitable crisis occurs it is important to find a positive solution even though it is a negative situation. We must focus on facts not opinions, not get our emotions involved and stay resilient. During the crisis the leader must be more visible, approachable, accessible, and with no excuses.
SUMMARY
The difference between winning and losing is in your mental daily preparation of your staff and team; everybody needs to be on the same page and knows what their role entails. The manager is the face of the club hence he needs to consistently be positive and energetic. He cannot show any signs of stress in difficult situations.
This blog was edited for brevity by Maxim Fossey.
