As the World Cup tournament starts to hot up, the PFA Coaching department looks at some of the top names in the industry and how they manage themselves, as the pressure starts to build.
Joachim Low (of Germany) appeared before the game against Australia as a man at peace with the world. Dressed in a V-neck sweater and casually leaning against the dugout sipping coffee, this looked like a man who had prepared his team in great detail and all that was left was the battle itself.
Did this calmness assure his team that preparation was complete and the General would now watch over his troops from the hill, making astute decisions if needed, but sticking with the pre-determined game plan?
Diego Maradona (of Argentina) by comparison, is a man of great passion and emotion. A man who kicks every ball from the side of the pitch (literally) and gets caught up in the moment of the game.
This behaviour surely distracts his focus and affects his analysis of the play. In his homeland he is criticised for being tactically naive and this World Cup will see whether or not he can cut it as a world class coach.
Although dressed in a suit for this tournament (although like the rest of the squad he arrived in a tracksuit) and looking much smarter than his rather unkempt look of the past, an attempt to look more serious to both players and fans alike? His players however seem to love the cult hero and appear to rise to the fact that he wears his heart on his sleeve.
For all his distractions he does not seem fazed when it comes to making tough calls with both squad and team selection alike.
Dunga (of Brazil) on the other hand has completely redefined the touchline look of any Brazilian manager before him. On a cold winter’s night in Jo’burg, he appeared at the side of the dug out looking like a North Sea trawler skipper. Gone was the usual green and gold tracksuit of managers past.
Perhaps this was a look of a man who at the peak of his playing career was a hard grafter in the Brazilian team, an attitude he expects from his own players now.
He has constantly been branded a man of steel rather than a typically flair minded Brazilian and is this team now showing the same personality of the Coach? Less Samba more substance, ‘beautifully defensive’ – just like the holding midfield player he was in his day.
The strange thing is that between 1970 and 1994 Brazil had players with fairy dust on their feet and genius in their blood but all failed in their campaigns to win the World Cup; he was the difference in USA 1994 and the captain that lifted the trophy.NB: Different choices of clothing are inevitable as everyone has their own style. Does the weather influence what the coach wears, his own individuality or a need to look more businesslike in the dugout?
Does his attire really reflect the way his team plays, does his manner and composure (or lack of it) transcend into the psyche of the players? Food for thought but as this is officially the coldest World Cup ever; we feel that a warm coach is a coach with good concentration levels and therefore a man who can make informed judgement.Content provided by Andy Barlow and Brian Borrows
