RSS
ATOM
advertisement
Black Attack: The End Of The Coaching Daddies
Alan Black thinks that the paternalistic style of coaching is dying out as a more collaborative model emerges.
Oct 27, 2009 3:13:59 AM
By Alan Black
Sir Alex Ferguson of Manchester United refers to his players as “boys” and calls them “son,” when speaking to them of matters most important.
His “sons” grow up to call him “father.” Both Beckham and Ronaldo have described him as such.
Ferguson is the last of the great British coaching daddies.
He ends a line that stretches through England from Herbert Chapman to Alf Ramsey and Don Revie.
In Scotland, it was Jock Stein, Ferguson’s own soccer “father.”
These men grew up and played in an era when daddies and their sons were the only people inside soccer stadiums.
Women were secretaries in the front office, and tea makers.
It was an age when daddy lifted junior over the turnstile, a tradition now gone in the age of season tickets and seats. It was daddy who showed his son that losing control in moments of joy and loss was acceptable, and normal, during ninety minutes on a Saturday.
Just don’t cry in the real world, son.
But the old-fashioned coach is rapidly going out of style.
The internationalism of club soccer, and the supremacy of the star player, has diminished the need for parenting.
Younger coaches treat their players as equals, hoping to bond as a team, instead of family. Servitude to one tribe is no longer for life.
Recently, Chelsea’s coach Ancelotti, remarked that talking to the players in the changing room before the game was increasingly redundant as most of his stars were plugged into I-pods listening to hip hop.
Sir Alex Ferguson of Manchester United refers to his players as “boys” and calls them “son,” when speaking to them of matters most important.
His “sons” grow up to call him “father.” Both Beckham and Ronaldo have described him as such.
Ferguson is the last of the great British coaching daddies.
He ends a line that stretches through England from Herbert Chapman to Alf Ramsey and Don Revie.
In Scotland, it was Jock Stein, Ferguson’s own soccer “father.”
These men grew up and played in an era when daddies and their sons were the only people inside soccer stadiums.
Women were secretaries in the front office, and tea makers.
It was an age when daddy lifted junior over the turnstile, a tradition now gone in the age of season tickets and seats. It was daddy who showed his son that losing control in moments of joy and loss was acceptable, and normal, during ninety minutes on a Saturday.
Just don’t cry in the real world, son.
But the old-fashioned coach is rapidly going out of style.
The internationalism of club soccer, and the supremacy of the star player, has diminished the need for parenting.
Younger coaches treat their players as equals, hoping to bond as a team, instead of family. Servitude to one tribe is no longer for life.
Recently, Chelsea’s coach Ancelotti, remarked that talking to the players in the changing room before the game was increasingly redundant as most of his stars were plugged into I-pods listening to hip hop.
 |
Ancelotti himself listens to Elton John while at home.
There is much talk about the diminishing daddy figure in society. And futbol follows society.
We can expect a future age of youthful player tyranny, and a purge of middle age wisdom.
Maybe one day the players will pick the team themselves.
And no more will the word “son” be heard in the changing rooms.
Alan Black, a Goal.com contributor, can be reached through his website at AlanBlack.info
Want more from Goal.com delivered right to your door? Introducing "Goal.com Magazine." Subscribe now!
Thank you for your comment!
Please enter your name
Please enter your location
Please share your comment!
13 Comments
Advertisement
Inside Goal.Com
-
LABIDOU: Is MLS falling behind? The league's new younger direction
With high-profile players like Nicolas Anelka and Luca Toni rejecting MLS for other developing leagues, is the league falling behind its competition?
-
ROSANO: Mexican soccer needs to address referee treatment
Nick Rosano argues that Mexico's continued officiating problems may have less to do with referees themselves and more to do with how they are treated by the federation.
-
VERTELNEY: MLS owners take to Twitter to spread their team's word
"Any time you tweet, it's a mini press conference," says Portland Timbers owner Merritt Paulson.
-
ISOLA: Roma's De Rossi smart to remain with one club for career
De Rossi has a chance to build a lasting legacy at Roma similar to NBA veterans Tim Duncan and Kobe Bryant, who have never switched teams.
-
RANKINGS: Torres breaks into the top 10 as Altidore drops out
The Pachuca midfielder is back on form, and with many of the USA's top players struggling, he breaks into the top 10.
Advertisement
Advertisement
