AAGS 2021

15 Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. You have a player who loves football, he’s a guy who loves the sport, but he’s a guy who loves competition as well. These guys who love competition are the guys who improve always because they want to win. They love to compete with others, and they are not inhibited as well. It’s important to detect what is dominant in each player. Was that process of detection helped by meeting the parents or the guardians of those players? Yes, because when you want to develop a player you have to meet him to try to know who he really is. The sociological environment of the player is a very important condition and for me to meet the family was always very important. First of all, to detect who is influencing the player and if that influence was positive. Moreover, if that influence was detrimental to his progression. For example, a father who treats his son like God, when he doesn’t play the game will not help him very much to develop. So, when I detected what are inferences inside the family, I could have a speech to get them on my side and adapt my speech to what he got from his family. Thierry Henry said that you changed his life. What’s some of the key factors and the key influences in your journey as a player, as a man, as a human being, as a coach? What helped you to be able to be that influential where you not only change somebody’s football career but their life? I think it’s a huge compliment but the guy who changed his life the most is Thierry Henry. He’s a remarkable human being and remarkably talented player. I would say that we can help people, and we can help people that want to be successful. Firstly, finding the right positions. We forget but sometimes the eye of a coach and of managers is so important, it is not to put them in the right position but it’s adapting their physiological, technical and tactical qualities. What I would like just to highlight always is to have permanent communication. There are three major things that always need the feedback of the players. First of all: Do you want to get better? Secondly, do you think you have reached your full potential? Thirdly, what are you ready to do to get better? I believe it looks obvious, but not many sportsmen go as far as they could go and that’s where the coach has an influence to help them with constant feedback and constant communication. We as coaches, we overrate many times the efficiency of our communication and we have to work a lot on the quality of our communication. Thierry Henry said, even though he was a very skillful and talented young player, he used to blame other people. Part of his growth was learning to look at himself instead to blaming himself and asking himself questions. How does such a complex turnaround in a personality happen in somebody of that talent? I must say that I completely agree with you. Thierry Henry had the major quality,