What makes a great coach?

So everyone knows that I am great! Wow, that is a good start! I watched last night Lyon vs Real Madrid. The Real is the most expensive roster in the world and guess what? They lost against Lyon!

After all, it made me think about team and coaches. You can have the best players in the world and be incapable of making them play together. The great coaches understand that coaching in not only Xs and Os (technical skill) but much more. They have durability, determination, resilience, energy, intuition and passion.

A coach has also to have a vision.
Strategy: Is there a long-term plan or vision for the team or club?
Tactics: The elite coaches can wrong foot opponents, change match, win a match...
Team building: This is my believe. Real Madrid learned that 11 "galacticos" won't make the best team. Players who are workers are just as important as the superstars.

Good fundations in skills, motivations, compatibilty players and little of intuition make the perfect coach!

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Passion

Is there anyone reading my blog? Is there anyone who can tell me why are we pushing our kids in sports so much? Knowing that 70% of America’s children are abandoning organized sports by age 13.

And in addition, soccer is not the first sport! Now, if I am talking about my own kids, there is one who runs all the time and he is having fun. He is a very good athlete and performs all the time. Why? Because he is having fun… The oldest one, she is physically strong, could be a great soccer player but efforts equal pain. I went for a jugging with her and we practiced 1v1. I asked her to be more aggressive when she practices and plays. She did last practice but she got into the car and said that she was tired…. Man! Ok you are going to tell me, boys and girls are different! Yeah! You don’t have to be Einstein for figure out! But there is a major difference, one runs because he likes it, the other because she has to.

My friend called me today and said “I know why Americans are less good in soccer than other countries” “because of Nintendo” Well, it is a fact that rich people don’t play sport anymore and stop at 13. If you look at the kids who play sport, I won’t be sure at 100% but I will say the ethnic is different. Brazil, Argentinean have the best soccer players in the world because they are coming from poor family. In Europe, there are less and less white players…

So it is difficult when you are a coach of soccer that doesn’t get pay, who does it with passion to figure out what is going to happen in long term. Basketball, Baseball are priorities in this environment. Like me, don’t ask me to watch football. I don’t get it and feel it is too slow for me. I grew with speed track in motorcycle and soccer. My friend is teaching me the game of football but it is not my cup of tea. So I know that for all parents, it is the same when they watch a soccer game…

My goal is to teach a wonderful game and have fun with the kids. I would like for them to be passionate about it and have fun with it. When they need to run, they do it because they love it, not because they have to…

At the end, it is just about passion!

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Talent vs Teamwork

The one of the teachings more marked of this CAN 2010, this is the chronic inability of the French-speaking countries of Black Africa (Ivory Coast, Cameroon), to play as a team. One there finds nevertheless the better individualities of the Continent but that forms only an addition of players gifted. Not a collective one. And as often by the past, that was not enough against teams with less provided in pure talent but animated with a state of mind and of a superior collective force.

To be honest, I didn't enjoy winning our D1! It scared me more than anything else because I thought right away about Spring! Scared because we have to reproduce the same quality of game. Is it possible?

Athletic performance is mainly determined by technical and physical abilities are stable elements that will not change or fluctuate within a short period of time. The psychological aspect is one of the most important. Athletes need to build self-confidence.

One aspect we are missing right now, I know it is winter and I am starting to worry too much! It is the trust and teamwork. We have some talents but we don't have a team right now.

I am going to need some helps!

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