1. Mourinho's philosophy.think it has been an evolution – I am different today than I was five years ago. When it comes to games, I am much more analytical during the first half because at half time I need to help my team. It is difficult to communicate with the players during a top match so I don’t shout too much but I do take notes, but only in the first half. The second half I can analyse at home. During the half-time team talk, I try to control my emotions and to be what the team needs me to be – this means that I can be very cool or I can be very emotional because the team needs a certain response from me. There is always a certain emotional component as well as a tactical contribution. There is always something to tell the team at half time, but after the match not one word, because the players are not ready to be analytical at that moment. Overall, I would say that I have a flexible management style, although I am very demanding during training. I have always been lucky to have more than one pitch at my training centre, and I therefore prepare my sessions in such a way that I can jump from one situation to another with effective working time high and resting time very low. We go for quality and high intensity during short periods. Players want to work, whether it is in Portugal, England or Spain, as long as the training is well organised and serious, and they know the purpose of the exercise
2. Guardiola's philosophy.Guardiola was a passer, he wasn’t extremely athletically gifted but he could read the game brilliantly and always picked out the right pass. At the turn of the century however, football went for brawn over brains, meaning there was no room left for a player of his capabilities. Guardiola knew this, and it is why he left Barcelona at only the age of 30, despite the fact that his ability had not diminished and he still could have played at the very top level for several more years.
It should be no surprise, then, that Guardiola’s teams play the way they do, and why he so stubbornly refuses to change. For Pep, his success as a manager is more than a triumph of philosophy, it is a campaign to prove to the world again and again that cunning and technique will win out against physicality and strength. Every trophy is another victory for the player that Pep was, and to change his style would be to give in to the same people who told him as a player that there was no role for him in the modern game.
3. Pellegrini's philosophy.Not enough pace in midfield. No real wide players. Square pegs in round holes. No Plan B. And even a Plan A which was too pedestrian and
predictable.
The world and his wife have had their views on what was wrong with Manchester City last season, and there is little doubt that the Blues, by the end of a disjointed season, looked like a team which was in reverse gear.
That, and the undoubted friction between Roberto Mancini and many of his players and staff, ultimately cost the Italian his job, sparking outrage in many supporters, and regretful acceptance in others.
In his place, City are set – barring any dramatic late changes of heart – to appoint The Engineer, Manuel Pellegrini, as his successor.
He comes with a big reputation, not only for getting the most out of middling clubs Villarreal and Malaga in Spain, in terms of generating team spirit and unity, but also of educating his players and setting up his sides to match star-laden Barcelona and Real Madrid.
He did that effectively in his five-year spell at Villarreal, when he won four, lost two and drew four of his encounters with the Nou Camp giants.
There has been plenty of fog surrounding the tactical and coaching changes Pellegrini will bring to City, largely because of football director Txiki Begiristain’s missive to club scouts in December that the club would be adapting a 4-3-3 system next season.
Mancini was unaware of that message, perhaps the first indication that he did not figure in City’s long-term plans.
But that does not mean the Blues will be setting out in a Barcelona-style 4-3-3 next season. It is not a formation Pellegrini has used extensively in the past, and would probably need a far bigger overhaul of the first team squad than is planned.
Begiristain was actually plotting a course for the academy teams, as he feels 4-3-3 is the best system in which to bring up young players – but also one which can be tweaked into a different formation once they get to first team level.
That was clarified by chief executive Ferran Soriano in his first major City interview, in M.E.N. Sport a fortnight ago.
He said: “We want to play good football, beautiful football in the sense of ball possession and managing the concepts of football which can give you a good show.
“That means in the youth academy we haven’t changed anything. The basic formation is 4-3-3 as that is the one which allows you to teach the kids how to play this kind of football.
“When it goes to the first team, the manager can make as many changes as he wants but normally what shouldn’t happen is that he will make radical changes , will start to develop a kind of football involving lots of long balls etc.
“We are not telling the manager how to do his job, we are just providing for the manager of the first team to fill the young ranks with technically skilled players who are talented enough to play this kind of football.”
Which may come as a relief to Pellegrini, known as the Engineer in Spain not only because he is actually an engineering graduate, but for his attention to detail and ability to construct strong teams from lesser parts.
Pellegrini’s tactical approach is not a million miles from that of Mancini, albeit with more emphasis on pace.
His usual set-up is described as 4-2-2-2, although Pellegrini himself dismisses such basic descriptions of formation as ‘telephone numbers.’
That system looks narrow, but is given width by attacking full backs – like Mancini’s City – or by having two attacking midfelders who hit the flanks, either side of two central strikers. Another option is playing one of the two strikers in a wider role.
The impending arrival of Jesus Navas should excite City fans, especially those brought up on wingers like Mike Summerbee, Peter Barnes and David White.
Navas is not a modern wide midfielder but an out-and-out winger, blessed with pace and skill, whose forte is laying on goals for others – he scored just one goal last season for Sevilla, and yet was still considered to have had a successful season, as his team’s main creator.
How he fits into Pellegrini’s vision remains to be seen, but the Chilean is not hide-bound by systems.
In an interview towards the end of his time at Villarreal, Pellegrini said: “I like playing with two central forwards up front. There are other systems where one has to take a position on the wing and the other in the centre.
“Playing without fixed wing positions, all specific areas on the wing will be the responsibility of an attacker, a midfielder or a wing back.”
But Pellegrini has also fallen into a 4-2-3-1 system which City fans will instantly recognise as the set-up which took them to success under Mancini.
He likes to use it against opposition which dominates possession, such as Barcelona.
He says: “The few times we varied our system we normally had a central forward and attacking midfielder with a central forward, attacking midfielder, with two wingers and two holding.
“It hasn’t happened often, but we did it against Barcelona as they have the majority of possession, which is normally our strength, and we try to answer with our technical capabilities.
“This system demands much more of the movement of the central players, to get to the opponents’ area.”
But the central tenet of Pellegrini’s philosophy is that the players know how to react – they have the basics drummed into them on the training pitch, but need the ability to adapt.
“At the end of the day, I think tactics are not just theory, but more about the intelligence you show on the pitch,” he said.
“You have to have the intelligence to search for the answer inside the game, of which variation to choose, but never changing the things you work on yourself every week
4. Van Gaal's philosophy.Van Gaal’s approach to football has always entailed three very important aspects he sees as crucial to being successful; team-ethic, discipline and communication. If these three components are not adhered to, you may find yourself clashing with the coach (just ask Rivaldo).
Before becoming a professional football coach, Van Gaal was a teacher. He is old school. He believes in respect to authority but also mutual respect towards students. He believes in discipline, having a control over your actions and using that control to your own benefit, not a hindrance to others. He also believes in working together. Even though as a teacher he was hoping for individual successes, he knew there would always be a far greater chance of achievement if each member of the group helped each other.
But then why does he need so much time?
Surely he could walk into every job, lay down he law and expect his players to listen? No. It is far more complex than that. Rather than just showing off a finished product, Van Gaal does like to get down and dirty. He will harvest the roots of the team and plant new seeds into the players to get them working the way he sees fit. Although that can be open to interpretation, there’s quite a lot of evidence to show that indeed his approach works.
Firstly, he will look at communication.
He follows a structure where he needs a voice on the pitch. An experienced leader who he can effectively work through and gauge opinion and views of the team from. That is why his selection of captain was so important. From the outside, numerous attempts to leave may have soured the relations Wayne Rooney had with the fans but inside the club, there isn’t a player who’s respected as much. Therefore, the choice was really a straightforward one.
With that important decision made, Van Gaal will now utilise his main man and through him instil the discipline he seeks. Ever the perfectionist, ordering in circular tables into the training ground canteen is nothing. Who cares what shape the tables are? Well, Van Gaal does. Because it leads onto implementing his philosophy and that’s by the players and coaching staff all interacting, engaging and socialising with one and other. Not only to forge stronger friendships off the field but to build a team spirit on it too.
Team-ethic is a powerful tool within football, especially in the modern game, A strong unit who isn’t blessed with an array of expensive match winners can be as effective as a star-studded team because with players giving 110% and working hard for each other, they can become a formidable unit. Van Gaal seeks to create that.
He wants his teams to have a strong character. He wants and demands his teams and the individual players to work for the team and the cause. He wants everyone to have faith in his way and his philosophy and working towards success. That is why Rivaldo turned his nose up at Van Gaal when he was asked to play on the left wing at Barcelona, preferring instead to argue his case to be played in his favoured central position. Van Gaal wasn’t looking for an argument or to prove a point. He simply saw that Rivaldo would be better suited to fit into his system from the left side. Rivaldo thought otherwise.
That is why Van Gaal sees a strong team-ethic as important and expects selflessness. A story often un-told is from his Ajax days. John van Loen was asked by Van Gaal which system would be suitable to play when preparing for a UEFA Cup tie with AA Gent of Belgium in 1992. Van Loen replied “4-3-3” and Van Gaal was surprised but enormously satisfied, because by suggesting that system, he realised that the striker would probably not be picked for that game but instead of putting his desire to play first, he instead put the interests of the team first. That is what Van Gaal seeks from his squads.
Van Gaal has enjoyed the nickname of the “iron tulip” but in reality he isn’t as harsh as his critics have you to believe. He is a principled man who is stubborn within his beliefs, reinforced by the successes he has achieved working in such a manner. Discipline for Van Gaal is key to sustaining success as he believed it to be linked to complacency, attitude and motivation of a player.
A high level of professionalism and self-control are ideal traits of a modern-day footballer and with the high wages on offer; you can see why some players coast through their careers, blighted by the odd occasions of misdemeanour. But with all of that, the last thing Van Gaal wants is to fine a player for poor behaviour. Instead, he simply expects respect, both for others and the self. From this, various attributes will improve including tactical discipline and self-motivation. And it is from this final component from which Van Gaal builds his teams.
With his philosophy and all the information that comes with it in tow, Van Gaal gets to work on the long-term vision; a style of play and tactics.
At this moment in time, Manchester United is going through a evolution and change which hasn’t been seen at the club for a number of years but it is a much-needed change.
On Sunday, we will see the team come up against many people’s favourites for the title and although it wont be a barometer for the near-future, it will certainly give Van Gaal an indicator of how far his team, his tactics and his philosophy have come.
He sees things we don’t and even if United lose on Sunday, expect him to praise them and pick out improvements. Little improvements that make up the whole because with Van Gaal, the basis of his success is his philosophy and that process takes time.
5. Wenger's philosophy.Wenger has been described by BBC Sport as a coach who "has spent his career building teams that combine the accumulation of silverware with a desire to entertain and attack",[127] and by the Daily Mail as "a purist, dedicated to individual and collective technical quality".[128] The Times notes that since the 2003–04 season, Wenger's approach to the game has placed an emphasis on attack.[129] His style of play has been contrasted with the pragmatic approach of his rivals, but he has assembled teams to produce disciplined performances, markedly the 2005 FA Cup Final against Manchester United.[130] Although Wenger for a number of years employed a 4–4–2 formation, he used 4–5–1 for Champions League matches in the 2005–06 season, often with a lone striker and packed midfield for security.[131] Beginning in the 2009–10 season, Wenger instituted a fluid 4–3–3 formation at Arsenal, which benefited star midfielder Cesc Fàbregas.[132] Wenger's teams have been criticized for lacking a "killer touch" by journalist Jeff Powell,[133] for being one-dimensional by footballer Michael Ballack,[134] and for "want[ing] to score a 'nice' goal," instead of just pragmatically shooting the ball by former manager David Pleat.[135]
Since Wenger rarely gives interviews unrelated to football, little is known of his personal feelings. He has stated that living in Japan helped him control his emotions and define his behaviour whilst managing: "Everybody there is controlled. They laugh at you if you show emotion."[136] His demeanor, once mild-mannered and reflective of his nickname "Le Professeur,"[137] has become more animated in recent seasons, with his frequent touchline antics drawing comparison to Fawlty Towers character Basil Fawlty.[138]
Psychometric tests are used by Wenger, once every two years, to examine whether a player is mentally right for his squad.[139] He encourages sportsmen to solve their own problems; when asked by a player with the ball for guidance on what he should do next, Wenger once shouted at the player, "Decide for yourself! Why don't you think it out?"[140] Several players have rejuvenated their careers under his guidance. Thierry Henry, his former protégé at Monaco, was developed from a winger into a striker and subsequently became Arsenal's all-time top goalscorer.[141] Wenger stood by captain Tony Adams, who publicly admitted to battling with alcoholism in 1996.[142] Robin van Persie, considered a "troublesome" footballer before he moved to Arsenal, matured under Wenger, who was "the player's [van Persie's] staunchest backer."[143] Dennis Bergkamp, who became a peripheral player in his final years at Arsenal, praised Wenger for getting the best out of him.[144]
Wenger during a game against Chelsea, 2012
Wenger has a penchant for "spotting and nurturing young talent."[145] At Monaco, he signed Liberian George Weah, who was later judged FIFA World Player of the Year, and Nigerian Victor Ikpeba, a future African Player of the Year.[146] Weah, while receiving his award from FIFA president João Havelange and vice-president Lennart Johansson invited Wenger up to the stage, spontaneously giving his medal to the manager, as a token of his appreciation.[147] Throughout his managerial career at Arsenal, Wenger has signed relatively unknown and inexperienced players, such as Vieira, Fàbregas, Alex Song and Kolo Touré, and helped them to become familiar names in European football.[148][149] He continues to trust youth instead of purchasing experienced players, as a means of creating an "identity" with Arsenal: "I felt it would be an interesting experiment to see players grow together with these qualities, and with a love for the club. It was an idealistic vision of the world of football."[150] UEFA president Michel Platini and Bayern Munich chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge have openly criticised the policy, with the latter disputing it was tantamount to child trafficking.[151][152] Wenger refuted the analogy and said: "Look at Santa Cruz at Blackburn. Ask him what age he came to Bayern Munich. Then you have an answer for Rummenigge".[152]
In England, Wenger is known for stressing the importance of diet and nutrition in football.[153] When arriving at Arsenal, he cited the culture of the country at the root of the club's problems, saying: "It's silly to work hard the whole week and then spoil it by not preparing properly before the game. As a coach you can influence the diet of your players. You can point out what is wrong."[154] Dieticians were brought in at Arsenal to explain the benefits of a healthy lifestyle and Wenger acquired the help of Philippe Boixel, an osteopath for the France national team to realign the players' bodies each month.[155] Training sessions, "timed scientifically," lasted no more than 45 minutes.[156] The innovations had a desirable effect on the team as it prolonged the careers of his defence.[153]
"The day I do not want to do it at the top level, I may become a director but even more I feel attracted by coaching the youth – in Africa or India or somewhere like that where nothing has happened until now."
On his desire to return to grassroots football[157]
Although Wenger has made big-money signings for Arsenal, his net spend record on transfers is far superior to other leading Premier League clubs. A survey in 2007 found he was the only Premier League manager to have made a profit on transfers,[158] and between 2004 and 2009, Wenger made an average profit of £4.4 million per season on transfers, far more than any other club.[159] A notable example of his shrewdness in the transfer market was the purchase of Anelka from Paris Saint-Germain in 1997, for only £500,000 and the player's subsequent sale to Real Madrid just two years later for £23.5 million.[160] The transfer helped the club fund its new training centre in London Colney,[161] which Wenger campaigned for.[162] The Arsenal defence, which set a new record in 2006 by going 10 consecutive games without conceding a goal in the Champions League, cost the club approximately £6 million to assemble.[163]
Since the late 2000s, Wenger's reluctance to spend more money on transfers, as well as his inability to replace the star players that he has sold, have often been cited as the principal reasons for Arsenal's failure to win trophies since moving to the Emirates Stadium.[164] The current youth system has not replicated the success of the late 1990s and early 2000s, although the club has consistently finished fourth or higher in the league. However, Wenger has argued that trophies are only "one way to judge a club," described reaching the Champions League as a reward in its own right, and suggesting that Arsenal's regular Champions League participation (seventeen appearances in a row as of 2014)[165] was itself a praiseworthy accomplishment.[166] Sports columnist Martin Samuel suggested that the departures of players such as Ashley Cole in 2006 were a sign that Arsenal was a "feeder club" to bigger teams.[167] Wenger's recent transfer market history has been marked by the departure of two of Arsenal's captains and most important players in consecutive years: the transfer of Cesc Fàbregas to Barcelona in 2011, and the transfer of Robin van Persie to Manchester United (after van Persie refused to sign a contract extension) in 2012.[168] In 2013, however, Wenger reversed this trend by signing Mesut Özil from Real Madrid for a reported fee of £42.5 million.[169]
Wenger is an advocate of financial fair play in football.[170] He has criticised the approach of Chelsea, Manchester City and Real Madrid for spending more than they take from revenue, something he refers to as "financial doping."[171] Wenger predicts that the ongoing European sovereign debt crisis will put football into "perspective," comments supported by the Financial Times writer Gideon Rachman.[172]
6. Klopp's philosophy.[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUzdcKP5488[/video] (in his own words).
On the official Borussia Dortmund website is a picture of two men walking purposefully towards Terminal E at Düsseldorf airport. They look determined and confident yet inside they must be feeling sick. Their names are Hans-Joachim Watzke and Dr Reinhard Rauball and they are on their way to a meeting with more than 400 investors of a company called Molsiris in an attempt to stop the club going bankrupt.
It is 14 March 2005 and the club owe around €130m. They are the Leeds United of German football, having spent ludicrous amounts on players (€25m on Márcio Amoroso from Parma stands out), selling their ground and borrowing vast sums of money in the hope of continued Champions League participation. However, having lost to Bruges on penalties in the 2003 Champions League qualifiers and then missed out on Europe altogether the following season, their plan unravelled at an astonishing pace.
And so it all came down to Watzke and Rauball who having both joined the club in the preceding months to sort out the mess, found themselves having to convince the 400 investors why they should accept diminished returns in the hope that the rescue plan would work.
The meeting lasted for hours and hours. In Dortmund – and elsewhere in Germany – fans were listening nervously to the radio for news on whether their club had been saved. In the end, when afternoon had entered evening, it was announced that Molsiris, whose shareholders had all invested between €5–100,000, had agreed to save the club. After the negotiations, Rauball said: "I don't want to experience a day like today ever again in my whole life."
For Watzke and Rauball, however, the hard work had just started. The club's high earners had to be sold and wages slashed. So the following year Tomas Rosicky joined Arsenal and the Germany international David Odonkor moved to Real Betis. In 2007 another Germany international, Christoph Metzelder, left on a free because he could not agree a deal with the new, parsimonious, board. Metzelder signed for Real Madrid instead.
Even now, with the club on a more secure footing, the selling has to continue. On Tuesday morning it was announced that Mario Götze, the club's highly regarded attacking midfielder, will join Bayern Munich next season, a bitter pill for the club to swallow on the eve of their Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid. It is a seismic transfer that will test the resolve of everyone at the club, but with a talismanic manager, Jürgen Klopp, at the helm, Dortmund have the best chance of taking the blow on the chin and remaining a force next season.
After the 2007-08 season, when Dortmund finished 13th, the club looked destined for a decade or so of mid-table obscurity, or even worse with relegation a real possibility. But then, during that summer, they hired Klopp, or "Kloppo" as he is now known.
Hiring Klopp was not necessarily a straightforward decision. The then 40-year-old might have taken unfancied Mainz to the Bundesliga for the first time in the club's history but he was probably just as well-known for his work as a TV pundit for the public broadcaster ZDF and had earned the nickname TV-Bundestrainer (a national coach for the television).
Uli Hoeness at Bayern Munich was interested in hiring Klopp but in the end the board wanted more of a box-office name and chose Jürgen Klinsmann. There were also reports that Hamburg made Martin Jol their new manager instead of Klopp that summer because the Dutchman wore a suit to the interview and Klopp did not. There was even a debate about whether Klopp's scruffy appearance was undermining his authority. "If I were working as a bank manager I might have had a credibility problem looking like I do but I don't work as a bank manager, I work in football," Klopp said at the time. "I am nice to people and I like footballers. Why shouldn't I? We share the same hobby. But that doesn't mean that I am their best friend."
So Dortmund pounced on Klopp when others hesitated. The manager was delighted to join a "football city" (although he later revealed he thought the club's first contract offer "was a mistake" as it was less than he had earned at Mainz) and started rebuilding the squad. "I have the feeling that I will be able to work with the full support of the club here," he said in August 2008. "Life is too short to worry about things anyway. I am 0.0% naive. I know how it works by a business. If you don't do your job properly you lose your job."
There has not been any chance of Klopp losing his job at Dortmund. Borussia finished sixth in his first season in charge and then fifth in 2010, having sold the club's two top scorers, Mladen Petric and Alex Frei, in the process. The following season Dortmund won the Bundesliga, seven points ahead of Leverkusen, while still operating on a much smaller budget than most of their rivals. Dortmund had gone from the brink of bankruptcy to winning the league in six years, Kloppo style.
Mats Hummels, a Bayern Munich reject, cost €4m, Robert Lewandowski €4.5m, Neven Subotic likewise, Shinji Kagawa a measly €350,000. Lukas Piszczek arrived on a free while his compatriot Jakub Blaszczykowski joined for a reported fee of €3m. Nuri Sahin, Marcel Schmelzer, Götze and Kevin Grosskreutz all came through the ranks. Since that first league title win, Ilkay Gündogan has signed from Nürnberg for €4m and Marco Reus from Borussia Mönchengladbach for €17.1m.
No wonder Brendan Rodgers said recently that he wants to build Liverpool's squad "the Dortmund way" (although the way Sahin, now back at Dortmund after a short-lived loan spell at Liverpool "thanked God" he was no longer playing for Rodgers suggests the man at Anfield has some way to go to match Klopp's man-management skills).
But the Dortmund way is so much more than just scouting and bargain buys. Klopp has his own philosophy of what makes a squad competitive and it is one that sums up the ethos of the city they play in. "There are certain places where you have to conduct yourself and play football in a certain way, where you just can't be pleased with staying back and hoofing the ball upfield," he told the German football writer Uli Hesse last year. "There are certain places where, if you do that, people will say: 'If that is the way you are going to play then I won't go and watch you.'
"And Dortmund is one of those places. Here people demand that the team should play with the attributes that are closest to my heart: with a lot of feeling and with intensity until the very last minute. We want to play the kind of football people remember."
The players are certainly buying into the concept. "The players talk to each other about what to do if there is an offer from a big club but we know what we have something very special going here," Hummels has said. "If there is an offer from Barcelona then maybe you can't ask them to do one, but for the time being we have decided to stick together to keep this team together. The team spirit is fantastic and there are a lot of us who are the same age."
The news on Tuesday morning that Götze is signing for Bayern in the summer will test that spirit, especially in the same week they are taking on José Mourinho's Real Madrid. But Klopp is a superb motivator and will have his squad in the right frame of mind.
Most of the players adore him – and it is easy to understand why. He is enthusiastic, clever and funny. In fact, he is very much like Mourinho during his early Chelsea years. Klopp's press conference after the dramatic quarter-final win over Málaga was a joy to watch and his demeanour is such a contrast to Mourinho's current surliness that it is easy to bill Wednesday's first Champions League semi-final as the new Mourinho against the old Mourinho.
At the end of last week the Portuguese complained that Klopp was talking too much about Wednesday's first leg, to which the Dortmund manager responded by saying: "Mourinho says I talk a lot? That's what one of my teachers used to say. I'll shut up, then." 1-0 Kloppo; now for the real contest.
