LMA Business Club e-news issue 1 - January 2010

The Manager's Perspective - Stuart Pearce

As an U21 or Senior Team international coach you have a lot more time to plan and prepare than a club manager; how beneficial has this been to you?

A stark comparison is that when you go on tour as a club manager you don't have the opportunity to see the training facilities or hotel, but as an international manager, I have got the time to do that now. As a club manager, you physically do not have the time to do it so it has to be someone else's job. The fact that I am not snowed in with games as an international manager means I can take a really good look at players. The most disappointing thing, if you like, is that I can know a squad of 23 players that I want to take to a tournament but how this will change between now and the start of the tournament is in the lap of the Gods. As a club manager, you know what you have got on a day to day basis, which is not the case at international level.

You used over 40 players in the last qualifying campaign whereas as a club manager you wouldn't have that depth to select from if you were hit by injuries to key players; that must be a welcome benefit of international management...

It's helpful over a two year campaign. Two years in a player's life between 19 and 21 is a long, long time. There are always dips and rises in form. If I look at my first squad compared to my final squad, it would have changed drastically. It may be the case that some of the players that got you there are not involved in the finals, and that is just the nature of international football. The focus over a period of time with players has been great; 5 or 6 players from the last tournament have run again. The likes of Tom Huddlestone, James Milner and Steven Taylor are vastly experienced at this level and this has been very helpful.

In addition to being U21 manager you are also part of Fabio Capello's senior coaching staff; what's it like working closely with Fabio?

For me, every day is a school day. I fulfil a role with the seniors, but I look at it as an education. Being involved with the senior players is a big drive. Some of these players I have played alongside, managed and now I am a coach with them. It's helpful to have U21 players involved and we have had 6 or 7 over the two year period involved with the seniors and then move back down again. Movement between the two squads is vital.

For me, last summer's tournament (UEFA European U21s Championship) was a pre-runner to the World Cup and it provided a great opportunity for these players to showcase themselves to be in contention for the senior squad the following year. You only have to look at previous winners of the golden player of the tournament. It reads an all star list from the likes of Petr Cech and Alessandro Pirlo. Every one is a household name and it shows the height of the tournament, that whoever will be the best player will probably go on to be an international class player.

You stated that working with Fabio is an education for yourself. Does Fabio still look to learn and embrace new methods himself?

Well the last time I went to the office to say hello in the morning he was reading a book on an Italian volleyball coach and taking phrases and sentences out of it to help him. I walked back across the corridor and thought he is 62, one of the top four managers in the world CV wise, and he is still looking in a book to learn answers and educate himself. He is a great example to the younger coaches.

You are clearly learning from Fabio; are you able to help him in specific areas too?

Sometimes. It is a bit of everything. I can give him help on what it is like to be an English player and international. That is something he doesn't know because he is not an Englishman, like I'm not an Italian. I find intriguing their mentality and cultural differences which is an education in itself and that is a two way thing. From a football education point of view, Fabio is the manager of the team and for me, I may have come from a 5 day get together with the 21's as manager, to then being a coach underneath someone. That in itself is a different mentality you have to approach overnight.

What differences do you find between dealing with young players and seasoned professionals?

My perception has changed over time. When I first started as a younger player we used to go in and it was the youngest one who used to be at the front and the seniors at the back. Nowadays, in the senior team, the likes of David Beckham, Frank Lampard and Gareth Barry make training sessions work. You just have to give them a template of what you want and they will do it and do it to the best of their abilities. And because they are intelligent players, they will find ways of improving it by themselves. That is what clever players do, you set them out rules but because they are world class players they will find ways of improving your session. Fabio sets high standards but so do the players. I have a great and mature bunch with the 21's but there is still a lot to be learned from the seniors.

Your coaching education working under Fabio is a form of mentoring; do you think mentoring is beneficial for young managers in the game?

I think it is absolutely vital. The way football is at the moment, we catapult players and coaches with little experience to stardom on the back of a couple of games and when things take a dip we hang them out to dry and that can't be right. Future players and coaches need all the support they can get. Collectively as a group of managers and coaches we have to help each other.

I finished my career at Manchester City and I was lucky enough to work for three and half years under Kevin Keegan and Arthur Cox and they are two people who are professional and conduct themselves in the right manner. I still speak to Arthur regularly now asking for advice. That wisdom above you is vital. A lot of managers need that especially the younger ones as we are all learning and to have people around you who you can learn from is invaluable. I also think it would help players if they had a mentor, a former coach or manager, perhaps not even connected with their club. A mentor could watch their games and one afternoon a week they could sit down together and talk about the game and the performance.

Click here to read more stories like this in the first online edition of the Manager magazine. For further information on the Manager, please contact Michelle Dorgan on michelle.dorgan@lmasecure.com or 01926 831556