Football Coach

Coaching Lineup Changing for Cleveland Browns

After considerable speculation relating to the Chris Jones tenure with the Cleveland Browns, it’s been announced that he’ll be leaving this National Football League Organization. It follows after he left the Canadian Football League, where he stood as the General Manager and Head Coach for the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Chris Jones joined the NFL as a Senior Defensive Specialist in January 2019, working under Freddie Kitchens in his rookie season. Freddie Kitchens was terminated after a single season with the Cleveland Browns, leaving the remaining coaching staff to be fired potentially. Christ Jones is the 1st of Kitchens selections to be fired.

Kevin Stefanski is taking the position of Head Coach for the Cleveland Browns in 2020, with this former athlete selecting Joe Woods for the defensive coordinator role. The Senior Defensive Specialist position was awarded to Steve Wilks, forcing Chris Jones to leave his previous position. This doesn’t mean that Jones won’t remain with the Buffalo Bills in some capacity, with his contract active until December 2020. Rumours indicate that he’ll be placed into an analytic role, which would better suit his history as a former general manager and head coach.

The Future & Past for Jones

Sporting analysts are speculating that Chris Jones will return to the Canadian Football League in 2021. The exit clause option under his contract would be foolish to enact, with all CFL Staff Roles taken for the 2020 season. New caps placed onto football operational personally with the CFL means that limited funds are available for outfits to acquire Jones. He’ll become one of the most desired coaches with the 2021 CFL Season, as the former Saskatchewan general manager acquired multiple grey cups.

Those championship victories were acquired for Toronto, Montreal, Calgary and Saskatchewan. Chris Jones proved countless times that his coaching tactics created champion-winning teams. It’s not known if Kevin Stefanski plans to re-hire Chris Jones for the 2021 NFL Season, with his restructuring not indicating that Jones isn’t active under a coaching staff position anymore. When visiting the Cleveland Browns website, Chris Jones cannot be located on any page. This leads many to believe he’ll return to the CFL instead of the NFL.

Texas Head Coach Resigns for General Manager Position

Another shocking resignation was announced this week, with Bill O’Brien leaving the Houston Texas in June. It’s not known who will take over the newly available General Manager position, which will be vacant until a new applicant can be found. The Executive Vice President of Football Operations for the Houston Texans will take over the GM responsibilities until a new candidate is located.

Michigan State University Hires New Head Coach

Alterations in the coaching staff for Michigan State University have been underway during the winter break. The first confirmed change follows with the Head Coach, who has been named as Mel Tucker. Aged forty-eight, this man has spent 20+ engaging with the football youth and seen multiple players under his outfits enter the National Football League. He began coaching with Michigan, employed as the Graduate Assistant Coach for Nick Saban. After terminating his coaching contract with MCU, Tucker went to work with multiple universities and college football organizations. Joining Michigan sees Mel Tucker leave Colorado after lengthy employment. Tucker considered this the hardest decision in his coaching career but had to switch sides for sentimental reasons. If it wasn’t for Michigan State University, Mel Tucker might’ve never become a football coach.

Mel Tucker is leaving his head coaching position with Colorado State University with 23+ years of experience. The announcement of his termination has broken Colorado’s program, with players requesting that he remain with this outfit. The athletics director for CSU mentioned that all individuals connected with their football program are disappointed to see him leave, with replacements already being searched before Mid-Season. Assistant Coaching Staff will lead this outfit until a new Head Coach can be located.

Mel Tucker’s History

The extensive coaching history behind Mel Tucker includes multiple notable moments. He acted as the defensive coach for the 2015-18 Southeastern Conferences. Throughout 2001 to 2004, Tucker was the head coach for Ohio State University. After leaving OSU in 2005, he joined the National Football League for ten seasons. Mel Tucker would spend twelve months with the University of Colorado before leaving for Michigan. Players expressed that he guaranteed the rookie players four seasons until their graduation and that they’re shocked with him turning back on his word.

Additional moments to remember throughout Mel Tucker’s career include two national championships under the Ohio State University, with a third acquired under the Alabama State University in 2015. Before entering the role of defensive coach, Mel Tucker was a professional player for the University of Wisconsin until 1995, where he’d acquire an NFL contract for five seasons. When speaking with reporters at ESPN or TSN, Mel Tucker expressed that he’s coaches multiple outfits but hasn’t ever been so excited to start a new position. Sentiment towards his previous time with the University of Michigan became evident, with him expressing that all skillsets he’s acquired through 25+ years of football will be implemented into his strategies with MCU.

All GFA Coaches Fired

All national coaches with the Ghana Soccer Association have been terminated in what is being claimed as an unexpected and drastic move by respective officials. Those without jobs include all coaching staff for the national teams for both the male and female divisions, leavin nine coaches terminated. When prompted for an immediate response, the association claimed that this action was meant to dissolve the technical staff for all national teams to make for new members with innovative ideas. The GFA did express their gratitude towards the national team. Technically, no official reason for the decision was provided to reporters and it was seen as more a professional excuse.

One of the most notable members that now stands as a free agent is Kwesi Appiah, who acted as the head coach for the Men’s National Senior team. This marks the second time that he’s been terminated for unreasonable accounts. However, Appiah couldn’t acquire a championship title for the African Cup of Nations in 2019. This Egyptian campaign saw the Ghana Blast Stars lose to Tunisia, resulting in them coming dead last. Additional coaching staff with the three other national teams didn’t perform to expectations as well. This would be the most logical reason why they were terminated, but no official account was provided, so it isn’t conclusive. This decision could be biased, with a new General Secretary taking over the Ghana Football Association. With previous bribery thefts within the GFA, it wouldn’t be surprising if the new coaching staff secretly paid under the table for their positions. It would explain why the GFA didn’t provide any insight into future coaches for 2020.

Ghana’s History

The Ghana Football Association has acquired numerous championship titles since the 1980s. Their first of four titles with the Men’s National team came in 1982, which came after losing the championship during the finals three consecutive times. Their history extends to recent memory, with them being a spotlighted team for the 2010 World Cup. They became the third team in South African history to maintain a position in the quarterfinals. However, they lost to Uruguay in the semi-finals from the result of penalties. The organization’s positive history has been clouded over by the recent scandal in 2018, which saw the Ghana Football Association entirely disbanded on the executive level. There were numerous allegations of large-scale corruption, which later would be found accurate. Subsequently, numerous individuals were banned for life from FIFA. This included the previous president of the GFA.

Zidane Disappointed with Real Madrid’s Results

Zidane, one of the most infamous football players in the 21st century, now coaches Real Madrid. However, he became noticeably frustrated by the results of their matchup against Barcelona. This frustration came after the rivalling team score multiple shots on net, with one of Real Madrid’s goals being terminated for an offside penalty. Barcelona was an elite unit, displaying capabilities not seen since 2003 – 04. Both teams played admirably against each other, which ended in the ultimate draw between Real Madrid and Barcelona. Subsequently, Barcelona remains five points ahead of their rivals going forward in La Liga. It also marks the first time that Real Madrid hasn’t scored since 2002.

Zidane made sure to take his comments to the public forum immediately after the matchup. He spoke with reporters, where he mentioned that his result wasn’t good enough for his liking and that more could’ve been done to accomplish a better result. He noted that when you have chances to score, you have to in professional leagues like La Liga. However, Zidane did notice that it was a formidable match of football that saw a classic game take place. The only thing this match lacked was goals, where Zidane mentioned this is a better result than Barcelona defeating them in their hometown.

Zidane’s Positive Remarks

Gareth Bale was the only player for Real Madrid that had an influential factor in this matchup. He performed admirably in the first half, competing with Barcelona’s top scorers to keep the odds even. Zidane was pleased with the results displayed by Gareth after eight games this season, with the former champion mentioning that the Welshman performed better than his teammates with significantly less playing time. The Head Coach for Real Madrid finished his comments to reporters by mentioned other players that performed to his expectations. Those included Raphael Varane, Toni Kroos, Sergio Ramos, and Fede Valverde. Zidane noted that the team handled the shifting tactics properly but could’ve acquired a goal with just a bit more pace. It will be interesting to see how Zidane’s side reacts to his comments with their upcoming match on the 22nd against Athletic Bilbao.

The Real Madrid will have the opportunity to get back into their groove on December 21st when they will face off against Ath. Bilao. They then will have a week off to celebrate the holidays with their families before returning to face Getafe on the 4th of January, Valencia on the 8th, Sevilla on the 18th and Real Valladolid on the 26th.

Florida State Gets New Head Coach

Mike Norvell was the initial trainer Florida State talked to for its football job. The search took college managers around the nation; they maintained returning to the male running Memphis’ program. Norvell stated he had admired the Seminoles program, given that he was a child. He said as a 12-year-old maturing in Dallas, the first item of university souvenirs on his wall surface was a 1993 Florida State championship game permit plate. Simply a day after Norvell directed Memphis to the American Athletic Meeting title, he got on an aircraft to Tallahassee. There he was presented as the Seminoles’ 11th permanent coach, changing Willie Taggart. The 38-year-old Norvell has accepted a six-year offer. He will take control of a Seminoles program that has become battered. The team dropped while he was assisting Memphis right into a Team of power.

Florida State is 6 years eliminated from a championship game and also requires an overhaul. The program battled late in the Jimbo Fisher’s period years as well as went 9-12 under Taggart– consisting of a mixed 0-3 mark vs. Florida, as well as Miami, before he was discharged on Nov. 3. Florida State managers got out to various other coaches throughout the search. However, the college Head of state John Thrasher claimed Norvell was the only individual that was used the task.

The Background of Norvell

Norvell leaves Memphis having published the most significant gaining portion in Tigers’ background. When he left the Tigers for Virginia Technology, and he led the Tigers to the initial 12-win period in college background, he developed on the structure left by Justin Fuente. Called Memphis’ head Dec. 4, 2015, Norvell won a minimum of 8 video games in each of his four years below and also got to double figures two times, including this year.

Memphis completed its program-record 12th success at the Freedom Dish Memorial Arena on Saturday in the American Athletic Championship game gain Cincinnati. He brought a creative strategy to Memphis, where he called the mass of the group’s plays also as he had various coordinators each period. Norvell’s offense ended up being understood for its volatility, leading to huge plays. While Norvell does not have head training experience at the Power 5 degree, he has been the offending coordinator at Arizona State. He has also been a co-offensive coordinator and receiver’s instructor at Pittsburgh.

Thrasher claimed that Norvell’s name showed up two years back when Florida State was seeking to change Fisher, that left for Texas A&M. The search in 2017 took much less than a week. This time around, Thrasher stated authorities wished to take our time. Norvell merely has 4 years of experience at a Team of 5 institutions. Florida State head of state said there is one unique distinction between Norvell as well as Taggart, that he is inevitably far better.

Best Paid Coaches in the World of Rugby

The 2019 Rugby World Cup is now only a memory. It was a tournament that delivered a significant share of the unexpected. Yet what has usually expected after such a competition is that often coaches to these teams move on to a new phase in their careers. Before they do, we want to see which of them topped the ranks of highest-paid coaches during the tournament.

  • John Mitchell – With a salary of £300 000 this defence coach to the English Roses is in fifth place. The 55-year-old rugby star was born in Taranaki in New Zealand and is a former player for the country too. Mitchell was a head coach to the All Blacks from 2001 – 2003. After spending time at various other teams in the role of head coach, he joined Eddie Jones in 2018 as defence coach to the English side.
  • Steve Hansen – Rated as the best coach in All Black history, Hansen came in fourth on the list of best-paid coaches at an impressive income of £400 000. This former policeman managed to deliver an immaculate success rate with force in black and set an impressive winning record. The rumours, however, seem to get louder that he will be leaving them soon.
  • Warren Gatland – £450 000 places Gatland in the third position. The Wales coach managed to get his team in the top four at the RWC after a great year of tremendous success. New Zealand born Gatland comes with a long and successful coaching career that stretches as far back as 1989 when he started his career at the Galwegians RFC. The 56-year-old rugby legend joined Wales in 2007, and since then they have won four Six Nations titles, this included three Grand Slams, and the team managed to reach the semi-finals in both the 2019 and 2011 RWC tournaments.
  • Joe Schmidt – Ireland’s Schmidt earns £600 000, and that made him a second position on the ranks of coaches who featured in Tokyo. He too is New Zealand born and has been coaching the Irish team since 2013. The team managed to achieve great success during this period with three Six Nations Championship behind their name, and they also maintained their first-ever victory over the All Blacks.
  • Eddie Jones – The coach to the English Roses stands at the top of the ranks with a desirable £750 000 salary. This places him quite a bit ahead of Schmidt and miles ahead of the rest on the list. The success of this Australian born coach earned him the recognition of World Rugby Coach of the Year in 2017. He joined England in 2015 and since then have taken them from strength to strength.
  • Pat Lam – Due to him not being one of the coaches in the RWC he can’t really be considered in this list, yet as Director of Rugby at the Bristol Bears, he served as head coach to the team during the Gallagher Premiership Rugby and hence this 51-year-old coach, originally from New Zealand, tops the list with £800 000.

Rassie Erasmus

This RWC is in the semi-finals phase. Thus far it has been an event filled with excitement, drama, surprise and a good deal of sadness and trauma after super typhoon Hagibis hit Japan amidst the tournament. The devastation left by this storm, equal in strength to a category five hurricane, was tremendous and many people were left homeless or injured with an unfortunate number of mortalities too. The Japanese people are a proud and resilient nation. Immediately after the storm, they started with clean-ups and rising from the devastation. Yet they aren’t the only ones showing strength and resilience during the tournament. A team that seems to be moving up in the ranks once again to former glory is none other than the South African Springboks. Under the guidance of head coach Rassie Erasmus, they have moved from strength to strength.

Rassie Erasmus

Johan Erasmus or better known as Rassie, is currently filling the position of the head coach to the national team since 2018. He is also now in the area of being the first-ever appointed South African Rugby Union Director of Rugby. He had been fulfilling this position since late in 2017. Previously Erasmus also served as the Director of Rugby for Munster in Ireland while also being the General Manager for High-performance Teams in South African Rugby Union. Erasmus represented South Africa on the field as an international player from 1997 to 2001. He started his playing career in 1994 when he was playing for the provincial team in South Africa, the Free State, during the Curry Cup that year.

His Leadership Qualities

The success which the team currently experiences is, however, due to his coaching capabilities. Players of the group refer to Erasmus as the one that broke the team’s mental shackles. Since Erasmus took over two years ago, the club underwent an entire transformation process. The players attribute this to the open and honest approach which Erasmus has with them. He is the man who took it upon himself to make decisions for the team, which influenced an entire country. He is not shying away from giving the players in the team his honest opinion about their capabilities and where they are still lacking. His team knows that he is following a leadership style of authenticity and clarity, and nothing is ever hidden away from them.

This cultivates mutual trust within the team and that way; he earned not only the respect of the group but of the entire country as a whole. Furthermore, Erasmus’s coaching style is being appreciated by his team for his ability to let everyone excel in their unique way. He doesn’t favour any player on any other determining factor other than the quality of their play hence they all know that they have earned their place in the team on merit and not on race, or anything else. These are the characteristics of a great coach, one that took it upon himself to transform a crippled team into greatness once again.

Mistakes Commonly Made by Coaches

Coaches are the people who offer leadership and guidance, the people who the team looks up to for answers and assistance, but they too are only human and hence make mistakes. Some mistakes are less severe than others, and some could be considered to be merely embarrassing, but others can have detrimental effects on coaches and teams over the long run. Let’s explore some mistakes which coaches commonly find themselves making.

Regardless of how passionate coaches are about their careers and their teams, the truth of the matter is that coaches are in a position where a lot is expected from them on both a physical as well as on mental and emotional levels. Hence they must find a balance between work and relaxation to recharge and be able to give.

Poor Systems

Having a system in which your work form is vital, but the system should fulfil the purpose of a structure and not dictate every single step taken. A coach can easily fall into the trap of getting immersed in a rigid and restrictive system which will limit his coaching opportunities and not be beneficial to the development of the team at all.

Improving unity within a team is vital and crucial for success during competition. Still, it is essential to remember that each of the members of the group is a person with individual needs and concerns as well, and the coach should not neglect these. A team is only as strong as its weakest member, and hence, it is vital to ensure that each team member can deliver their top performance.

Neglecting Voices

As much as a coach loves to share wisdom and skills, as necessary is it not to talk too much. Whenever a coach is going on talking too much or going into long team talks, it can result in players becoming shut down and not taking in what is being said at all. It is much more advisable to listen sometimes, leave moments for reflection and contemplation and emphasize the silence in between. State your message clearly and give the team time to process the message internally.

When help is needed, or something is required, which is not your field of expertise, it is advised that assistance is requested. Sometimes getting a team member involved in some other aspect of the team’s organization can improve their sense of belonging and show them that you value their contribution. This can have a positive effect on the field. Delegating some of your responsibilities to people who can take it off your hands, can free the coach up to attend to matters which is vital to the success of the team.

Robbie Fowler’s Coaching Career Kicks Off

Middle October sees the kick-off of the Australian A-League and the former Liverpool star is keen on making his mark as head coach to Brisbane Roar. This is the opportunity which Robbie Fowler has been waiting for. Up to now his experience as a coach has been limited to coaching for a short while in Thailand at the club Muangthong United. Otherwise, he has been employed at Liverpool’s academy, lacking any other coaching experience.

Fowler the Reliable Option

Even though many are aware of the lack of an extensive coaching career behind Fowler’s name, he is still considered to be a great option to bring the ailing Australian A-League team back to former glory. He does have an excellent knowledge of the league after spending some time at North Queensland Fury as well as at Perth Glory. Thus he used the words reliable and safe to describe himself once appointed to coach in the league. This might also prove to be more than mere words in the future of Brisbane Roar who already had seen some success as Fowler assisted them into some pre-season glory when they managed to grab the Surf City Cup from Perth Glory and the Newcastle Jets.

Their style of playing and especially their manner of the attack showed much promise for the upcoming season as well as their opening game against the runner-up team of last year, Perth. Fowler was very much impressed with the results when his team won the Cup and stated that even though they can still work on many small things, they have already sorted out most of the concerns. He also mentioned that the team has many good players, and they have the character needed to take them to success during the season.

The Previous Season

Last year, Brisbane Roar ended the season in ninth place. The only club behind them on the rankings was Central Coast Mariners, the basement club. The leader on the list was Sydney FC. Sydney will be opening their season against Adelaide. Adelaide is also under new management with Gertjan Verbeek, the very experienced Dutchman at their lead. Verbeek just moved on from FC Twente. Joining Verbeek and Fowler as the newbies in the league are Erick Mombaerts, the Frenchman at Melbourne City and Marco Kurtz, the German previously managing Adelaide and now in charge of Melbourne Victory.

While the two clubs from Melbourne will face each other, Western Sydney Wanderers and the Mariners and New Zealand’s Wellington Phoenix and Western United will also meet in the opening matches taking place soon. Western United was included this year as the 11th team when the A-League was expanded to add one more group. Another edition to achieve a total of 12 units, is scheduled for next year.

The Coaching Staff of the Liverpool Football Club

While the captain of the Liverpool ship is undoubtedly Jurgen Klopp, there are loads of other noteworthy helpers on the boat to sail the Reds to glory. With the recent Champions League victory, and finishing second in the Premier League, we decided to take a look at all the coaching staff at Jurgen Klopp’s disposal. He has managed to build a phenomenal team to ensure that the playing squad remains prepared and focused for the upcoming season that starts in August 2019.

Assistant Manager – Peter Krawietz

Peter Krawietz decided to follow Jurgen Klopp to Liverpool in October 2015 from Borussia Dortmund. He initially worked with the Liverpool manager back in Mainz when Jurgen was the head coach, while he was the chief scout. The German, who is not considered a professional footballer by any means, was dubbed “The Eye” due to his phenomenal video analysis and scouting abilities.

Assistant Manager – Pep Lijnders

Jurgen Klopp didn’t think twice when he had the opportunity to bring back Pep Lijnders to Liverpool in June 2018, where he briefly left the club to return to his homeland where he was in control of NEC Nijmegen. Lijnders previously spent more than three years with Liverpool, first as a coach for the under-16’s and then the first-team development coach during 2015. Since Klopp arrived, Lijnders managed to climb even further where he is now a vital part of the team as an assistant coach.

Goalkeeping Coach – John Achterberg

Achterberg is another Dutchman in the coaching staff for Liverpool that joined in June 2009 after he spent more than a decade with Tranmere Rovers. He was initially a player with the team before he moved to a coaching position. Achterberg received his promotion to goalkeeping coach in 2011 and has coached Liverpool’s goalkeepers ever since.

Head of Conditioning and Fitness – Andreas Kornmayer

Kornmayer decided to join The Reds in July 2016 after he spent more than 15 years with the dominant Bayern Munich team. Given Liverpool’s reliance on energy, tremendous importance is placed on the ability and skill of Kornmayer, who much impressed Klopp during his time spent at Bayern Munich where he worked under Pep Guardiola, Jupp Heynckes, and Louis van Gaal.

Head of Medical Services – Dr Andrew Massey

Dr Massey was initially a professional football player in an Irish League before an injury forced him to enrol in a university where he studied physiotherapy. After his studies in medicine and sports physiotherapy, Dr Massey joined the ice hockey team, Belfast Giants, before he was promoted as team doctor. In 2013, he was appointed the academy doctor for Liverpool and was made permanent in 2015.

Performance and Rehabilitation Manager – Philipp Jacobsen

The newest recruit in the Liverpool coaching staff is Philipp Jacobsen that works closely with Dr Massey. Jacobsen was initially a senior physiotherapist in Qatar before he made his way to the Liverpool squad. He also worked with the national team of Qatar, where he gained most of his experience.