The Soccer Coach: From the Birth of the Game to Guardiola and Klopp

Leo Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappé— even if you’re not a sports fan, you definitely know these names. They have millions of followers on social media, they’re among the main characters of mass culture, they’re football stars. Somewhere in the shadow of these luminaries, the profession of the coach has been unfairly overlooked. With the typical pedantry of Germans, Dietrich Schulze-Marmeling describes the history of the coaching profession from the birth of football—its transformation from a game for gentlemen into a game for working people, and then into professional sport. This is a detailed account of coaching ideas, innovative tactical decisions, and the people whose influence shaped the game. You’ll learn how the British “pass and run” style was born; what the “Danubian school” is; how the “W-M” system was created; why the Dutch “Total Football” changed the philosophy of the game; how Valeriy Lobanovskyi was the first to practice a scientific approach to play; why Guardiola became coach of Barcelona instead of Mourinho, and what that has to do with Johan Cruyff; how Jürgen Klopp ignited a new passion in the game; and much more from the fascinating history of football. In your hands is a story of people on the touchline—the ones who made football what we know today.