“I AM a coach. I’m not Harry Potter. He is magical, but in reality, there is no magic. Magic is fiction and football is real.”
That’s a quote by Jose Mourinho, one of his many nuggets that make interviewing him a sheer pleasure.
Coaches in Malaysia may be more dour, but they do come up with precious ones, especially at emotional moments.
And nine games into the Super League season, there have been many such moments.
Perak coach Datuk Lim Teong Kim, for one, has a thing about goreng pisang.
Just before his team met Johor Darul Ta’zim, he said: “If I want to avoid pressure as a coach, I might as well be selling pisang goreng. But even that job has pressure too.”
They were beaten 5-0, and he played deaf afterwards.
Back in February, he said many players would have to become pisang goreng sellers if the Premier League was scrapped. It still got scrapped.
And when JDT eked out a 1-0 win over Police, their coach Esteban Solari went: “It wasn’t a challenge, it was boring because the opponents wanted to pack the defensive line.”
As a writer, these quotes not only give us joy, but also tells us what is running in the minds of the coaches.
Truth be told, being a football coach is not easy in Malaysia.
It’s performances on the field that matter, with high expectations from the management and fans of the game, but coaches do not have a full say on what goes on.
They have to deal with budget issues, interference from the upper management and dealing with some “problem” players and even trainers.
Take South Korean coach Choi Moon-sik, for instance. The Kelantan coach has been rested.
His players could not understand his tactics and he had refused to accept the opinions of the management.
Moon-sik’s agent Jeong Myeong-ho, however, said he wasn’t provided adequate facilities in his accommodation, players were given little food and were not paid two months’ wages.
Myeong-hoalso confirmed that a letter to FIFA has been sent on his predicament with Kelantan. Kelantan have retorted by saying they would take legal action against Moon-sik.
My question is: Was due diligence done before hiring Moon-sik? If he can’t speak English, why hire him?
There is a translator, but knowing Malaysian football, you need a coach who has good man-management skills, and for that to happen, language is crucial.
Now they have appointed Frank Bernhardt as coach, and owner Norizam Tukiman says the German coach could face the axe if the Red Warriors lose five matches in a row.
Out of the three games under him so far, they have already lost two. Football is a process, and one wonders why Bernhardt would accept such a condition.
Coaches need to stand their ground, especially in terms of plans, development and where they see the team in the next few years before signing deals.
If the club want to let them go and demand compensation, why accept being rested?
Here’s a quote for the coaches who want to sign up with Malaysia teams: “Proceed with caution”.
However, it’s not all clubs that do this. Kuching City, for one, did not let Irfan Bakti go although he offered to resign after seven winless games.
Instead, the club owners have told Irfan to work his magic in the transfer window and improve their fortunes in the second round of the league.
That is an ideal situation because the coach can now regroup, analyse and see what else can be done. It’s called rational management.
Coaching is an art. It requires lots of leadership, thinking and patience. And when victory comes, it’s the players who get the credit.
Coaches deserve more.
Remember, Sir Alex Ferguson, who is touted to be one of the greatest managers, got the Manchester United job in 1986. He won his first title in 1993.
There is no such thing as instant success - there’s another quote for our team managements.
