“This year, we are only going to do 40%.”
Ahn Ik-soo (58), FC Seoul coach, who met in Kirishima City, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, the second winter training ground for the 2023 season, said this. It is intended to reduce the scope of the manager’s involvement in the management of the new season’s team and even the realization of performance from ‘100’ to less than half. What does it mean?
Director Ahn, after being put into FC Seoul as a firefighter two years ago in the summer, stuck to the color of the rear build-up with the topic of ‘destroying the position’ until last year. He, who was famous for his ‘suffocating defense’ tactics in the past, analyzed dozens of videos of coach Pep Guardiola and melted his own teaching method to build it. Like the number 1 overall pass last season (20,923), the indicators that the football he aims for are clear. However, despite his attractive process, he was unable to score many goals due to the lack of weight in the front line. He stayed in the Final B for two consecutive seasons in the league. Last year, he finished runner-up in the FA Cup, but it was not enough to satisfy his thirst for achievements.
People around them advise that they should turn to practical tactics, using the defensive strategies that coach Ahn came up with when he led Busan in the past as a teacher on the other hand. However, director Ahn made it clear about ‘My Way’. Various training sessions are in full swing for the purpose of ‘space dominance’ that further strengthens the existing color in the winter training. He said, “Will fans come if a symbolic club called Seoul, the capital, focuses on defense? In such a club, there is no benefit to the manager locking it up again so as not to be cut off and playing soccer.” did.
The 3rd year challenge of ‘Iksu Ball’. Coach Ahn’s victory is the player’s autonomy and responsibility. It is in line with the ‘40% leadership’ he said. Team tactics are understood by the members. Transfer students from other teams know Ahn’s football for the past two years. The same goes for Hwang Eui-jo, who joined as a ‘short-term rental student for 6 months’ after working in Europe. The key was narrowing the ‘bowl gap’ between the uneven team conditioning and the dedication and sacrifice of each player, which was the cause of the poor performance. Director Ahn put the methodology of ‘autonomy and responsibility’ rather than ‘control’.
Manager Ahn said, “When we played the previous home game, we stayed at a hotel the day before and rode the club bus together. He will go to work individually on game day this year,” he said in surprise. In addition, “Originally, the tactical meeting was also finalized the day before the game, but from this year it is held two days before. And until the players come to the stadium comfortably from home, they prepare for the game according to their own routine.”
This trend can also be seen in the Kagoshima tradition. Previously, there was a clear process in the training process twice a day, but this year, after one official training session in the morning or afternoon, the rest of the time is self-training. Breakfast is not necessarily gathered at a set time, but it is taken care of considering the individual’s physical condition. 토토사이트
Teams with many seniors and young players with ‘names’ like Seoul aim for the original team in a controlled system. At close range, juniors can learn by looking at seniors who are role models. However, ‘responsibility’ is focused on seniors. In fact, Seoul has been pointed out in recent years for the lack of commitment and fighting spirit of younger players. This autonomous training and game participation process makes each other more responsible. The senior should set an example for the juniors, and the juniors should benchmark the seniors’ self-management and be reborn as ‘real pros’ without any instructions from the coaching staff. Director Ahn has autonomy, but he is determined to make his responsibility more clear. He expects a positive effect on the ever-changing ‘Iksoo Ball’ on the ground.
Coach Ahn said, “(25th) Until the opening game with Incheon, we are trying to do what we do through various simulations with autonomy and responsibility. I want to keep trying,” he said.