In an exclusive interview with Daily Sports, Ronnick talked about his past coaching experience and his views on today's coaches. Talk about leading a small team like Hoffenheim into the top league "Hoffenheim has always been a small village...
In an exclusive interview with Daily Sports, Ronnick talked about his past coaching experience and his views on today's coaches.
Talk about leading a small team like Hoffenheim into the top league
"Hoffenheim has always been a small village with a population of only 3,000. They contacted me that year and asked if they were willing to cooperate? Can you imagine leading Hoffenheim into a top league team? I was not sure at the time, but after meeting, I agreed to coach. Within two years, we were promoted to two levels in a row. In the first season of the Bundesliga, we beat Bayern to win the half-time championship. Interestingly, we only signed one new player in the transfer window, and basically relied on the lineup when we played in the Bundesliga to win this half-time championship. Later, due to serious injuries, we finally ended the season with sixth or seventh. "
Is this a miracle?
"I don't think so, we did this in Leipzig and Salzburg, like three upgrades in four years. Looking back, what we did there... Of course, it's much easier for us to achieve this than clubs that don't have a deep football tradition. Hoffenheim has no internationals, and Leipzig and Salzburg, so we almost started from scratch. People would ask, why are you doing these crazy things? But I don't think it's crazy. Looking back, I think it's easier to do things in a startup club. Now, our national team is facing a similar situation. If we want to beat Italy, Germany, Croatia or the Netherlands, even though one of their players may be stronger than us, we have to take a different strategy."
What did Guardiola leave in Germany?
"Guardiola's three years of coaching in Germany have had a significant impact, and almost all young coaches want to follow the way Bayern plays. Suddenly, they started drawing circles in training to practice passing. I think he did have a profound impact on Bayern. He has trained many young players, such as Kimmich, who I knew when he was young, and he was already very special and had top psychological qualities."
" In turn, Frick and many other coaches have also left a deep mark in Spain, such as Heinx or Ratke... So it's not surprising that German coaches like Hans have succeeded in Barcelona, and it's all achieved without speaking Catholic and Spanish, The players seem to love him very much, like him, follow him. If you can do this in a foreign league, and you won't say a word in a local way, that's a great achievement. Of course, discipline is a trait that German coaches usually bring. "
Talking about Flick's greatest achievement
" He changed the style of the team: high defense, high pressure pressing. I've never seen Barcelona play like this, completely different. Hans trusts these high-level young players at Barcelona, whose average age is about 23. For many people, Flick is like a father-like figure, and I think many of the decisions he makes are very consistent with the standards of modern coaches, which is very similar to Klopp or myself. "
What is a modern coach?
"For me, modern coaches are people who serve players. I have to help them become the best self and come out in the best shape. In team sports, this is only achieved when the entire team is developed. If you don't succeed as a team, such as the performance of the German national team in the last two World Cups, then no one will benefit from it, and everyone becomes losers because they don't achieve the goals of the team. So if you want to succeed in team sports, you have to develop the entire team. When you do this, individual players will benefit from it."
How will football change in the future?
"I think the future changes in football may be similar to those in the past 10 or 15 years. If you watch games in the late 1990s now, like in 1995 or 1998, you would feel like these games were in slow motion. In Germany, Klopp and I pushed football towards higher intensity and faster speeds."
