Training Ground Guru Podcast

Our guest on Episode #62 of the TGG Podcast, in association with Hudl, is Natasha Patel. Natasha is Assistant Academy Director at Southampton and one of the most experienced women working in men's professional football.  From 2011 to 2019 she was Academy Analyst and then Head of Performance Analysis at Southampton, before leaving to become Head of Performance Analysis at New York Red Bulls for the next three-and-a-half years.

Bayern Munich Head of Coach Development Rene Maric discusses his career journey from blogging to coaching top players, including his time at Borussia Dortmund and Leeds United. He talks about his relationships with Thomas Tuchel and Marco Rose, working with stars like Erling Haaland and Jude Bellingham, and the importance of using laptops in coaching.

Highly-rated coach René Marić discusses the 'Bayern Munich way', Academy importance, 'game insight', raising entry age to 11, and liaising with Thomas Tuchel. Topics include tactics, Bayern's playing philosophy, Bavarian talent development, player psychology, relative age effect, and academy strategy.

Our guest on Episode #60 of the TGG Podcast, in association with Hudl, is Radhi Jaidi. Radhi is a true legend of Tunisian football, having played 105 times for his country and won every trophy there was to win at club level there. Fans in England will know him best from his time at Bolton Wanderers, where he played under Sam Allardyce and helped them qualify for Europe.  Since 2018 he's been a coach, working with Southampton U23s, Hartford Athletic in the USL, Esperance in Tunisia and now Cercle Brugge in Belgium, where he's assistant. Radhi told me about his tough upbringing, his best memories from Bolton and his experiences and ambitions as a coach.  SHOW NOTES => 02:05: Working as assistant at Cercle Brugge since 2023. Second spell at the club. 04:30: Same ownership as Monaco. How this impacts what happens at Cercle. Recently had a training camp in Monaco. 07:48: Why he chose Cercle. Background in youth development. Balance between development and results. 13:17: Importance of relationship building. 15:26: Duties as assistant manager. Main duties are as defensive coach, especially with the centre-backs. 16:45: Growing up in Tunisia.  21:26: Rare in having gone direct from Africa to the Premier League. 34:09: 15 different nationalities at one stage but gelled together. Importance of Tuesday team meal and being fined for missing his first one! 43:00: Childhood. Father died when Radhi was 11 and he had to grow up fast.  44:43: Are young players too pampered today? 50:30: Differences between the generations. Generation of young players have a big problem with distraction. Malcolm Frame, psychologist at Southampton, had a good mnemonic, the 4 As: Accept, Assess, Adapt, Apply. Generations and environment might change, but core values shouldn't. 55:31: Ambitions for the future - "the ultimate is to succeed with a European team as a Head Coach. I still have the ambition, the desire, the energy, the obsession to make it." Unconscious bias. "The day I get the opportunity I am going to explode." 57:53: Importance of his Muslim faith.     

Our guest on Episode #59 of the TGG Podcast, in association with Hudl, is Reading manager Ruben Selles. The highly-rated coach gained plaudits for the way he managed Southampton for the second half of last season and there were high hopes when he took over at Reading in the summer. However, an ongoing financial crisis has plunged the very future of the club into doubt. In this episode the Spaniard gives us insights into the challenges he and his players have faced, while also looking back on his career to date and ahead to the future.  SHOW NOTES => 02:07: Challenges as Reading manager. Pre-season with nine pro players. 06:48: Transfer embargo in January window. Will fight to hold onto players. 09:13: Foregoing wages in November along with Director of Football Mark Bowen. "As Simon Sinek says, leaders eat last." 10:41: Having impressive infrastructure at the club, in terms of Academy and new training ground. "Yes, but you can have an amazing house and very cheap furniture. The real thing is to build a culture inside the club and make people feel safe." 12:05: What is situation regarding ownership and potential sale? 12:58: Has the project been what was promised to you? 13:30: Started coaching at 16 and gained Pro Licence at 25. Was it an advantage starting so young?  20:37: Travelled around the world as a young Spanish coach: to Greece, Russia, Azerbaijan, Denmark and England.  25:09: Move to Southampton. Had been tracked by Rasmus Ankersen. Mentored by Matt Crocker. Difficult being parachuted in as an assistant rather than the Head Coach choosing you himself? 30:02: Innovative club: individual coaching/ specialist coaches/ Playbook etc. How did it work? 32:44: Taking over as Southampton Head Coach when Ralph Hassenhuttl and then Nathan Jones were sacked.  37:48: Management is all-consuming. Impact on family. Using psychologist support for both himself and his family. "The kids were suffering." 45:53: Could you have stayed at Southampton after Russell Martin came in as manager? 48:59: Did you get offers from other clubs after leaving Southampton? And why did Reading appeal to you? 50:25: What is your playing philosophy?  54:47: Proving he is a development manager.  56:08: Working with young talented players. Example of Rasmus Hojlund, now Manchester United, at Copenhagen. Convinced he will become world-class. A "mentality monster." 1:00:25: Ambitions: for the rest of the season and remainder of career.   

Chris O'Loughlin, Sporting Director of Union Saint-Gilloise, shares his journey from Ireland to Belgium and how he transformed a small club into a powerhouse. He discusses the importance of creating a robust club culture and the unique values he established to guide player recruitment. O'Loughlin emphasizes data-driven strategies to find underrated talent, leading to remarkable successes against larger budgets, and outlines ambitious plans for the club's future, including enhancing their academy and dreaming of unforgettable European nights.

Everton Director of Football Kevin Thelwell discusses the club's strategic pillars, the importance of data and philosophy in building a successful team, and the evolution of manager Sean Dyche's style of play. They also explore the use of data analysis in football, the challenges of the summer transfer window, and the positive signs for the club's upward trajectory.

Jes Buster Madsen, Head of Research and Development for FC Copenhagen in Denmark, discusses the role of cognitive neuroscience in football. Topics include the importance of ecological psychology, visual cues, working memory, game intelligence, simplicity in neuroscience, and the neuroplasticity of the brain.

Mark Leyland, prominent football analyst, discusses his journey from VHS analysis to coaching at top clubs. Topics include feedback delivery, player-driven analysis, and the evolving role of analysts in player development. Insightful anecdotes on working with Klopp and Howe.

Sarah Rudd, former VP of Analytics for StatDNA and Arsenal, discusses her work at Arsenal, challenges of sustaining an analytics department, data v human eyes in scouting, and her experiences as a woman in a male-dominated industry. She also talks about the top clubs for data science in the Premier League, leveraging tracking data, and the future of data analytics in football.