Mr. equanimity

SOMETHING WITH HIS MEMORY BECAME

Frank Rijkard has one of those from the category of “most-most” work in football, where you are constantly under the highest pressure. But how does he manage at the same time as if nothing had happened to maintain ease?

He is the coach of the best club in Europe, but with a truly worldwide recognition. He is admired by both experts and fans. But one has only to deprive Frank Rykard of his usual football environment, as his distraction becomes simply terrifying. “There are drawbacks,” Marco van Bastin, his former Milan teammate, once admitted. “For that matter, memory is not his strongest side.”

His wife Monica likewise describes the essence of what it means to share the alcove with the 44-year-old Ricard: “He is a little strange. It happens that you ask him some really important question, and he turns and says: “You know, they sell excellent ice cream at Lake Como.”

The detachment of Rikard can frighten his wife, but, according to Dolph Rox, who worked side by side with Rikard during the season in Holland, this is one of the main components of his success in football. “He never allows himself to be angry in front of the players,” Rox lifts the veil, five years ago assisting Raikard in Sparta Rotterdam. - He is always calm, so the players also feel calm and confident. He completely disconnects from football, leaving the training field or stadium after the match. Pressure load? I don’t know where he hides it, but by the time he comes home, it definitely disappears. I don’t understand how he succeeds. I thought about football 24 hours a day, but he didn’t. Thanks to this, the next day he came to work with fresh strength. "

Prophecies of Cruyff

And now Ricard can afford such ease. His Barcelona, perhaps the most beloved team in the world, lost to Chelsea as part of the Champions League group stage on Wednesday, but it still leads in the example. However, the Dutchman did not always go so smoothly. The first six months of working at Nou Camp were not sugar for him. In December 2003, after a grim series of three defeats in four matches, newspapers called him a coward, and photographs with his image were signed in the editorial offices only as “guilty”.

And up to this point, Raykard’s suitability has been called into question more than once. “He was a great player, but I think such quiet people like him do not become big coaches,” Johan Cruyff once said as he cut off. Everything went to the point that the Flying Dutchman would be right. The second coming of the Raikard coach (the debut took place in the Dutch national team at Euro 2000) ended in May 2002. His club - “Sparta” - flew out of the elite division, and Raycard was accused of excessive serenity. It was more from Sven-Goran Ericsson than from Jose Mourinho - and it did not bear fruit.

After the Rotterdam epic, a break came in Raikard’s coaching career - he began work on a book on how to manage a football club. It took months of research, but he never wrote a book. In July 2003, however, he made one of the most unexpected and impressive comebacks, accepting the offer of the newly elected president of Barcelona, Juan Laporta. Rykard would never have gotten this job if not for the recommendations of Cruyff (apparently, already having time to radically change his point of view).

FROM NIGHT WALKS TO THE EUROPEAN TRIUMPH

One way or another, Laporta’s choice looked like a big gamble. “At that time, many doubted Rykard as a coach, but I never did,” Rox swears. - Yes, he is a very sweet, modest person, but we must not forget that he is primarily a winner. He always won something and continues in the same vein as a coach. In Sparta, despite the demotion, we did not have such a bad season. But a lot of problems interfered, mostly financial, because of which many players knew that they could leave the team long before the end of the season. In such conditions, it is not easy to work. But Frank still wanted to stay on the team after the flight. I think that says a lot about him. The only thing he could do nothing about: the departure of several football players was reflected in his salary. And he agreed to receive half as much, but Sparta could not even afford this. Therefore, he decided that it would be better for everyone if he left. ”

In December 2003, Rikard was at a crossroads. “Barcelona” was the twelfth in La Liga, but another six months of failure were beyond his strength. Ricard took the most radical step: setting the Catalan press against the players. “Once, to be honest, I was forced to publicly admit that the real reason for our failures was the massive night outings of the players. We discussed this in our circle, and I was lucky to find a group of smart and responsible football players. As a result, we won the Madrid “Real” 18-point gap and finished second after “Valencia”.

“The club has lost the winner’s psychology,” continues Rykard. - When I joined the team, an atmosphere of sadness and disappointment reigned in it. And I kept thinking: if we, with such talented players, are in such a deplorable state, then something needs to be changed radically. They did not play as a team. It was important to create a new structure and such an atmosphere that the players had a desire to work together and help each other. But first of all, we had to create a team of winners. The players liked this idea, and they promised that they would help me in everything. So we made a kind of moral agreement. ”

Almost three years have passed, and Rikard still enjoys unshakable authority among the sponsored. Last season, Barca beat Chelsea Champions League 1/8 finals and continued their triumphal march, winning the main European Cup tournament. Today, blue garnet, perhaps, have become even stronger.

Proof of this is the return to duty six months after the ligaments of the knee Xavi, one of the best midfielders in the world. Even more famous participants in the 2006 World Cup final, Gianluca Zambrotta and Lilian Thuram, joined Barça after arriving from Juventus, while Eidur Gudjohnsen (from Chelsea) was called to replace Henrik Larsson in the attack.

True, it does not do without loss, and even what! Samuel Eto'o's top scorer lost five months due to a knee injury. However, Raycard still has many options for building the game in the attack: Ronaldinho, Lionel Messi, Gudjohnsen, Louis Julie, Javier Saviola, plus youth in the person of Santiago Escerro and Giovanni.

ITALIAN CATALOGS

However, just the defense, and not the attack of “Barcelona” is the cornerstone in the coaching philosophy of Raikard. Barça have the best score on goals conceded in Spain over the past two years. In the last season semifinals of the Champions League against Milan, the Spaniards acted in defense so effectively that it was just right to ask the question: which of the two teams is Italian?

And this is all the more surprising since Rikard, being a player of the great “Milan” of the late 80s - early 90s, used to fall asleep during tactical briefings by Arrigo Sacchi. Raicard played at San Siro for five years and won two European cups with Rossoneri. He admits that Sakka's working methods have greatly influenced his coaching creed. “Someone said that my style is a synthesis of the defensive discipline of AC Milan and the Dutch addiction to attacking football. And I guess that's the right definition, ”says Rikard. - I'm trying to combine two different football schools. I would describe one of them as “serious,” and the other as more “playing,” that is, more technical. By “serious,” I mean that players should take on more responsibility, play as a team, and, when necessary, work out on the defensive. The goal is always the same - victory. I am absolutely not interested in playing beautiful football if the team does not win. It happens that the result is simply required. My players are well aware of this. ”

Rikard spares no flattering words for players like Edmilson and Rafael Marquez, who often hold responsible positions in front of the Quartet of defenders and do everything possible to maintain a balance between defense and attack. All of his players, except one, must fulfill their direct duties on the field so that Barca works as a whole. Who makes the exception is not hard to guess. “Ronaldinho is the only one with free hands,” says Rykard. - Usually he starts the match in midfield, but in the course of the game he becomes more likely an attacker than a midfielder. Since he is freed from any defensive work, I want the rest to maintain balance. Therefore, when he leaves his flank, it is important that the other three midfielders start moving towards the free zone. Otherwise, if the ball is lost, we give the opponent too much space to attack. ”

Midfielder Deco agrees that Barcelona are a well-organized team, but still much more spectacular than Chelsea. “Of course, Raikard likes it when the team defends well, but its priority is given to the attack,” the Champions League midfielder 2005/06 rants. - I am sure: any defender prefer the game of the Mourinho team. We risk more than Chelsea, but we play better. Better quality. For example, when we play at home and the opponent closes in his half, our coach rightly believes that there is no sense in playing with an oporno breakwater, and throws Andres Iniesta into the battle. And the team gets what it needs - faster moving the ball between the lines. Details are always of great importance and leave their mark on the style of the game. And Raikard’s gaze is always fixed on the enemy’s goal. ”

RESCUE THE WRONG RONALDINHO!

Rykard’s ability to manage the team is a serious challenge - the Dutchman is trying to regain the former Ronaldinho, who, like Wayne Rooney, still seems to have not recovered from a mild postmundial ailment. Rikard chest defends his star: “We see how his game has faded, but there is no cause for concern. He does everything he can, and that’s enough, because he works for the team. He is not a car or a robot. Sometimes we forget that he is a man. ”

Rikard is well aware that in a club like Barcelona, he needs to be not only a coach, but no less a psychologist. He sees in the players, first of all, people, and only then - football players. He knows for himself (as a football player, once Frank left the Ajax training, sending Johan Cruyff to hell, and vowed that he would never play for this club again) how important the coaching appreciation is for the players.

“He can read people like an open book, and knows how to help them get the most out of themselves,” Rox sums up. - And why is he so calm - because the “pit bull” always works with him - the one who, if necessary, can also tighten the nuts. Last season he was Henk Ten Kat, in the summer he was replaced by Johan Neeskens - another lover to insert a wick. Who needs".

Deco, who in 2004 preferred Ricard to his former Port coach, Jose Mourinho, is again scattered in compliments: “Frank is a unique coach, different from the others. In my opinion, he is the perfect helmsman for Barcelona.

“On Sunday, there will be no place in his head for any ice cream,” goalkeeper Victor Valdes assures. “With us, he is always focused on football.”

Translation by Andrey KARNAUKHOV

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