If I were to summarise leadership in its simplest form, it would be the ability to put the team before yourself. It’s easy to say, but it’s not very easy to do. I was fortunate to be in an environment with a lot of reference points, a lot of leaders. I was lucky to play with Patrick Vieira and Frank Lampard, who were leaders at their clubs for many years, but I also had coaches who were good leaders, so there were plenty of influences. Then, I also had my parents, and I think you draw a little bit from everything. There are plenty of leaders outside of football as well. I think Nelson Mandela, historically, for what he did for a country with so many tensions, and so many difficult problems, is a great example. The way his leadership still influences a big part of the continent is – and was – pretty incredible.
The most important thing as a leader is to have clarity. And clarity is not just tactical – it’s clarity of who you are as a team. Unless you communicate with people, nobody will do what you want them to do. That’s a big part of what we learn really early on in Belgium, in Brussels, and I take that with me whenever I communicate with the group. But communication is also very individual, so there are some things that can only be said in a certain way to certain people. But communication is crucial, and it’s not going to be any less crucial in the future.
I think you earn trust and respect just by trying to be honest, saying what you think when you think it. In the end, you might not always get popularity with that because, as a manager, given the nature of the job, it’s not necessarily possible to always be popular. At least, not in the short term. I think when you move forward a few years, people always look back positively on you for what you’ve done for them. In the short term, trust and respect are earned by saying what you really think and not everyone takes it well, but the majority will respect that.
If I were to summarise leadership in its simplest form, it would be the ability to put the team before yourself. It’s easy to say, but it’s not very easy to do. I was fortunate to be in an environment with a lot of reference points, a lot of leaders. I was lucky to play with Patrick Vieira and Frank Lampard, who were leaders at their clubs for many years, but I also had coaches who were good leaders, so there were plenty of influences. Then, I also had my parents, and I think you draw a little bit from everything. There are plenty of leaders outside of football as well. I think Nelson Mandela, historically, for what he did for a country with so many tensions, and so many difficult problems, is a great example. The way his leadership still influences a big part of the continent is – and was – pretty incredible.
The most important thing as a leader is to have clarity. And clarity is not just tactical – it’s clarity of who you are as a team. Unless you communicate with people, nobody will do what you want them to do. That’s a big part of what we learn really early on in Belgium, in Brussels, and I take that with me whenever I communicate with the group. But communication is also very individual, so there are some things that can only be said in a certain way to certain people. But communication is crucial, and it’s not going to be any less crucial in the future.
I think you earn trust and respect just by trying to be honest, saying what you think when you think it. In the end, you might not always get popularity with that because, as a manager, given the nature of the job, it’s not necessarily possible to always be popular. At least, not in the short term. I think when you move forward a few years, people always look back positively on you for what you’ve done for them. In the short term, trust and respect are earned by saying what you really think and not everyone takes it well, but the majority will respect that.
I’ve been in football all my life, so I think every step, every experience, is an opportunity to learn. But, in the end, it’s the same basics. If you compare Bayern with Manchester City, with Hamburg, with Anderlecht, it’s got its very own identity – it’s a very special club. But there are basics that remain the same: it’s still 11 football players on a football pitch, it’s still the same rules of the game, and it’s still the same rules of life. If you work hard, you have a chance. If you don’t work for it and you’re not a team, you have fewer chances, and the differences can always be learned from, which is also something I’m passionate about.
You have different phases in leadership. I think during my time as a captain at Man City, I evolved with it. The kind of captain I was in my first phase is not the same as in my last phase, but that comes with age and maturity. You transition from when you do things for yourself and when, as a leader, you want to be the strongest, the fastest, the most aggressive or the most important in the team. When you get a little bit older, you want to be the one who makes everybody around you better. You want to be the one who calms everything down and motivates everyone.
When I look at the dressing room we have at Bayern, I see similarities with some of the dressing rooms I’ve had in the past. But the main thing for me is that the dressing room also takes responsibility for its own environment, for its own ‘life’, and my role is to support that. I have to make sure that if the players have an idea that can make the team better, they should feel that we, the coaching staff, are supporting it. If you play against Bayern, it has to represent an almost impossible mission, like when I played against the very best Bayern teams. For us, it’s the goal to give that feeling to many opponents.
If I were to summarise leadership in its simplest form, it would be the ability to put the team before yourself. It’s easy to say, but it’s not very easy to do. I was fortunate to be in an environment with a lot of reference points, a lot of leaders. I was lucky to play with Patrick Vieira and Frank Lampard, who were leaders at their clubs for many years, but I also had coaches who were good leaders, so there were plenty of influences. Then, I also had my parents, and I think you draw a little bit from everything. There are plenty of leaders outside of football as well. I think Nelson Mandela, historically, for what he did for a country with so many tensions, and so many difficult problems, is a great example. The way his leadership still influences a big part of the continent is – and was – pretty incredible.
The most important thing as a leader is to have clarity. And clarity is not just tactical – it’s clarity of who you are as a team. Unless you communicate with people, nobody will do what you want them to do. That’s a big part of what we learn really early on in Belgium, in Brussels, and I take that with me whenever I communicate with the group. But communication is also very individual, so there are some things that can only be said in a certain way to certain people. But communication is crucial, and it’s not going to be any less crucial in the future.
I think you earn trust and respect just by trying to be honest, saying what you think when you think it. In the end, you might not always get popularity with that because, as a manager, given the nature of the job, it’s not necessarily possible to always be popular. At least, not in the short term. I think when you move forward a few years, people always look back positively on you for what you’ve done for them. In the short term, trust and respect are earned by saying what you really think and not everyone takes it well, but the majority will respect that.
If I were to summarise leadership in its simplest form, it would be the ability to put the team before yourself. It’s easy to say, but it’s not very easy to do. I was fortunate to be in an environment with a lot of reference points, a lot of leaders. I was lucky to play with Patrick Vieira and Frank Lampard, who were leaders at their clubs for many years, but I also had coaches who were good leaders, so there were plenty of influences. Then, I also had my parents, and I think you draw a little bit from everything. There are plenty of leaders outside of football as well. I think Nelson Mandela, historically, for what he did for a country with so many tensions, and so many difficult problems, is a great example. The way his leadership still influences a big part of the continent is – and was – pretty incredible.
The most important thing as a leader is to have clarity. And clarity is not just tactical – it’s clarity of who you are as a team. Unless you communicate with people, nobody will do what you want them to do. That’s a big part of what we learn really early on in Belgium, in Brussels, and I take that with me whenever I communicate with the group. But communication is also very individual, so there are some things that can only be said in a certain way to certain people. But communication is crucial, and it’s not going to be any less crucial in the future.
I think you earn trust and respect just by trying to be honest, saying what you think when you think it. In the end, you might not always get popularity with that because, as a manager, given the nature of the job, it’s not necessarily possible to always be popular. At least, not in the short term. I think when you move forward a few years, people always look back positively on you for what you’ve done for them. In the short term, trust and respect are earned by saying what you really think and not everyone takes it well, but the majority will respect that.
If I were to summarise leadership in its simplest form, it would be the ability to put the team before yourself. It’s easy to say, but it’s not very easy to do. I was fortunate to be in an environment with a lot of reference points, a lot of leaders. I was lucky to play with Patrick Vieira and Frank Lampard, who were leaders at their clubs for many years, but I also had coaches who were good leaders, so there were plenty of influences. Then, I also had my parents, and I think you draw a little bit from everything. There are plenty of leaders outside of football as well. I think Nelson Mandela, historically, for what he did for a country with so many tensions, and so many difficult problems, is a great example. The way his leadership still influences a big part of the continent is – and was – pretty incredible.
The most important thing as a leader is to have clarity. And clarity is not just tactical – it’s clarity of who you are as a team. Unless you communicate with people, nobody will do what you want them to do. That’s a big part of what we learn really early on in Belgium, in Brussels, and I take that with me whenever I communicate with the group. But communication is also very individual, so there are some things that can only be said in a certain way to certain people. But communication is crucial, and it’s not going to be any less crucial in the future.
I think you earn trust and respect just by trying to be honest, saying what you think when you think it. In the end, you might not always get popularity with that because, as a manager, given the nature of the job, it’s not necessarily possible to always be popular. At least, not in the short term. I think when you move forward a few years, people always look back positively on you for what you’ve done for them. In the short term, trust and respect are earned by saying what you really think and not everyone takes it well, but the majority will respect that.
I’ve been in football all my life, so I think every step, every experience, is an opportunity to learn. But, in the end, it’s the same basics. If you compare Bayern with Manchester City, with Hamburg, with Anderlecht, it’s got its very own identity – it’s a very special club. But there are basics that remain the same: it’s still 11 football players on a football pitch, it’s still the same rules of the game, and it’s still the same rules of life. If you work hard, you have a chance. If you don’t work for it and you’re not a team, you have fewer chances, and the differences can always be learned from, which is also something I’m passionate about.
You have different phases in leadership. I think during my time as a captain at Man City, I evolved with it. The kind of captain I was in my first phase is not the same as in my last phase, but that comes with age and maturity. You transition from when you do things for yourself and when, as a leader, you want to be the strongest, the fastest, the most aggressive or the most important in the team. When you get a little bit older, you want to be the one who makes everybody around you better. You want to be the one who calms everything down and motivates everyone.
When I look at the dressing room we have at Bayern, I see similarities with some of the dressing rooms I’ve had in the past. But the main thing for me is that the dressing room also takes responsibility for its own environment, for its own ‘life’, and my role is to support that. I have to make sure that if the players have an idea that can make the team better, they should feel that we, the coaching staff, are supporting it. If you play against Bayern, it has to represent an almost impossible mission, like when I played against the very best Bayern teams. For us, it’s the goal to give that feeling to many opponents.
If I were to summarise leadership in its simplest form, it would be the ability to put the team before yourself. It’s easy to say, but it’s not very easy to do. I was fortunate to be in an environment with a lot of reference points, a lot of leaders. I was lucky to play with Patrick Vieira and Frank Lampard, who were leaders at their clubs for many years, but I also had coaches who were good leaders, so there were plenty of influences. Then, I also had my parents, and I think you draw a little bit from everything. There are plenty of leaders outside of football as well. I think Nelson Mandela, historically, for what he did for a country with so many tensions, and so many difficult problems, is a great example. The way his leadership still influences a big part of the continent is – and was – pretty incredible.
The most important thing as a leader is to have clarity. And clarity is not just tactical – it’s clarity of who you are as a team. Unless you communicate with people, nobody will do what you want them to do. That’s a big part of what we learn really early on in Belgium, in Brussels, and I take that with me whenever I communicate with the group. But communication is also very individual, so there are some things that can only be said in a certain way to certain people. But communication is crucial, and it’s not going to be any less crucial in the future.
I think you earn trust and respect just by trying to be honest, saying what you think when you think it. In the end, you might not always get popularity with that because, as a manager, given the nature of the job, it’s not necessarily possible to always be popular. At least, not in the short term. I think when you move forward a few years, people always look back positively on you for what you’ve done for them. In the short term, trust and respect are earned by saying what you really think and not everyone takes it well, but the majority will respect that.
