Training Ground Guru Podcast

Here is Part 2 of our interview with Bayern Munich Head of Coach Development and Playing Philosophy Rene Maric. In this second half, Rene told us how he kickstarted his career with the tactics blog Spielverlagerung, about coaching Erling Haaland and Jude Bellingham at Borussia Dortmund, and about his brief spell as assistant at Leeds United. 

SHOW NOTES =>

01:44: Reaction to announcement last night (February 21st) that Thomas Tu...

Our guest on Episode #62 of the TGG Podcast, in association with Hudl, is René Marić.

The Austrian is one of the most interesting and highly-rated young coaches in European football. He made his name by founding the cult tactics blog Spielverlagerung and went on to become Assistant Manager at Red Bull Salzburg, Borussia Monchengladbach, Borussia Dortmund and Leeds United.

Now he's Head of Coach Development and Playing Philosophy at...

Our guest on Episode #61 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, ...

Our guest on Episode #60 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 challen...

Our guest on Episode #59 of the TGG Podcast, in association with Hudl, is Chris O'Loughlin.

Chris is the Sporting Director of Union Saint Gilloise, one of the most innovative and interesting clubs in the whole of Europe.

Despite having a stadium with a capacity of just 9,400, and a budget that’s dwarfed by the biggest clubs, they are top of the table in Belgium.     

Chris told us how the club scout for character and how they use d...

Our guest on Episode #58 of the TGG Podcast, in association with Hudl, is Everton Director of Football Kevin Thelwell.

Kevin tells Simon Austin about his role at the club, their four strategic pillars, his relationship with manager Sean Dyche and much more. 

SHOW NOTES=>

01:50: Team going in the right direction.

02:44: Sporting Director role explained.

03:30: Why did Everton choose you?

04:20: Are your KPIs different to those of...

Our guest on Episode #57 of the TGG Podcast, in association with Hudl, is Jes Buster Madsen.

Jes is Head of Research and Development for FC Copenhagen in Denmark and is leading the way in the application of cognitive neuroscience in football. 

SHOW NOTES=>

01:31: What role of Head of Research & Development involves. How he got the role. 

09:10: How he persuaded Academy Director Sune Smith-Nielsen to give him the job at FC Co...

Our guest on Episode #56 of the TGG Podcast, in association with Hudl, is Mark Leyland. 

Mark is one of the foremost analysts in this country and has become much more than that. He started his career in the Academy at Everton and went on to work for Burnley, Liverpool and Newcastle.

Mark is one of the few backroom staff to be name-checked by managers. Eddie Howe described him as 'integral' and said 'we love him to bits,' while Jurg...

Our guest on Episode #55 of the TGG Podcast, in association with Hudl, is Sarah Rudd.

For almost a decade, Sarah was Vice President of Analytics for StatDNA and Arsenal, making her one of the most senior women in the whole of European football. She's now founded her own analytics company, SRC FTBL, along with husband Ravi Ramineni.

In this episode, Sarah told us about her work at Arsenal, her wider career and her thoughts on the fu...

Episode #54 of the TGG Podcast, in association with Hudl, is with Liverpool assistant Pep Lijnders.

The Dutchman sat down with Simon Austin at the AXA Training Centre for an exclusive interview. In Part 2, he looked back on his career, gave insights into his time with Liverpool and reflected on his special relationship with Jurgen Klopp.

This has been an interview we've wanted to do for a long time, so we hope you enjoy it!

SHOW NO...

Episode #53 of the TGG Podcast, in association with Hudl, is with Liverpool assistant Pep Lijnders.

The Dutchman sat down with Simon Austin at the AXA Training Centre for an exclusive interview. In Part 1, he reflected on pre-season, looked ahead to the 2023/24 campaign and gave insights into his coaching methods.

This has been an interview we've wanted to do for a long time, so we hope you enjoy it!

SHOW NOTES=>

02:03: Pre-seas...

Episode #52 of the Training Ground Guru Podcast, in association with Hudl, features two guests: Bolton manager Ian Evatt and his Sporting Director Chris Markham.

Simon Austin sat down with the duo at the club’s Toughsheet Community Stadium ahead of the new season.

It’s rare to get a manager and Sporting Director speaking together like this, so we hope you enjoy it…  

SHOW NOTES =>

01:53: Having a blank canvas when they arrived a...

Our guest on Episode #50 of the Training Ground Guru Podcast, in association with Hudl, is Des Ryan. 

Des is Director of Coaching and Performance at Setanta College and was Head of Sports Medicine and Athletic Development at Arsenal Academy from 2013 to 2021.

During his time with the Gunners he helped to develop 'Strong Young Gunners' like Bukayo Saka. 

SHOW NOTES =>

02:01: Darcy Norman praise. Always being an outsider. How move...

Our guest on Episode #49 of the TGG Podcast, in association with Hudl, is Pedro Marques, the Technical Director of Benfica's Academy.

There's a strong case for saying that Benfica have the top Academy in Europe. They are the reigning UEFA Youth League champions (having beaten RB Salzburg 6-0 in the 2022 final), have the most profitable Academy in Europe (according to the CIES) and have recent graduates including Ruben Dias, Joao Fe...

Our guest on Episode #48 of the Training Ground Guru Podcast, in association with Hudl, is Norwich City Sporting Director Stuart Webber. 

SHOW NOTES =>

02:04: Rebuilding Norwich's training ground. Appeal of Sporting Director job was producing something sustainable at a club.

08:03: Premier League is the hardest league in the world. Even Brentford and Brighton, in Norwich's peer group, have significant owner investment.

09:56: Ar...

Our guest on Episode #47 of the TGG Podcast, in association with Hudl, is Tom Vernon, the founder and Group CEO of Right to Dream Group. 

=> SHOW NOTES:

02:12: What is Right to Dream and its philosophy?

04:46: Start of Right to Dream in 1999. Changing the 'extractive mindset'. Setting up the only residential girls' Academy in Ghana.

12:23: Moving into the USA and plan to buy an MLS club.

16:12: Trying to have a straight pipe rat...

Our guest on Episode #46 of the TGG Podcast, in association with Hudl, is Professor David Sumpter, who has worked with top teams including Ajax, Barcelona and England. 

=> SHOW NOTES:

02:06: How he got started in computer programming/ mathematics and then football.

05:45: Studying behaviour of birds and fish and how this relates to football. Need to look at at least six matches of data to remove randomness.

08:13: Matthew Benham...