Thiago Motta’s Lectio Magistralis: “I’m more satisfied now than when he was

Thiago Motta’s “Lectio magistralis” lasts 40′. “We are experiencing something beautiful and I always tell my boys: we have to take advantage of it, because sometimes things like this are experienced once and they pass very quickly, which is why they have to be breathed in minute by minute. And the kids are doing great.” Speaking at the “All around Soccer” event organized by the AIAC (Coaches Association), Thiago Motta showed up in the “Giorgio Prodi” room of the University of Bologna well in advance, with a good part of his staff and inevitably the thoughts also went at the moment of the club, in fourth place in the standings and alone. Thiago, in front of 300 listeners, compares himself with coaches from every category, is also pressed with questions and with Professor Perondi – a nationally renowned athletic trainer – who moderates. Thiago signs inevitable autographs, gives sincere smiles, selfies with “amarcord” attached, but doesn’t say anything about the future. There are also current moments, given that on Sunday they will meet Atalanta in the Champions League play-off, “and there it will be important to interact on the pitch against a very strong team that doesn’t let you play”.

me and bologna

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“What relationship do I have with Bologna? Perhaps today I am even more satisfied than when I worked as a footballer, I experienced great teams and fantastic emotions, even stronger; but today as a coach, having a great responsibility, I feel very satisfied. As a player I lived in important cities, Madrid, Paris, Genoa, Barcelona, ​​Milan and I always felt comfortable; Well, here in Bologna I’m having a great time. What we are experiencing together is something beautiful that we must take full advantage of, live in the present: you live once and it passes very quickly, and this is also why we are obtaining these results which are thanks to everyone, from the players to the club to the our warehouse workers. And I contribute what I can, I give extra help: my boys convey emotions to me, I see my players who are doing very well and I am proud of what they are doing.”

me and the players

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“How to manage the players? I had the merit of being able to choose competent and humanly fantastic people and on the other hand I have the great fortune of finding competent and fantastic people. This helps a lot in work. One of the secrets we have is a great job but even in the least easy moments we have people who go and look forward, who love each other, who try to make themselves loved: and all this is not easy. Today the atmosphere that is experienced in the team and in the club is excellent: and even if they experience less than optimal things, they enter a work environment that helps them to do their best. We must try to maintain this environment.”

social media and the mind

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“If becoming a great coach is it mandatory to go to the youth sector? No, it is not mandatory but it is certainly an educational and interesting experience. As a player I had great coaches, including Prandelli, Niccolò’s father who is now on the Bologna staff. I started with the youth team at Paris Saint Germain and if I went back I would do the same thing again. How important is technique? Everything counts: football has changed and will continue to change, there will always be decisions to be made quickly and sometimes you make the wrong ones like what happened to me last year in Turin, losing half an hour of the match. But in all this, technique helps. But today football is also physical, mental: with social media, with the broader judgments that exist from fans and journalists, sometimes the mental part is important, there are kids who suffer from certain judgments more.”

injuries and competition

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“The injuries? I suffered the first one when I was 19, then I had operations 7 times, four on one knee and three on the other: they “helped” me overcome certain situations. At a certain point in my career I was lucky enough to find a president who bet on me in a difficult moment, I’m talking about Preziosi who took me on in Genoa and from there I then left for Inter and Paris Saint Germain. I was lucky but at the same time I went looking for my luck.”

goalkeeper turnover

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“The alternation of goalkeepers that I do in Bologna? It’s not just a technical issue but a group issue. They are different, I like a small, quality group, today we have a different “squad” compared to the beginning and I believe very much in the strength of the group, of the work. I know it’s not easy for kids who work less to keep their attention high but I also know that I don’t want and can’t give anything away to anyone. Skorupski and Ravaglia are different because one has more experience but I think the competition does well, raises the level, both are good guys and want to show what they can do.”

relational football

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“Is there collaboration in my team? I struggle to define one thing or the other, positional football or relationship, I think our game is a mix of these two aspects. We played some matches against Lazio who defend a lot in the area: we have to respect the organization but then there is also networking. In Bergamo we will find a very strong team that does not allow the opponent to play and therefore the relationship between the players is very important: looking at each other and understanding each other, because ultimately football is always a collective game. Atalanta? We usually hold two days a week to do simulations: on the pitch and after watching the videos.” Now it’s time for the Goddess: Champions play-off.