Fergson - what makes up a good coach

Dave Clarke has a tremendous blog from his Better Soccer Coaching company (www.BetterSoccerCoaching.com), and writes of the characteristics that Sir Alex Ferguson sees as what makes up a good coach-

Ferguson says that observation is vital – if you are too involved you miss a lot of things. It is a good idea to stand back sometimes and watch someone else coach while you observe the players.

He says you need perseverance because coaching is not easy and you have to come back after a defeat full of confidence for the next game. “You have to keep the fire in your belly,” confirms Ferguson.

Imagination is important because when you are asked what was your best ever goal as a coach you want to identify a perfect goal that you influenced. This is down to your imagination and how you get things across to the players in your training sessions.

As a young coach Ferguson thought up creative ways of coaching to inspire his players. “You create a chain reaction which produces thinking players and this is a wonderful thing to develop,” he says.

And simple communication is vital. Ferguson believes making it clear what you are after in a coaching session should be top of a coach’s list. “You see those training sessions where the coach is talking all the time and the message is lost – the words get lost in the wind.”

The players want to get on with it so don’t ramble on. “Talking too much is a big danger for a coach.”