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Socceroos news: Ange Postecoglou delivers blunt message on where Australian football must now go
Exclusive: Postecoglou 1 on 1
SOCCEROOS boss Ange Postecoglou has called on the football community to focus more on what happens on the pitch in order to get to the next level.
Speaking from London, having travelled to Europe for logistic planning and scouting, Postecoglou has been spending some time before Christmas observing the culture of football discussion in England.
And he questioned Australian football’s “insecurity” in talking up its standard compared to Europe.
WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW IN THE VIDEO AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE
“Some of the best games I’ll see on a weekly basis are in the A-League and I watch games from all over the world,” Postecoglou told Fox Sports News 500. “I’ve watched games here, not just from England but from all over Europe, and some of them have been pretty poor, not a great standard, so we stack up pretty well.
“The game is alright — we just don’t want to talk about it. And I don’t know if that’s because people are a little bit insecure about talking about the game and putting an opinion out there, saying ‘well if I put an opinion out there and it’s not good then I might get smashed’.”
Postecoglou added: “It’s easier to read a balance sheet or read or a web poll or see what the crowd is and talk about that for a week than it is to ‘read’ a football game, but that’s what we should be talking about. Ultimately, that’s what supporters want to talk about.”
Beginning early preparations for the Confederations Cup in 2017, the former Brisbane Roar and Melbourne Victory manager explained how his time in England observing football coverage has been eye opening. And he also had time to deliver special praise for the next level of coaches coming through the A-League and national team set ups.
“I think we’re embarking on a generation of the best coaches we’ve ever had,” he said, again reiterating the need to talk about what is happening on the field. “If you look at the guys like Popa (Tony Popovic), Kevin Muscat, John Aloisi, even some of the guys working alongside them (and) I’ve got Ante Milicic who is going to be an outstanding coach and Ross Aloisi, Jean Paul de Marigny, Scotty Miller.
“For these guys to continue to develop, they’ve got to be put under the scrutiny that you see managers here (in England) getting. We don’t have that.
“We just don’t have people talking about the game. Even for our players, I know we pitch our team of the week, but we don’t judge what’s happening on the pitch — who’s not doing well? Who’s struggling a bit? Who needs a bit of a prod?
Even the ones who are doing well. I said a couple of weeks ago that Aaron Mooy was the best player in the comp and I did that because I think he is, and also to put a bit of heat on him — to see how he reacts, and he’s doing well. (But) there are parts of his game he needs to improve, yet no one is talking about them.
“We’re saying we want him to play at the highest level (but) the reality is, when they get here (to the highest level, in England), that all happens. If you’re a manager and you lose a game, you have to answer some tough questions, whether you think they’re justified or not.
“If you’re a player, and you play badly you’ll get a 3/10 here — you’re not going to hide amongst the masses and you’ve got to react to that, you’ve got to deal with that. Being over here, just for myself, I had to listen and talk to people about football, which I don’t think we do enough of (in Australia).”
I thoroughly with Ange and really appreciate him weighing in. Drives me mental. The Roar stands out as somewhere that does quality football analysis, but I'm often struck by focus put on the wrong things - soap opera-esque rubbish, truly pathetic talking points and just such light weight puff pieces when it comes to analysis, the match summaries which are fine when you missed a game maybe, but boring as bat shit when you've just watched it if the writer doesn't invest some personality, opinion and analysis into it. And player analysis so rarely goes into anything meaningful or in depth or is just all hyperbole.
It's why Bozza has always stood out as a very likeable commentator I think, always had meaningful things to say about the players, coaches or games and never backward with an opinion. There is some good stuff out there, but it's definitely the minority imo.
Thoughts?
Exclusive: Postecoglou 1 on 1
SOCCEROOS boss Ange Postecoglou has called on the football community to focus more on what happens on the pitch in order to get to the next level.
Speaking from London, having travelled to Europe for logistic planning and scouting, Postecoglou has been spending some time before Christmas observing the culture of football discussion in England.
And he questioned Australian football’s “insecurity” in talking up its standard compared to Europe.
WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW IN THE VIDEO AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE
“Some of the best games I’ll see on a weekly basis are in the A-League and I watch games from all over the world,” Postecoglou told Fox Sports News 500. “I’ve watched games here, not just from England but from all over Europe, and some of them have been pretty poor, not a great standard, so we stack up pretty well.
“The game is alright — we just don’t want to talk about it. And I don’t know if that’s because people are a little bit insecure about talking about the game and putting an opinion out there, saying ‘well if I put an opinion out there and it’s not good then I might get smashed’.”
Postecoglou added: “It’s easier to read a balance sheet or read or a web poll or see what the crowd is and talk about that for a week than it is to ‘read’ a football game, but that’s what we should be talking about. Ultimately, that’s what supporters want to talk about.”
Beginning early preparations for the Confederations Cup in 2017, the former Brisbane Roar and Melbourne Victory manager explained how his time in England observing football coverage has been eye opening. And he also had time to deliver special praise for the next level of coaches coming through the A-League and national team set ups.
“I think we’re embarking on a generation of the best coaches we’ve ever had,” he said, again reiterating the need to talk about what is happening on the field. “If you look at the guys like Popa (Tony Popovic), Kevin Muscat, John Aloisi, even some of the guys working alongside them (and) I’ve got Ante Milicic who is going to be an outstanding coach and Ross Aloisi, Jean Paul de Marigny, Scotty Miller.
“For these guys to continue to develop, they’ve got to be put under the scrutiny that you see managers here (in England) getting. We don’t have that.
“We just don’t have people talking about the game. Even for our players, I know we pitch our team of the week, but we don’t judge what’s happening on the pitch — who’s not doing well? Who’s struggling a bit? Who needs a bit of a prod?
Even the ones who are doing well. I said a couple of weeks ago that Aaron Mooy was the best player in the comp and I did that because I think he is, and also to put a bit of heat on him — to see how he reacts, and he’s doing well. (But) there are parts of his game he needs to improve, yet no one is talking about them.
“We’re saying we want him to play at the highest level (but) the reality is, when they get here (to the highest level, in England), that all happens. If you’re a manager and you lose a game, you have to answer some tough questions, whether you think they’re justified or not.
“If you’re a player, and you play badly you’ll get a 3/10 here — you’re not going to hide amongst the masses and you’ve got to react to that, you’ve got to deal with that. Being over here, just for myself, I had to listen and talk to people about football, which I don’t think we do enough of (in Australia).”
I thoroughly with Ange and really appreciate him weighing in. Drives me mental. The Roar stands out as somewhere that does quality football analysis, but I'm often struck by focus put on the wrong things - soap opera-esque rubbish, truly pathetic talking points and just such light weight puff pieces when it comes to analysis, the match summaries which are fine when you missed a game maybe, but boring as bat shit when you've just watched it if the writer doesn't invest some personality, opinion and analysis into it. And player analysis so rarely goes into anything meaningful or in depth or is just all hyperbole.
It's why Bozza has always stood out as a very likeable commentator I think, always had meaningful things to say about the players, coaches or games and never backward with an opinion. There is some good stuff out there, but it's definitely the minority imo.
Thoughts?
