Lack of respect, education, hypocrisy, xenophobia.
Words used to describe the behavior of Oswaldo de Oliveira and Émerson Leão at the Brazilian Football Coaches Forum.
Ironically, both were coaches abroad. Speeches that harmed football by also overshadowing ideas discussed at the event.
Looking back, foreigners helped improve Brazilian sport, not just football.
Before the Rio 2016 Games, Japanese, Cuban, Serbian and Spanish coaches reinforced our Olympic preparation in judo, gymnastics, water polo, boxing, canoeing, etc. Thinking about the future, how about those who complain doing a self-criticism exercise?
Here in England, the announcement of German Thomas Tuchel as coach of the English national team last year raised debate. But the discussion was never about whether or not to have a foreigner in charge, that is outdated, but rather why there isn’t an Englishman who is up to the job. How can a rich country with such a strong football culture not produce coaches for the national team or clubs?
Players with stellar careers, now coaches, were questioned. Wayne Rooney, with poor spells managing teams in the English 2nd division and MLS; Frank Lampard, now at Plymouth, also in the 2nd division; Steven Gerrard, coach of Al Ettifaq in Saudi Arabia, face a harsh reality: success as an athlete does not give a divine right to a place in the elite as a coach.
It is a fact that in the Premier League, the most globalized on the planet, competition for the position is absurdly high and there are few opportunities. In the first season, 1992-93, the only non-British coach was Irish. In this, there are two Englishmen and one Scottish among 20 clubs. No manager born in England has won the title.
But, instead of blaming others, Tuchel’s arrival generated an exercise in self-criticism. What do the English need to do to deserve to be among the greats?
English football admitted that the training of coaches at the Football Federation (FA) is not as advanced as in other countries. That Tuchel is from a generation of modern German coaches that began to be produced more than 20 years ago, like in Spain or Portugal. That English people need to be more open to learning languages, leaving England to exchange experiences.
In the documentary “English Coaches: the Decline”, released after Tuchel’s announcement, they themselves admit that you can’t fight with reality. Football has changed and the market wants the best, no matter the passport.
At this week’s event, Oswaldo, shouting, said that “when Ancelotti leaves, after being champion, let a Brazilian return to the team.” He blamed video edits in the media and refused to apologize. Leão called the arrival of foreigners in Brazil an “invasion”. Everything in front of the Italian, who maintained his characteristic class.
But there is a new generation that may have a place in European clubs and the national team in the future, such as Filipe Luís. Coaches who know that, in order not to be left behind, it is necessary to see the world as it is: globalized.
Isolation in the name of defending national identity is a recipe for failure. For a Brazilian, coaching the national team should not be a right, but a privilege. And it only comes with dedication and study, not shouting.
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