| Rudi Voeller |
The following is an interview with former German National Coach and player Rudi Voeller. The interview was conducted by NSCAA Associate Staff member Frank Tschan in Dusseldorf, Germany.
What is modern soccer?
My coach from my younger professional days when I played in Bremen said modern soccer is when you win. By the way, he’s also the current coach of the Greek National Team and is turning 70 this year. This is, of course, a general statement, but nonetheless there’s a lot to it. What many people, including journalists, mean today when they speak about modern soccer is the attempt to play forward. This is not, for example, the way the Italians played for many years. For them it was try to play 0-0, then if you get the lead play back to the goalkeeper and central defenders to keep possession and slow down the game.
Modern soccer is what we see today at FC Barcelona and Arsenal London, where teams try to gain possession then immediately go forward with short passes and put the defensive team under pressure. This approach is possible only when you as a coach have players on your roster that can carry out this style of play. Teams like those I just mentioned can dictate their style of play because of the talent they have, but there always will be teams that have other qualities and therefore need to concentrate on other areas of the game first.
You were speaking, of course, about coach Otto Rehagel?
Yes, he was criticized for playing too old-fashioned. But he was able to analyze the players he had and get the most out of them. He played with a sweeper behind two marking backs and won the European Championship.
Couldn’t one say that back in the 70s, 80s and 90s, modern soccer also was being played (relatively speaking)? For example, didn’t Germany play modern in 1990, as they won the World Cup?
We were simply successful, we were simply good. We had a generation that was difficult to play against. We had many players who individually were very strong and with that, no matter what you did tactically it was hard to beat us.
Will we ever see a generation like that in Germany again?
Yes, for the first time in a long time we have a lot of very good young players, especially in attack. We haven’t had so much competition among forwards in the past 10 to 15 years.
What are your views on American soccer?
Well, I can’t say much about the MLS. I’m too far away to evaluate that. As far as the national team, I know a bit about what’s happening, but only on the surface. I know as the USA made it to the quarterfinals in 2002 that many people felt they would continue their upward movement. After that, however, things seemed to have stagnated. There always will be a new talent or two from the USA, but until history rewrites itself to where soccer becomes the No. 1 sport, there will continue to be difficulties. Remember, the USA is the only, I mean the only, region in the entire world where soccer isn’t the No. 1 sport. For more than a decade, we’ve heard that the United States has so many youth players involved in soccer, both boys and girls; however, there always seems to be breaking point when it’s time to take the step from youth player to active professional.
Many thought the USA played better than the German team in that game in 2002. What did you think?
It was unfortunate for America. The team had great talents like Landon Donovan and Claudio Reyna (whom I played with my last two years at Bayer Leverkusen). Landon Donovan was the U.S.’s feature player then, and he still is today. But on two different occasions he wasn’t able to make it over here. The first time he was too young, then we brought him back and hoped he would work out, but yet again he didn’t make it. That’s what I mean – the U.S. has great talents, but they’re too often unable to make that “big jump.”
How do you view the current tactical trends in the German Bundesliga?
That depends a lot on the concerns and worries of the individual clubs, their particular qualities and strengths and how they decide to play based on that information. Each coach needs to decide how they best get their teams to pass the test.
How do you view international players in the Bundesliga?
We have a lot of international players now because things have become more globalized. Those are the current times. That’s simply the way it is.
What do you see as the positive and negative effects of having so many international players in the Bundesliga?
Things have been different since the Bosman Ruling, but that’s something that can’t be changed. There are now teams like Arsenal London that sometimes don’t have a single Englishman on their roster. But I think we’ve solved things well here in Germany. Basically, we have about 50 percent German players in our teams, and that includes the starting 11. It’s important that they are properly integrated and learn to speak German. That’s a club’s individual decision, but at Bayer Leverkusen, German is the spoken language.
How do you compare the Bundesliga with other European leagues?
Well, according to the UEFA rankings, the first three are England, Italy and Spain. These also are clearly the top three leagues. This is also because of the fact that the best teams in these leagues also can pay the most money. The German Bundesliga comes somewhere after these three, but we’ll never be able to afford salaries at the levels of these other three leagues. Perhaps Bayern Munich, but not any other German clubs.
Why is it that the big clubs in Spain and Italy can pay these huge salaries, but also have massive debt?
Exactly; in Germany we have completely different financial policies. Things are more stable. We basically only give out that which we take in. England also manages their money well, but in Spain and Italy things are much different.
Tell me about Bayer Leverkusen’s Youth Academy.
Well, it’s of course the wish of every Bundesliga club that you can develop your own youth players for a future in the professional team. For the past decade we’ve done good work in our own youth academy, but were never able to produce a player who made it to the very top. This year, for the first time, we’ve done that with Rene Adler (goalkeeper) and Gonzalo Castro (midfield). Castro is already a national player, and Adler will be very soon. What’s more, both have the talent to reach world-class levels. This is, of course, a great feeling for a club, but you also need a bit of luck to get there. You put in years and years of hard work with good coaches, and when these types of players result from it, then you prove to yourself that it works and everyone’s happy.
Bayer Leverkusen’s academy is considered among the best in Germany. Why is it so well regarded?
It’s important that you don’t simply scout and recruit young talent from the region and stop there. You also need to provide the things that are important in the lives of young people. A great youth coach and academic assistance are two of these cornerstones. Added to that are occupational training and career-related opportunities for the older players. We have that here because of the Bayer Group, with which we have a very good relationship. Furthermore, you have a responsibility to develop the players, first and foremost on the field, but also to see to it that they develop into decent people.
What are the biggest challenges for today’s youth coaches?
That’s dependent on the age of the players you’re working with, but in general the two biggest challenges are to make them top soccer players and to develop their character.
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