Flick: "We have to be in a position to dominate the game"

What makes a successful match? What acts determine a victory or a loss? What was good, what was bad? DFB’s sports director Hansi Flick has spoken in a two-part interview with DFB.de about 2015 and 2016, and the new perception of playing at the DFB. In the first part, the focus is on his journey as sports director and the development of the guidelines for the new approach to the game.

DFB.de: Mr Flick, 2016 has begun, so what is first in your schedule for the new year?

Hansi Flick: On 9th January I am flying out to La Manga where the U16s and U17s are taking part in their usual training camp. I went to see it two years ago, and I liked it on that occasion. For me, proximity to the coaches, teams and players is very important. When I’m there I will have time to work with the players and general talk about things. Quite a lot of things will develop, especially in light of the new approach to the game that we have come up with at the DFB.

DFB.de: The new year for you is starting like the last one ended: with a lot of football. In December, you were with the U18s in Israel. In the whole of 2015 you were almost always at a tournament. Do you have an idea of how many matches you watched in 2015?

Flick: No idea. I don’t keep count, so I don’t know precisely, but there were a lot. I was away quite a bit, and yes, I was present at every tournament that our youth teams took part in: Bulgaria, New Zealand, Czech Republic, Greece, Chile and then Israel. At the U17 World Cup in Chile alone, I watched 17 different teams. That was a lot of football, but definitely not too much. And it was worth it – I was able to get an idea of the level of international quality at that age.

DFB.de: And?

Flick: The level is remarkable. It was also interesting to see that football is being interpreted differently by some countries at this age group. The Mexicans, the Chileans, and also some Africans, their way of playing football at this age is very strongly determined by their mentality. For me it has shown that football is global, but it is not played the same around the globe, and especially not at youth level. It was very interesting for me to observe this and also take note of some small things.

DFB.de: From the large amount of teams that you watched in 2015, is there one team that has impressed you the most?

Flick: The U17s from Nigeria were incredibly strong. I watched them twice, and the team is very mature, especially physically, but also in terms of their team and individual play in their system. They are outstanding and were deserved World Champions, also because they had the greatest individual talent. Striker Victor Osimhen has an impressive presence and calmness in the final third – he scored in every match. The Nigerians had some really outstanding individuals, but at the same time they remained a team.

DFB.de: You have already implied that 2015 was an intense one for the DFB, led by you, to work on a new approach to the game.

Flick: Correct, that was a main task for me and my team.

DFB.de: How do you go about doing such a thing as developing a new approach to the game?

Flick: We asked ourselves the simple question: what makes a successful match? What conduct is successful and for what reason? From that we have derived common, basic principles for different situations that we have to follow for a successful match. It was important to us beforehand to distinguish between the terms “approach to the game” and “playing concept”.

DFB.de: What is the difference?

Flick: The approach to the game generally expresses the understanding of the game and so is the basis for all playing concepts. The playing concept includes strategies and tactics for specific situations in a game that should be drawn up by each coach individually. Therefore our approach was to create general guidelines in the approach to the game which are relevant and understandable for all situations, teams and players. They are also independent of how a game pans out.

DFB.de: But do strategies and tactics not have to adapt to these developments?

Flick: Of course. This is again about differentiating between approach to the game and concepts. The approach to the game does not change, but on the other hand the playing concept can never be rigid. Independent of the approach, it adapts to the development of the game or leads to developments. Therefore it is important to understand that the adaptation of the concept is just yet finished. It never will be, it’s a constant process.

DFB.de: Germany are World Champions. Why does the DFB need a new approach to the game?

Flick: That is a narrow-minded approach. It was about developing a common understanding of why we were successful sometimes but not others. The reasons are linked to the guidelines. In different periods of the game we have to be better trained. We can still improve a lot of things.

DFB.de: For example?

Flick: It’s essential that we focus more on individual quality than previously, especially in training young players. We need technically adept players – players who have the ability to find the best solution, particularly under pressure.

DFB.de: Does the development of a new approach to the game mean that all Germany teams will work to the same system in the future?

Flick: No, that is precisely what it is not about. The approach to the game has nothing to do with systems. For us it is about the quality, the approach and the mentality, about how we approach the game, how we interpret football. That will be reflected in all Germany teams: the Women, the Men, the Girls and the Boys.

DFB.de: What makes you so sure about that?

Flick: The new approach to the game is not a solo act by Hansi Flick. Many experts were involved, analysists, coaches and also Frank Wormuth, the head of football coach training. The coaches of our youth teams are also essential here. We have developed a very good team spirit, which I am proud of, in which everyone has given their input.

DFB.de: With what results? What is the new approach to the game like?

Flick: We have worked on 17 guidelines which we are convinced are a valuable guide for our players, both male and female, and out teams.

DFB.de: Give us a small example of one of these guidelines?

Flick: We have come up with guidelines for the defence and the offence, and also overriding guidelines for all phases of the game and all age and development stages. Included in them are basic principles such as: we want the ball. Or: We shape the game so that is it always active. Or: We look for personal battles (one-on-one situations) because we are convinced that we can win them.

DFB.de: Do these not go without saying?

Flick: Yes, when the game demands it. But in reality that is not always the norm. When you watch football, you always seen teams who sit back, who wait for the opposition to lose the ball and then win regardless. There it is a fluke on the part of the opposition, or negligence, and less self-determined. We don’t want that.

DFB.de: So will there be no Germany teams who set up to counter?

Flick: I do not mean teams who deliberately operate with defensive pressing and counter, because they are active in their defensive zone, want the ball and then transition quickly. Just like a team which presses from the front – they simply play in a different area of the pitch and maybe in a different system. That is exactly what we wanted to engrain in these guidelines: common features that are independent of system and match situation. Passiveness in a match and joping for a mistake from the opposition are not the approach we want. We believe that we have to educate footballers to be in a position to dominate the game. We want the ball – it sounds simple, but it’s a powerful statement.

DFB.de: Do you have more examples of guidelines for the new approach to playing?

Flick: One of the overriding guidelines is that we want to look for one-on-one situations. Another is that we want to anticipate and not speculate. We also want to be coaching on the pitch at the same time. Good communication is key. A defensive guideline is that we want to defend in a compact and organised manner, with tight spaces across the pitch.

DFB.de: Is there an essence, a core, in which the new approach to playing can be moulded?

Flick: In football it is about scoring goals and not conceding goals. That means avoiding situations where you are outnumbered in defence and trying to use numbers to your advantage in attack. The thinking behind it is simple, but carrying it out is complex. That’s why, for example, we have to identify spaces behind the opposition and use them. Our players have to be linked both with and without the ball, be unmarked or within touching distance of the opposition in case they lose the ball. We always have to challenge the opposition and make decisions until they are overwhelmed, make a mistake or break into space.

DFB.de: The better the opposition, the harder it is to overwhelm them. Tactically astute teams do not offer spaces, they block off routes for passes. Are the qualities for one-on-ones more sought out the higher the quality of the opposition?

Flick: Yes and no. there is not just one solution. We cannot start going into games against teams such as Italy and running at them for 90 minutes. Passes in the middle are just as important, as is recognising the spaces. When a team offers fewer and smaller spaces, you have to be in a position to recognise them and take advantage of them. Bayern München and Borussia Dortmund do that week in, week out in the Bundesliga. And they do it very well.

Part 2 of the interview will appear on Wednesday, 6th January on DFB.de.