vicente del Bosque: we don't copy anyone

Vicente del Bosque is well versed in
the ways of winning. Earlier in his
coaching career, the 59-year-old
collected two Spanish league titles
and two UEFA Champions Leagues
with Real Madrid, a glittering
prelude to his crowning
achievement with Spain at the
2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™.
Now engaged in the task of
defending the European title La
Roja seized in 2008, Del Bosque
spoke exclusively to FIFA.com
about his coaching philosophy and
the things that make his side tick.
FIFA.com: Vicente, what’s your
take on the tactics we saw at
South Africa 2010?
Vicente del Bosque: Most teams
chose to play the same way
though there were some sides that
went out with different set-ups. I ’m
not a great believer in formations.
It ’s part of the game now but it’s
not the be all and end all. The most
important thing is that the team
plays as a unit in defence and
attack. Formations give you an
initial picture of things but that ’s all.
You say that, but the way Spain
played is very difficult to copy.
Some of the teams we played
knew exactly what they had to do
to stop us from playing. Chile and
Paraguay counteracted us
extremely well and we found it
really hard to adapt to their
gameplans. You have to
congratulate them on their
defensive play in particular. They
didn ’t cause us too many problems
up front but in terms of
organisation they did very well
against us.
What is the key to Spain’s way
of playing the game?
First and foremost, the fact that we
don ’t copy anyone, and secondly
the type of players we have. With
the midfielders we ’ve got it’s
impossible to play anything other
than a possession game and mix
long balls up with short ones. We
have our strong points and we
can ’t go against them, but no team
is complete without having some
defensive strengths too. In our case
that ’s our ability to close the
opposition down and win the ball
back.
Do you work on that in training
or is it something Spanish
players have in their DNA?
It’s a little bit of both if you ask me.
The clubs do some great work in
that respect and we have to give
them full credit for that. We ’re
setting an example for others to
follow here and it ’s something we
drum into players when we coach
them. Technique is innate but you
have to nurture it too.
How much tactical freedom can
you give to players?
Even in professional football I think
players have to have a certain
amount of freedom. That ’s where
the coach comes in. It’s his job to
combine organisational aspects
with the talent of the players, to
draw the two together. He
shouldn ’t set limits on inspiration,
though. Coaches aren’t just there to
organise but to bring on players
with excellent individual skills and
allow them to express themselves.
Spain have struggled in their
first few games since the FIFA
World Cup finals. Did you expect
that?
When you consider how the game
panned out, the journey we ’d had
and the fact we hadn’t trained, I
thought everything went perfectly
against Mexico. No one got injured
and we acquitted ourselves well. It
was one of the games I ’ve been
most pleased with really. Against
Argentina we started badly and
couldn ’t get back into the game.
We were up against a great side
but still I think we put in a decent
performance. In any case,
sometimes it ’s not so bad to lose. It
can be helpful at times.
You brought in some new faces
for those games. Are you
planning some kind of
generational change?
I can see virtually all of the world
champions making 2012 and most
of them getting to 2014, but we
need to be on our guard if they
don ’t. There were quite a few
differences between the squads we
had in Vienna and in Johannesburg.
We had seven or eight new players
in South Africa, so it ’s something
that’s ongoing.
The Spain players seem to get
on well with each other. What’s
the secret to keeping a dressing
room happy?
It’s not the most important thing
but if the spirit’s good then it’s
easier to win things. Every coach
handles it differently, depending on
their character and the training
they ’ve had. I have to say I’ve
been lucky with the squad I’ve got.
They’re good sportsmen, good
people and we haven’t had any
problems up to now. I don’t think
there’s any single approach that
works. I just feel you have to adapt
to the group. Coaching this Spain
team is not the same as when I
was in charge at Real Madrid, for
example. There ’s no magic formula.
In fact you could also say it
depends on the player, who has to
be able to adapt as well.
People say national coaches
have a more relaxing job than
their counterparts at club level.
Would you agree with that?
You still have a lot of things to do.
To start with you have to represent
the national association, keep an
eye on your upcoming opponents,
talk to the players and look at any
changes you might have to make
at youth level. There’s not enough
time, to be honest. In terms of
pressure, the big difference is that it
tends to be concentrated into very
short periods of time, but I don ’t
think there’s any less of it than at
club football. Whether they’re
supporting their national team or a
club, fans have just as many
expectations.
One last question. Are you a
football addict or do you have
time for other things in your
life?
We all have our lives outside
football. Some coaches are more
obsessed than others, but when
you ’re born into this world and
brought up in it then you’re always
thinking about it to some extent or
other