SOME SHINE ON THE PITCH WHILE OTHERS EXCEL FROM THE BENCH

It just so happens that many of those who complete their sporting careers then decide to test themselves as mentors. The transformation of an athlete into a coach is seen most often in football. But the stars who shine on the pitch cannot always achieve the same success as coaches, i.e. a football star does not necessarily become a brilliant coach. Conversely, those who have no special merits as footballers and never make a mark on the pitch become coaches of world renown.

Stars go out on the bench

Recall Diego Maradona, the famous footballer of the 20th century. As a footballer he won it all, but he was unable to assert himself as a coach. Although he led the Argentine national team to the world championship in 2010, he and his team found it a great struggle. Argentina's participation in the FIFA World Cup finals was only ensured by a goal scored in the final seconds of the last match of the final round of qualifiers...

Doubts about Maradona's coaching qualities increased further after the disgraceful defeat by Germany in the quarterfinals; the score was 4:0. Maradona was totally beaten by Joachim L?w, whose football career is in no way comparable to that of the famous Argentine. After that, Maradona said goodbye to the national team of Argentina and, perhaps, forever.

Nor did the famous Pele gain fame in his coaching career. He did not even challenge himself in that capacity. Pele holds the presidency of the Brazilian football federation, and that the next World Championship will be held in Brazil is also his contribution.

Pele's compatriot Zico, who was called the "White Pele", also notably failed to achieve success as head coach. Having failed with Fenerbahce and Olympiakos, Zico soon departed his post, although the Turkish team had done well in the Champions League.

This also holds true for Gheorghe Hagi, Hristo Stoichkov, Paolo Rossi and Salvatore Schillaci, as well as many other prominent players who failed to achieve tangible success as coaches.

However, there are exceptions, for example, Franz Beckenbauer and Josep Guardiola.

In 1990, Beckenbauer made Germany champions. However, he then chose to give up coaching and took over as manager. Currently, he is honorary president of Bayern Munich. As for the Spaniard, Barcelona have been creating miracles under his leadership. Guardiola, under whom the Catalans have won many titles, has not yet tested himself at other clubs, so it is difficult to say that the same brilliant success awaits him there.

Now let's talk about the famous coaches who did not shine as players. This list, naturally, is headed by Jose Mourinho, who is considered the world's most effective coach. The Portuguese went down in history after winning the Champions League with FC Porto and Inter Milan. As a footballer, Mourinho was not successful. In his memoirs, he points to his father as the reason. In other words, he received from his father what others achieved by hard work. And so Mourinho's career as a footballer was not successful. Here we can also add the names of Alex Ferguson, Arsene Wenger, Fabio Capello, Luiz Felipe Scolari and Marcello Lippi, who did not distinguish themselves on the pitch, but are known worldwide as top-class coaches.

The list goes on and on. Yuriy Romantsev, under whom Moscow's Spartak repeatedly won the Russian championship, cannot boast of special achievements as a player.

A mediocre player, Fatih Terim, is hailed as the "Emperor" at home for his achievements as head coach of Galatasaray and the Turkish national football team.

This trend also manifests itself in Azerbaijani football. Agasalim Mircavadov, who did not really distinguish himself on the pitch, proved to be a good coach, repeatedly winning the championship at the head of various teams. He also led Neftci and Xazar-Lankaran to victories in the CIS Cup. But our famous footballer Vali Qasimov is still unable to prove himself as a coach.

At the same time, Nazim Suleymanov, who represented Azerbaijan in Russia with credit, is now head coach of FC AZAL and is close to a first success in his coaching career.

Qurban Qurbanov and Yunis Huseynov are also star footballers who have asserted themselves as coaches. The former was the national team's striker and a favourite with the fans for many years. His coaching career began with Neftci - a team always in contention for the title. Although many doubted his coaching talents, in his very first season Qurban led the club to silver medals. Later, he became manager at FC Karabakh where he has fully held his own. Under his leadership, the Agdam footballers won the national cup and distinguished themselves in European competitions twice. Having beaten such a strong club as Rosenborg in the first season, Karabakh managed to get through two rounds and, in the following season, through three rounds.

As far as Yunis Huseynov is concerned, experienced fans remember very well his excellent play in the national team, where he was known for his long shots. He was the first Azerbaijani coach to take his team Karvan into the next stage of the former UEFA Cup, now called the Europa League. Unfortunately, Yunis Huseynov is now unemployed.

What is the problem?

As we see, a football star does not necessarily become a "star" manager, while those who failed in their football career often prove themselves as coaches. Basically, the problem is that in becoming a coach, a well-known footballer goes on to behave like a football star. The fiasco begins with an arrogant attitude towards players and dictatorial behaviour.

For those who did not prove to be good footballers, it is easier to assert themselves as coaches. Treating footballers in a friendly and encouraging manner, they strive to reach as coaches the peaks that remained inaccessible to them as football players.

According to studies, as coaches, former football stars blame every defeat on the players, while coaches who do not have outstanding past achievements, assume the responsibility themselves.

Another reason has to do with education. Starting out as a coach, most former football stars do not seek additional knowledge and information. They think they know everything. However, a good footballer does not necessarily make a good coach. To become a good coach, you need to constantly monitor the latest innovations - modern football changes every day.