Tactically, Bruges won 3-4 at Inter. Away from home. I read Ivan Leko’s press conference on Sporza, sitting on the bench at pitch 2, my towel on my knees, while the delegate (our club’s volunteer official) put the bibs away.
And then one sentence stopped me. Leko says he has played his football since day one, against small Belgian clubs, in friendlies or against big European sides. He calls himself a “football romantic”. So do I. My 4-4-2, I play it in a friendly in August, I play it against the team top of the table, I play it when it’s pouring. The only honest system, mind you. The difference between Leko and me is the pitch. His is flat.
He also says Inter were ready for Bruges’ pressing, and more aggressive than usual in Serie A. That I know. When the opposition saw your pressing the week before, they turn up prepared. At our place, it only takes one of my players to describe the team talk at the clubhouse bar, and by the next Sunday the whole village knows.
What I like is that he doesn’t kid himself. Balanced match, a bit of luck, and Bruges are not yet at the level of last season’s play-offs (the end-of-season title round), after a few players left. He even told Sporza: “It was a good match, but that doesn’t mean you’re Barcelona. We had moments without control of the game. There are still many things we can improve, but I’m happy.”
Moments without control. I run that on Tuesday. When we’ve got eleven, that is.
A manager who wins and talks about what didn’t work. I’m not criticising. I’m comparing.
On Nico Tresoldi, Leko says he keeps improving and has gone from finisher to all-round player. I opened my folder and wrote “versatile” next to the name of my left back. He also works the clubhouse bar at half-time.
It’s true, we checked: Sporza.
