Breaking Lines

Have you ever had a question that you'd like to ask the manager or head coach of your club? Or even one for a Head of Performance (less likely we know!!!)? Ok... so outside of the normal 'why did you pick X player?' or 'What were you thinking in that game?' there's so many questions that we've answered over the years on a wide variety of topics - some really simple ones as well as more complex que...

It seems to happen every year at every club. Sometimes its benign and there's no real effect; a few squad members who normally have limited game time that might effect the subs bench, but perhaps no real impact on the team. Or... ...its senior, important, vital cogs in the team machinery who are all struck down at the same time and the season goes from one of immense promise and potential to a tou...

Every season the fixture calendar is sprinkled with those large occasion games that are very much a different take on your run-of-the-mill league games - derby games, playoff matches, relegation six-pointers or giant-killing cup fixtures whet the appetitive of players, coaches, clubs and fans as the season proceeds. Yet for the manager or head coach they provide a different challenge beyond the el...

In days of yore a Sheriff had a wide range of duties - mostly on behalf of a king or other powerful figure or landowner - that they oversaw to ensure that things were done as they were supposed to and peace and order was maintained.  The modern elite football club is a huge organisation where the front and back office staff (as well as the players) are operating in a wide variety of departments an...

The long season is nearing its end across the land but there's still enough games to play - and that's when an interesting anomaly happens every single year. A Unique Psychology... Teams seemingly cruising at the higher reaches of the league suddenly develop vertigo and begin to have patchy results. Meanwhile in the depths of the divisions there's a collective spark of life as teams seemingly real...

Analyse This, Analyse That… each and every moment of every game is hyper analysed today. A player, coach and team cant do anything without it being dissected on the studio, on social media or elsewhere. Sure it gives great insights into the game and how it is being played - and education for those interested in the nuances of the tactical challenges, but it also can be used to build a narrative ar...

"We would like to thank them for their endeavours and wish them well for the future"... Cut and paste to many a club website announcing the departure of the manager or head coach from their role - add in the now infamous corner flag photo and you've got yourself a Managerial Casualty. Jurgen Klopp has managed his own imminent departure from Liverpool differently - he's chose the time, the place an...

It's never easy for a player to accept that they have possibly reached the end of their club career - not necessarily their whole career completely - but at a particular club or at a level of the game. Some are cognisant enough and know it's happening and begin to prepare; others stay in a state of denial. Their game awareness still works fantastically - but maybe the physical side of the game eve...

Many a Friday night has been whittled away in the environs of a *insert name of chain* Hotel by football teams across the world as the logistics of ensuring you're in the right town or city for the following days match kick in and the motorways are clogged with luxurious team coaches. But with perhaps 20 hours to kill before kick off, what does the team do? The logistics of getting everyone to the...

Kenny Rogers sang it well - you've got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold, em... and half time in football is when the manager plays some of his big chips! It is such a tricky period for a head coach - do you make tactical changes, substitutions even. A period of calm reflection or get stuck into them with an almighty rant. These are the choices As the manager walks down the tunnel the th...

Deadline Day - the culmination of months of preparation for recruitment teams, managers and club hierarchy as they look to seal those late deals that might make the different. Wether players entering or leaving the building, the pressure grows as the clock winds down and the window slams shut (it always slams - never gently closed!) The day can of course, be quite calm. Deals completed in the days...

"Come on you little fighter & Get back up again!" Supertramp sang - and perhaps the rise of Manchester United is only around the corner! For INEOS and Sir Dave Brailsford, Carrington and Old Trafford is the next stop as the multi-sport organisation looks to enhance the performance of the teams at Man Utd. And while being famous for the 'Marginal Gains' mantra at British Cycling and TeamSky, Br...

'One Of Our Own' is the refrain from many a terrace when the bright and shiny new young player is unleashed before a naive but excited fanbase. With more leeway than any other player, mistakes are forgiven at the altar of gaining experience. But managing emerging talent requires more than just providing opportunity.  Planning for the longer term - technically, physically, emotionally and psycholog...

The Mid-Season or 'January' Transfer Window offers clubs, coaches and fans the opportunities to shape the 2nd half of the season -for better, but sometimes for worse; nothing is guaranteed when it comes to building teams! This episode Gary and Dave explore how a manager will work in the time before the window opens to begin to target new recruits to come in and how working with the recruitment tea...

Christmas is a time for families, festivities... and football! Well it is in the hectic world of British football, where talk of Winter Breaks and a mid-season break are banished like the ghosts of Christmas past. From the inevitable planning of the Xmas parties for the players, for staff its logistics, rotation, travelling the roads of the country while sane people are tucking into the excesses o...

Few places in a football stadium have more mystique than the technical area! Prowling the perimeter of the pitch, or sat in comfort on the reclining, heated padded seats, this is where the emperor coaches survey the battlefield on the pitch. After the niceties of the pre-match talk its onto the pitch where communication with the players is tested in the cauldron of the stadium. Afterwards, in the...

Gary Rowett & Dave Carolan return for the next episode of Breaking Lines and this time we focus on Social media pressure & press conferences. There's reflection on social media and its effects on athletes, managers and officials!  England Rugby International Owen Farrell has decided to withdraw from the Six Nations and the pressures of press and social media commentary and abuse seem to be...

Join Gary Rowett and Dave Carolan, on our journey into the heart of football, exploring the ins and outs of the beautiful game. In Breaking Lines, we go beyond the surface and shed light on the backstage world of team management. Combining our collective years of experience and expertise, we promise to offer an immersive experience, discussions and expert insights into the world of football. Wheth...