Robin Alder

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[Robin Alder @RobinAlder]

Spot on.

[David Garcia @IJaSport]

This is what happens when two people don’t have a clear definition of a football term. It’s two people speaking past each other, two people not having an understanding of what the word means, or an agreement of what the word means. Therefore, they’re talking about two separate things.

I thought Thomas Tuchel’s interview after England’s game was a prime example of this. The interviewer asks about mentality. I assume he’s asking whether the players’ mindset was right, whether the decision making was right, whether England lacked something mentally because they made technical mistakes, didn’t play fast enough, and made the game more difficult than it needed to be.

Whereas Tuchel takes the word mentality somewhere else. He takes it back to commitment, to the drive, to the non-negotiables that the England team have to have in order to compete in a tournament like this one; Making recovery run, making tackles, making blocks, fighting through adversity.

That is how I perceived Tuchel’s answer. Now, that doesn’t necessarily mean my definition is correct either. That’s actually the point. I perceive mentality in one way, Tuchel potentially perceives it in a slightly different way. The interviewer potentially perceives it in another way, and suddenly one word has three different meanings.

This happens all the time in football. We use these vague terms without clear definitions. There isn’t a clear, specific way to speak to each other about certain things, so conversations become really difficult. Take the word intensity. One coach means sprinting, another means pressing, another means concentration, another means speed of play. They all use exactly the same word, but they’re talking about completely different behaviours. The same thing happens with confidence, aggression, composure, quality, structure, control, even positional play.

Sometimes we think we’re debating football, but we’re debating definitions. Jon Mackenzie put this really well: “Sometimes I feel like you can apply Wittgenstein’s maxim to the modern tactical conversation: There are no tactical problems, only linguistic problems. Most of the tactical debates of the present seem to swirl around a lack of clarity regarding the terms involved.”

And I think this especially happens between coaches and players. A coach says, “We need more intensity.” The player hears, “Run more.” The coach might actually mean press earlier, arrive faster, recover with more urgency, play forward quicker, or compete harder in the next duel. That is where vague language becomes a coaching problem.

The actionable tip is simple: give vague terms actionable language. If you want more intensity, tell the player what that looks like. Press when the pass travels. Recover inside the ball. Arrive before the receiver can turn. Play the next pass forward. Sprint beyond the ball after you release it. Now the player has something they can actually see, do, and repeat.

[ArtButMakeItSports @ArtButSports]

The Martyrdom of Saint Lawrence, by Jean-Baptiste de Champaigne, 1660, 📸 by @sizqui

[Catherine Warr @HiddenYorkshire]

not the point really but the creeping use of "could of" instead of "could have" in quasi-official social media statements is a shocking decline in popular literacy

[Robin Alder @RobinAlder]

@FabrizioRomano @WeAreTheOverlap True.
But they also paved the way to sign CD Luka #Vušković. Croatian, 19 yo. Currently on loan at Hamburger Sportverein #HSV. Outstanding season. Superstar in the making.

[Robin Alder @RobinAlder]

Waldmeisterlich!
Ein Stück Baumstamm, das man auf den Plattenspieler legen kann. #art
https://t.co/x0MFw4kfgT

[Imtiaz Mahmood @ImtiazMadmood]

A wife tells her programmer husband: “Go to the store and buy a gallon of milk. If they have eggs, get six.”

He comes back with six gallons of milk. When she asks why, he replies: “They had eggs".

[Robin Alder @RobinAlder]

@GwartyGwart Made my day.

[Robin Alder @RobinAlder]

@TobiasKroeger Bin mir ziemlich sicher, dass bei dieser Mannschaft, mit 1-2 Abstrichen, Leichtigkeit, Freude und Kreativität schneller zum Ziel führen als Kampf und Disziplin. Tja, bleibt nur die Frage: mit welcher Aufstellung ebendies entfachen?

[Robin Alder @RobinAlder]

Das Glück im Job finden?

Vielleicht bisschen dick aufgetragen. Aber es geht in diese Richtung. Ein sehr cooler Job jedenfalls.

https://t.co/siSHWshpyl

[Sandro Brotz @SandroBrotz]

Only in Switzerland: Ich wüsste nicht, wo sonst sich politische Kontrahentinnen und Kontrahenten nach einer TV-Debatte so gelöst und vereint auf einem Bild zeigen würden. Danke meinen Gästen in der Live-#SRFArena zum Ausbau der #Autobahnen. Die Sendung gibt‘s bei Play @SRF.

[No Context Brits @NoContextBrits]

Christ.

[Robin Alder @RobinAlder]

@MarcelMelcher @enricokopatz @Rejtschel @UrsinCaderas @MartinaFehr @KatharinaBalzer @Siff66 In der Tat. Those were the days!

[Robin Alder @RobinAlder]

Im First-Class-Flug auf Reportage.

Das waren noch Zeiten.

#Journalismus

[Robin Alder @RobinAlder]

Ich sehe es als Chance für #Eberl, seine Sportmanager-Qualitäten zu zeigen.

Das Offensichtliche (Klassenprimus Alonso) wäre keine Kunst gewesen.

Jetzt einen #Bayern-Trainer zu finden, hingegen schon.

[Robin Alder @RobinAlder]

Unusual names, part 213:

Hindemburgo Chateaubriand

😳

[georg humbel @georghumbel]

Followerpower: ich suche jemanden, der ein Milizamt ausübt (z.B. Schulpflege oder Gemeinderat) und das begeistert macht. Ich möchte in in einer kleinen Story über das Glück schreiben, sich in der Gesellschaft zu engagieren. Hinweise bitte per DM an mich. @nzzas

[Robin Alder @RobinAlder]

Oha! 😳 Monsteralarm bei der alten Dame.

[Robin Alder @RobinAlder]

«Und wenn Thomas Müller einen Spruch macht, dann lachst du und sagst: ALTER SCHWEDE!»
#Kane #Bayernknigge

[Archie Rhind-Tutt @archiert1]

Harry Kane on wearing lederhosen: "I wasn't aware it was compulsory."

I also thought I'd give him a few tips on how to survive Germany / Bayern / Uli Hoeneß... @ESPNFC

[Robin Alder @RobinAlder]

Superjob.
https://t.co/RtaFGxNQCu

[Robin Alder @RobinAlder]

😳

[Iman Jalali @Stealx]

Unbelievable

A Russian submarine commander was assassinated on his run yesterday

He was posting his workouts on Strava!

One of the people who liked the posts, was the Chief of Intelligence of Ukraine