Sigi's tips | Pirlo and Klose: Two legends on the brink

Unfortunately, you, as a reader of this column, will now have to make some effort. Karagümrük. Admittedly, you have to practice this a few times before you can pronounce it with any accuracy. It's not a new kebab variant or even a lovely seaside resort on the Black Sea. It's something like Türkgücü, a club in the Bavarian capital. The club once played in the professional sector and, after bankruptcy, is now in the fourth-class Regionalliga Bayern. Karagümrük – is it getting better? – on the other hand, is still alive and plays in the highest Turkish league. Altach is of course easier for us to pronounce. And they will – rightly – ask what Karagümrük and Altach have in common? Both football teams are coached by legends.

I admit that I hardly dare to say that the great Andrea Pirlo, the heart of Juventus, is trying to succeed as a coach in Turkey. Pirlo. The name alone gives you goosebumps in connection with memories of his big games and his oh-so-wonderful way of understanding football as an art and not just as pressing and counter-pressing. His ankle was sculpted by the good Lord himself. He had grown attached to the ball, which stuck to his foot until he sent it to a teammate with a sensitive and buttery-soft flick or into the goal with a free kick. He should become Juventus coach. That went wrong. He failed miserably at his first position as a trainer because he was simply burned out. He had a big name but no experience. And now Karagümrük. This is a club in Istanbul that has even been playing its games in the large Atatürk Olympic Stadium since its promotion in 2020. But Pirlo is having a hard time again. He won one game, his first this season. Two defeats followed. At the moment, Fatih Karagümrük is in 13th place. Only goals conceded for Klose An equally prominent colleague is already up to his neck with the little water we have left. Miroslav Klose landed in Altach. In Vorarlberg, Austria. The community has 6500 inhabitants and is located on the Lindau-Bludenz railway line. After all, the bus lines from Götzis also run through Altach. When Klose came, the enthusiasm was huge. The most successful World Cup goalscorer with 16 goals in four World Cups. Not even Ronaldo can keep up. After the end of his career, Klose coached FC Bayern's U17s, was then assistant coach to Hansi Flick and the Bayern professionals and took over SCR Altach from this season with a clear message. He said at the beginning that he wanted to shape the team so that it would play the way he imagined. Of course, this is a message with a lot of scope.

With passion on the sidelines in Altach: Miroslav Klose. © APA/DIETMAR STIPLOVSEK / DIETMAR STIPLOVSEK

At the moment it looks like this: He and Altach are last in the “Admiral Bundesliga”, the highest in Austria with four points. His team has conceded 16 goals so far and has already reached absolute rock bottom. Altach lost 0-3 in the cup against second division club FC Admira Wacker. The former goalscorer only sees how the others score goals and not his boys. So, I assume, he didn't want to let it play. The past no longer counts Pirlo and Klose. Two world-class players in the coaching bench. Two who got their current jobs thanks to their past, because many club officials still believe that with legends it would simply work automatically and success would be guaranteed thanks to the big names. It is a powerful fallacy that is also related to Franz Beckenbauer. The only emperor this industry ever produced became world champion as a player (1974) and as coach of the German national team. But he achieved this primarily by letting things take their own course. The sentence: “Go out and play football,” which he whispered into his players’ ears before the World Cup final against Argentina in 1990, is as much a legend as he is.

Beckenbauer was a guru, a magician and a footballing giant. He was not a tactical fox or a strategist. He was Emperor Franz. A living institution. It worked for him. But the times have changed. The player positions now have numbers, the libero has gently fallen asleep. Various chains overlap the playing field. The opponent is dissected before every game. Video analysis reveals every weakness. Many successful coaches of the new generation, to which I also include Jürgen Klopp, played only so well in their clubs and left no trace as active players like Miroslav Klose or Andrea Pirlo. But that's of little use to the two former stars now. These are almost desperate attempts by two exceptional kickers to gain a foothold in the tough coaching environment without much experience. Only current results count there and not the merits of an undoubtedly great past. It is a painful process for all sides.

About Sigi Heinrich: The renowned sports journalist, author and award-winning Eurosport commentator (including winner of the German Television Prize and the Bavarian Sports Prize) not only dedicates his column “Sigi's Spitze” to the entire diversity of sport. He also deals with topics outside of his usual profession. Sometimes very seriously, often with a mischievous wink and sometimes deliberately provocative. There should be something for everyone.

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Sigi's tips | Pirlo and Klose: Two legends on the brink

Two world-class players sought out unusual challenges to gain a foothold as coaches. However, our columnist Sigi Heinrich notes that both Andrea Pirlo in Turkey and Miroslav Klose in Austria have not yet managed to set an example for their clubs.

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