Jurgen Gede: ‘Germany does not look me in the face’

– How do you receive information about the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) so as not to extend the contract with you?

– Mr. Hoai Anh – VFF Secretary General – called me and informed: “The federation leader has no intention of re-signing the contract with him. Thank you and goodbye.” It all happened in about 10 seconds.

– Previously, what was the problem during the negotiation process that both parties were unable to find a common voice?

– If there is no negotiation, there is no problem. For a long time, I no longer interacted with VFF leaders or staff. Just a phone call.

– Considered a silent hero in Vietnam’s football victories over the years, such as winning tickets to the 2017 U20 World Cup, the 2018 U23 Asian Cup silver medal … How do you feel about “the last part”? love “with VFF?

– I see … normal. Football is like this, this job is like that, it fits and melts. No one can stay in one place forever. Anyway, I have already prepared and imagined this.

Someone said that I lost my job or I don’t worry, because there are several million euros in the bank account. Well, that is his speculation. I have a lot of money to know and manage. Speaking of money, if I was a millionaire or rich, I didn’t have to sell a house in Germany a few years ago when I decided to go back to the Netherlands. But assuming I’m rich, money has never been a reason or motivation to continue working. I am not young, nor are my age and health as before. Last year, I had a cold, it seemed so light that I couldn’t help it, to the point of losing my voice for a while. If I had stopped working, I would have been resting for years. Soccer is my passion, my career.

– He recently said that In his last days at VFF, he was a lonely person. Why is that?

– There are two things I want to say. First of all, it’s true that I’ve been relatively “alone” recently, it’s not just social interaction. Many of my soccer tips and advice have not been thoroughly considered. Some people say that I have a habit of working independently, but somehow, nobody wants to have a partner with him. If not, then we have to find a way to get over it, like going home hungry in the middle of the night.

But on the other hand, the Technical Director is a new title not only for Vietnam but also for the entire Asian soccer system. It is impossible to completely blame VFF because they also faced such a unique position for the first time. Consider me a pioneer, lay the first bricks and then you can remember the story.

In the end, I think Vietnam is the destination, it is a “want and inevitable” chapter in my life. Previously, VFF contacted me many times, they were serious and even “fierce” when they approached me to sign a contract. There was another club in the past in Vietnam that also called me. That day, I thought that someday I would come to this country.

– Specifically, how was that fate?

– First, the military team – El Cong – called my representative in 2008. They bought a plane ticket, invited me to negotiate a four-day trip. I also went to various places in Hanoi, I crossed the street, but then I found out that this is the street with The Manor shopping center, where I often visit to buy food. But then the team dissolved for some reason, so it failed.

On another occasion, I was concentrating with the Iranian club Estehgal preparing for the AFC Champions League. It was midnight at my house, I was sleeping asleep when the phone rang. I picked up the phone, the representative reported that VFF Vice President Tran Quoc Tuan was in Kuala Lumpur with the contract written and prepared for me. VFF wanted to invite me to be the head coach, saying that if I just nodded, they would stay in Malaysia, buy tickets for me to fly, and sign a contract.

I just said, “Wait, thank you very much for your kindness, but tomorrow I have the match, not to mention that the contract with the host club is still valid. If you wait, after the match we’ll talk.”

– Some opinions said that he was not allowed to renew his contract because he had just completed the role of consultant and recruiter, but could not fully plan a general image for football. What you think

– Not bad but not necessarily true. As I said, this is a whole new career in Vietnam. Payment units and employees are more or less confused, surprised to find answers to the question “What to do?”. It is even more difficult to say when the professional club system in Vietnam does not have the same position.

– Exactly four years, what is your daily work?

– I follow the youth teams, but the work begins with local football. Not only is it the national youth tournament system, I also come to watch practice matches, friendly matches, internal kicks that are not open to the audience and the media. There are many interesting things there, because players who play on the field without spectators, without camera lenses will show the best qualities. They are not dominated, because they know that nobody will care about us today.

I also studied the format of the youth tournament, realizing that players under the age of 21 in Vietnam have very little opportunity to show. In addition to the number of games that only vary from 12 games to 15 games per year, we also have to see the amount of time the ball rolls in one game.

In Asia, the ball rolls about 65 minutes in a game, that is, the remaining 25 minutes are dead balls. On the world’s main soccer platforms, the time the ball moves on the field is up to 78 minutes. We lost almost 15 minutes per game, while there are already some games. So multiply you will see, Vietnamese players don’t play much. But football doesn’t play, don’t wear shoes how to improve.

I am very interested in youth soccer, because continuity is the core, the backbone of a soccer fund. Of course, there are many things that I have not done, macro that does not have a full image of the football background was completed during my time here. But I did my best myself, a single person couldn’t decide anything big.

– What are the difficulties and obstacles that prevent you from completing 100% of your desired job?

– I once proposed to hold a seminar with coaches across the country. It’s not a big deal, it’s not like I’m going to class, and they are sitting and listening. I know who I am, what my situation is, and I always tell VFF leaders that I want to help, I want to support people. It was just a conversation as a colleague, I recounted my experiences and summarized how it applies to each person. It seems to have been held in the South, but during my talk, not many people interacted to discuss it again. All right, more than half of the conference participants didn’t care what I said, they just sat on the phone. Try asking me how to do it?

When I went to the local area to exchange information, not all the clubs could fully absorb my ideas. It is a matter of mechanism, wanting to do is one thing but not a model, regulations to do. Since I never had an equivalent title, that is, my club level counterpart, it was easier and easier for the VFF Technical Director.

– A recent TV show revealed that he was not popular with people because he was very angry, every time he got angry he was very scary. So, is it that you have not joined the custom, have not fully understood the personality of the Vietnamese who prefer softness?

– I understand Vietnam very well and I adapt very quickly to Vietnam. I have been in Asia for over 20 years, I have traveled to many countries, so I have no idea. I eat pho, like shrimp paste. Even the kind of beer that sold 10,000 dong per cup that many people say is not good, should not drink, it seems to me a proper taste and a unique cultural trait of the Vietnamese people.

I got mad, I think I did. But sure, I got mad at the right job, the right person. Just like a player who is selective and lacks substance, focuses on time or violates regulations. I am not an irrational person to the point of being irritable for no reason.

– What happened in the last four years that made you more rampant?

– It was at the tournament in Indonesia, a number of young players buy smoking cigarettes by smoking. Socially, I don’t support smoking but I don’t condemn smokers, they only smoke in the right place, they don’t affect others.

But the children are young, under 18, that is, non-smokers. It is wrong about the law. Also, if you are a soccer player, you must know how to protect your health to have a long career. That does not mean that we are in a Muslim country, strict laws. Staying is also a way to preserve the collective image, the nation, to protect the “Star” that is in the chest.

An older professional footballer with a smoking history is no good, much less a young one. This is the responsibility of the academy, the club below, not the officials, the head coach, and the VFF. We only met for a few weeks, we told ourselves that the experience was over, but there was never a time to educate the personality and morale of the players. Having instructions is just instructing the children, stretching so that everything can be organized. The rest of the responsibility falls on the local level, where the players are trained and nurtured every day.

– Working frequently with young Vietnamese players, what are the advantages and disadvantages of them?

– Smart and smart Vietnamese players. But that is not enough. In fact, we can speak far and near physically and tactically, but in the end, it all refers to the word “conscience.” A conscious player will know how to take care of himself, he will know what is bad and what is good. A conscious group will know how to create a healthy environment, bringing them all together.

Many times I gathered kids at the team level, went to the gym after work, and saw lots of kids running around to buy fizzy drinks, snacks, and snacks. I understand child psychology, but determined to be a player, do not eat and drink for “happy mouth”, to know how to contain and control.

Next up is awareness on the soccer field. This concept of “consciousness” is very broad. I only have one professional thing to say: The biggest problem for Vietnamese players is that they don’t have the feeling of “moving without the ball.” A match, the player only touches the ball about 60 times. That’s a lot, especially in places where soccer is long. In those 60 touches, how do you optimize a pass and a shot? Kick the spike to do something other people put the ball on the foot and the defender ran out for him to shoot? You have to move, run, run in the “blind spot” of new opponents to handle situations.

– What do you think about the concept of “Vietnamese players cannot go abroad to play”?

– Exporting players, like the dream of the World Cup, is a slow, expensive and laborious process. I reserve the point that Doan Van Hau is the only player who can go to Europe to play soccer. I told several colleagues during my previous training in Germany. Van Hau is physically superior to the Vietnamese, ambitious and even a little “aggressive” in his style of play. But if you want to go to the great sea, especially when we come from a young soccer environment, you also have to be aggressive, be ambitious, have a big dream to be successful.

– Bau Duc once publicly expressed his disgust for Gede, even in the early stages, tricked him into the SEA Games 29 campaign. What was the reason for the fight?

– I want to emphasize, he and I have never spoken to each other, even during the German electoral phase as VFF Vice President. I haven’t spoken yet, so there can’t be a fight.

It is true that I have heard some words that say that Germany does not like me. But he couldn’t explain why it was so, if he wanted to know, he had to ask him directly. Just like that, I once went to Gia Lai to work on a young tournament. On Monday morning in Gia Lai, I went down to the breakfast area, had coffee, and talked to people. This is the time when every conversation, understood better, is a valuable time of day. Then the German elections appeared, entering the outer hall. I proactively ran out, saying “Hi, how are you?”. But he ignored it, not bothering to look me in the face and pass me by. That is my most memorable memory with Duc.

– What about the relationship with coach Park Hang-seo?

– We are both two different jobs, what that person does. I still meet and greet Mr. Park every day because we are near the wall. But in my job, in fact, I have hardly ever worked or participated in Mr. Park’s crew. I didn’t work with him, how could there be such a rumored disagreement?

But I’m sure Park is a good person, suitable for Vietnamese football. What he has done is better demonstrated, he deserves the results received.

– Besides being a professional, what do you gain and lose in four years in Vietnam?

– As I said before, it is normal to separate from football. Anyway, I have also done some useful things for Vietnamese football. And in return, Vietnam also gave me many contests about life, introducing me to cultural beauty.

In the Netherlands, there is always a pot for making hot pot. Coming here, I realized that there was such a wonderful dish. In the last two years of Christmas, when my friends came, everyone wanted me to make a Vietnamese pot. There is another dish, every time my wife comes to Vietnam to eat, it is the plate of braised carp that is eaten with noodles.

Also, there are days adjacent to the traditional Vietnamese New Year, I was invited to have dinner with Vietnamese families to see the reunion, refuge and comfort of the Vietnamese people. That is what we do not have in Europe. I have only one son, this year he is also old, I work and I already work. But he and his girlfriend have not yet given birth, which is a freedom in Europe, all day just to care for the pet.

After two decades of wandering around Asia, I have found that peace is the highest value that people expect. I have been through and witnessed so many crazy things, so I did not expect anything so high.

– What is “crazy” on the two-decade journey in Asia that you have never revealed?

– The day I came to Azerbaijan to work for Neftchi Baku, the boss was a rich and generous man. But he likes to be … the head coach, often interfering with the professional. Then the climax was once, he pushed a small striker into my hand, the limbs were clumsy, clumsy, and he said, “Juergen, let it begin.”

When I went to Malaysia, the Kuala Lumpur FC Club arranged for me an apartment near the twin towers, next to the busiest shopping street. Then I was able to take the key to a German car, free to move. Everything is fine except … players. They arranged the scoreboard, but not behind me, but in the middle of the day. When the players started on the field, the bank pulled out their phones to text the boys.

Or in Uzbekistan, there used to be a club that brought an astronomer … using a telescope to observe the opponent’s training. Then when I went to Bahrain, a wealthy figure presented me with a black bottle, covered with a waterproof pad and imprinted with the logo of the soft drink company. Open the lid, click your lips to know what it is … beer.

Now, when I have been in Vietnam for four years, I realize this country, life here gives me a feeling of peace.