Interview with Henan Sports Director Bella: I hope that in two or three years, Henan will become a desirable club

Reporter Lu Mi Zhengzhou reports After only 20 days in office, the South Korean coaching staff who had not been able to terminate the contract for a year was successfully sent away, and the new sports director called Bella by the Henan club seems to have some ability. Commenting on Nankiichi's departure, Bella said: "If a coach gives a solution when he has a bad result is to bring in more people, it is irresponsible. "Nan Jiyi's departure means the rebuilding of the Henan club, and they have adopted a new model led by the sports director in terms of management and construction.

◆Football: You came so suddenly, why did you come at a low point for the team?、

BJ: My contact with the club started last year and it lasted for a long time. I had an in-depth exchange of views with the club on management and competition training. In the process, I am also waiting for the final decision of the club. I know that things may change in China, and I'm glad to be here in April, and maybe it would have been easier for me to get things going.

◆In the process of communicating with the club's management, what do you feel is the strongest demand of the management?

The signing of the sporting director is an important decision made by the club's management and a key step towards modernisation. In Europe, sporting director is largely the norm for professional clubs, but in China the position is not yet widely available. So when the club showed ambition and vision and decided to improve its structure, I was delighted and accepted the invitation. At the moment, my focus is on getting to know and understand all aspects of the club, including the organisational structure of the club's various departments, from the youth system to the first-team work, in order to get a full understanding of the club's operations.

◆Feeling like you have a lot to do?

Since I arrived, I have maintained a high intensity of 12 to 14 hours a day. In the past 20 days, more than 40 players and heads of key departments have been interviewed individually. Through these in-depth exchanges, I have a more comprehensive and complete understanding of the situation of the club.

◆The team's results in April were not good, what do you think are the reasons for the poor results after contacting the team?

First of all, the first team has serious problems with squad formation. On the surface, we have a lot of players, but there is an uneven distribution of personnel in the various positions. Ideally, there should be two players of equal quality and competitiveness in each position, which is far from the target at the moment.

Secondly, there is a communication barrier within the team. The lack of information exchange between the former coaching team and the players, as well as with the Chinese team, greatly affected the team's coordination and functioning.

Third, the daily training situation is not optimistic. I watched the team's training every day and found that the two key indicators of training volume and training intensity were not satisfactory. This is not only not conducive to the maintenance and improvement of the player's competitive condition, but will inevitably have a negative impact on the team's performance in the long run.

◆You went to Dalian with the team, and the team lost to the relegation opponent, do the players still have confidence in this situation?

The defeat did take a toll on the morale of the team and the mentality of the players took a heavy hit. In large part, this stems from a lack of trust between players and coaches. When there is a lack of trust between players and coaches, it is difficult for players to trust and implement the coach's tactics, and the players' ideas and feedback cannot be smoothly transmitted to the coach. Usually in this situation, it is difficult for the team to achieve the desired result.

◆At home against Wuhan, the team scored first but was eventually reversed by the opponent, are some problems unsolvable in the short term?

The team's current form is the result of a combination of factors. It is extremely difficult to change only one of these variables and expect a quick rebound. We have a lot of things to adjust, and it takes time. Just like the wall of the house at home is cracked, just repairing the surface cannot solve the real problem, and in the same way, the solution of the team's problem also takes time, and it is not urgent.

◆Football: During this time, you completed a task - to terminate the contract with the former head coach Nankiichi, remember when you first arrived, you said that you fully supported the coaching staff, why did you finally decide to replace him?

Bella: From a management point of view, making major changes in the middle of the season is not the best option, after all, the stability of the team is crucial, and the end of the season is the first time to make adjustments. However, when the team's problems are becoming more serious and many remedial measures are ineffective, in order to protect the interests of the club as a whole, the sporting director needs to provide professional advice to the club and make a prudent decision to change the coaching staff.

◆When you first arrived, everyone thought you were here to replace Nan Kiyi. Is he resistant to you? How did you come into contact with him after you came?

We maintain a professional working relationship. I had many in-depth conversations with him and clearly defined the roles and responsibilities of each person. As Sporting Director, the core of my job is to improve the management of the club. I explained very clearly, there was no intention to replace him, my job was to evaluate him and help him.

After the communication, the quality of the work does not improve, the results do not improve, then I have to make the right decision for the club. The problem that the coaching staff has left behind, I understand it this way, if you see the problem and verify the problem, if you don't solve it, then you become part of the problem.

◆In May last year, the club's management and Nankiichi negotiated a termination of the contract, but to no avail. For a year, there has been no interruption in the voice about him leaving class, how did you talk to him this time?

During the negotiation process, I fully explained to Nankiichi and the reasons why the club wanted to terminate his contract. From the training management system within the club to the follow-up of the results of the matches, it covers all aspects of the work. Through this explanation, he fully understood that the club was justified in doing so, and that the root cause was that there were deficiencies in many aspects of his work.

In this regard, players and coaches have a common denominator in general, that is, it is difficult to actively self-criticize, and they tend to look for the root cause of the problem from the outside. As coaches often say, it's the players who lose the game.

◆It is said that those two days also went through a long process, can you tell us about the process of your negotiations?

The negotiation task is daunting, as it is not only the termination of Nankiyi, but also the budget of the new coaching staff, with the goal of completing the change of coaching staff without increasing the overall budget. There was no change of coach last year, because he had more than a year left on his contract and the termination cost was very high, so he encouraged the players to cooperate with him, and finally succeeded in relegation.

In this year's winter window, the introduction of personnel is built with his tactical thinking as the core, and he should bear the main responsibility for the problem, plus his contract period is getting shorter and smaller. So in the middle of the talks, I asked him to give up some of the remaining salary so that we had room for a new coaching staff to join. The process was really difficult, and after two days, he agreed.

◆Can this change of coach be seen as the beginning of the team's rebuild?

This change of manager is the beginning of a change in the club's management. Under the manager's responsibility system, the new coach is here, and in order to match his tactical style, he has to change his blood. Like last season, we had 20 departures and 18 brought in, which is very bad for the long-term stability of the club. The sporting director will lead the signing and be able to select a coach who fits the club's football philosophy, budget and medium- and long-term planning, which is conducive to long-term development. It's like building a house, the players are the workers, the coach is the contractor, the sports director is the designer, and the designer has to control the overall situation.

◆Football: Why do you think Ramos is the right fit? How long have you been in contact with him?

Bella: During the selection process, we interviewed 16 coaches. Ramos is a Portuguese coach, and Portuguese football has a well-established coach training and evaluation system, and the coaching professional level is quite high. He has a wealth of coaching experience and has proven himself in Europe's top leagues.

In addition, we were deeply impressed by the Portuguese coach's recognition of the Henan club, his desire to change the status quo and the positive attitude he showed during the negotiations. At the same time, given that there have been major problems of communication and trust between players and coaches, some of the foreign players in the team have been able to communicate directly with the Portuguese coach. The introduction of Ramos is conducive to good communication in the short term and the unification of technology and tactics.

◆In the home game against Wuhan Three Towns, you accompanied him to watch the game from the stands, from the process to the result, what did he say about the game?

From the point of view of the process, it was a little unfair for us to lose this game, and a draw was more reasonable. There has been a significant improvement in the technical and tactical aspects of the team, and it is arguably one of the better games we have played this season. However, the current changes are not enough to completely influence the outcome of the game.

◆Ramos took over in a hurry, how would you help him get up to speed quickly?

During the interview, we had an in-depth conversation with him. Before he came to China, we gave him a lot of detailed information. After he arrived in China, the Chinese team maintained close and good cooperation with him and helped him adapt quickly.

◆You mentioned the concept of "the DNA of Henan football", how do you explain this concept?

First of all, we must establish the technical development direction of Henan football and create a "football DNA" that is consistent from youth training to first-line teams. We want to implant a football philosophy so that fans and players can really feel the positive changes in the team on the field. Our ultimate goal is to develop more local youth players in Henan, and combine talented young players with cost-effective high-quality foreign players.

We often say that Henan football is resilient and "specializes in all kinds of disobedience". In terms of technical and tactical design, both offensive and defensive ends should be more aggressive and control the initiative on the field. Be more proactive, both with and without the ball.

◆There are not many sports directors in professional clubs in China, what does this reflect?

When I came to China 10 years ago, people probably didn't hear of special coaches, analysts, sports performance coaches, and it was difficult to distinguish between a medical rehabilitation therapist and a team doctor. After ten years of development, the Chinese Super League has more and more special coaches, and they have gradually gained everyone's recognition. However, at the club management level, the position of sports director is not fully appreciated, but I firmly believe that Chinese clubs are developing upwards and are moving towards advanced clubs, so these departments will be improved in the future. From the perspective of the club's management structure, this is an inevitable development process. My mission is to help the professional coaches and professional technical managers in China continue to grow.

◆You are the first sports director in the history of the Henan team, what are your goals for your work?

I hope that in two or three years, Henan Club will become a club with an excellent reputation and desirable in the Chinese football circle. In terms of first-team results, there must be a goal to hit the top six in the league.