Mental wear and tear, pressure, every coach faces it. Even, and perhaps above all, the best. At the end of last January, Jürgen Klopp, who has managed Liverpool for nine years, surprised all observers by announcing his intention to take a break and move away, for a time, from the sidelines. “I love absolutely everything about this club, I love everything about the city, our supporters, I love the team, I love the staff,” the German then confided to support his statement. “I like everything. The fact that I am making this decision despite all this shows you that I am convinced that this is what I must do. I’m running out of energy. I know I can’t do the job over and over and over and over again. My coaching, my management style is based on energy. If I don’t have that energy, I’m not the same.”
At the same time, another coach, Franck Haise, experienced the same inner questioning. As the Lensois coach confided to the microphone of France Bleu Nord, returning to his decision to no longer be the general manager of the blood and gold club. “I took this step back in January, I first did it for myself above all and therefore for others. The mental load was significant and I could not go all out on certain files. I was more tense, more tired, it showed. I even wondered if, in six months, I wouldn’t stop training to take a break. It was a possibility. I had this option in mind for several days, but it didn’t last.”
For the moment, Franck Haise would have put his desire to take a break away after seven years in the northern city. “Lens is the place after my training club where I spent the most time. We have found a very good balance (with my wife) and that is very important. I don’t know when my 17th move will be. But I remind you, I am under contract (until June 2027). Contracts make sense. I also know what I managed to create here. The trust that we have developed with the people I work with in this club is important to me. However, we will have to see how he ends the season to be certain that his decision proves final.