Van Nistelrooy, Tassotti or Jaro: the Eurocup that is not played on the pitch
The images of the benches of the national teams at Euro 2020 leave us with a vintage but priceless picture. Former players known to the general public and recently retired in the service of their country or other national teams.
In football teams and international teams, there are two ways of forming a coaching staff: trained ex-footballers as coaches or assistants on the one hand, or sports professionals who have not played at the highest level but are capable of making decisions at the highest level on the other. In some dugouts there is a mixture of profiles, although one of the two usually dominates.
La Roja only has Luis Enrique as a former player with international experience. The former Barça and Real Madrid player played in the 1994, 1998 and 2002 World Cups as well as the 1996 European Championship.
The other member of the RFEF who has played in international competitions is José Francisco Molina, sporting director. The former goalkeeper was Luis Enrique's team-mate at the 1998 World Cup and also took part in the 1996 and 2000 European Championships.
Roberto Mancini is the current coach of Italy. He retired in 2001 after playing in the 1990 World Cup and Euro 1988. Alongside the former Lazio and Sampdoria player is Daniele De Rossi as technical coach. The former Roma player won the 2006 World Cup and was European Under-21 champion in 2004 with the Azzurri.
Italy's technical secretary is another historic player, Gianluca Vialli. European champion with Juventus in 1996. He played in the 1986 and 1990 World Cups as well as the 1988 European Championship.
Ryan Joseph Giggs has been Wales coach since 2018. He won 13 Premier Leagues and two Champions Leagues with Manchester United, but the Cardiff native has never played in an official tournament for his country despite being capped 30 times. Alex Ferguson refused to let him play for his country. In 2012 he captained Great Britain at the age of 39 at the London Olympics.
Antonio Manicone is Switzerland's assistant coach. A complete unknown, he may, however, be remembered for being the Inter Milan midfielder who won the 1994 UEFA Cup against Casino Salzburg. Manicone started and played all 180 minutes of a two-legged final.
The Turks do not have any former top players on their coaching staff, but they do have a star in the backroom. Hamit Altintop is an advisor to the president of the Turkish Football Federation. He won the league title with Real Madrid in 2009 and played in the European Championship with his national team in 2008.
The Belgians have a strong Spanish presence on their coaching staff. Roberto Martínez has been coach since 2016 and Iñaki Bergara has been goalkeeping coach since the same year. The international experience on the bench is provided by Thierry Henry. The French player was World Cup winner in 1998 and European Champion in 2000. He also won the Champions League with Barça in 2009.
The Russians also have no stars on their coaching staff, although there are two curious cases. Their coach is Stanislav Cherchesov. The former goalkeeper played for Russia at the 1994 and 2002 World Cups and the 1996 European Championship. Under the name of the USSR, he also defended his country's goal at the 1992 European Championship. The vice-president of the Russian Federation is Nikita Simonian, who at 94 years of age is still remembered for the gold medal he won at the 1955 Olympic Games in Melbourne. The Soviet Union beat Yugoslavia 1-0.
Frank de Boer is the coach of the Netherlands. He played in the 1994 and 1998 World Cups. He also won the 1992, 2000 and 2004 European Championships. But his greatest victory was the 1994 Champions League with Ajax.
Rud Van Nistelorooy is the second coach of the Clockwork Orange. The former Real Madrid player also played in the 2008 and 2004 European Championships and the 2006 World Cup.
The Ukrainian national team has handed over to Andriy Shevchenko. The former Milan player was present at the 2006 World Cup and Euro 2012. Next to him on the bench sits Mauro Tassotti, both of whom were European champions with Milan in different years. The Italian was runner-up at the 1994 World Cup and starred for the elbow on Luis Enrique in the match that knocked Spain out of the competition. He was also an Olympian in 1988. Oleksandr Shovkovskiy is the technical coach and Ukraine international at the 2006 World Cup. An anecdotal mention should be made of Pedro Jaro. The 58-year-old former Real Madrid goalkeeper trains the goalkeepers of the Eastern European national team.
The Austrians have not put football in the hands of well-known former players. Goalkeeping coach Robert Almer, who was a starter at Euro 2016, stands out.
Their best-known face is Tomas Galasek. The former Ajax man was capped at the 2004 and 2008 European Championships and the 2006 World Cup.
Gareth Southgate has been in charge of the national team since 2016. As a player he did not stand out much, although he was capped by England at the 1998 and 2002 World Cups and the 1996 and 2000 European Championships.
Croatia's assistant coach is Drazen Ladic, who played in the 1998 World Cup and Euro 1996. Vedran Corluka is also an assistant coach. He retired after playing in the 2008, 2012 and 2016 European Championships and the 2014 and 2018 World Cups, the latter of which he finished runner-up after losing to France. The goalkeeping coach is Marjan Mrmic, Croatia's substitute goalkeeper at the 1998 World Cup and Euro 1996.
The Polish national team has its hopes pinned on Portuguese coach Paulo Sousa. The Viseu native won the Champions League in 1997 with Dortmund and in 1996 with Juventus. At international level, he was U-20 World Cup winner. He played in the 1996 and 2000 European Championships and the 2002 World Cup.
The current European champions are coached by Didier Deschamps. An institution in French football, he won the 1998 World Cup, the 2000 European Championship and also took part in the 1996 and 1992 European Championships. With Juventus he lifted the 1996 Champions League and the 1993 Champions League with Olympique Marseille. In the management of the French Football Federation, two well-known names appear in the position of technical director. Alain Boghossian finished his career at Espanyol, but before that he was World Cup winner in 1998 and took part in the 2002 World Cup. Marcel Desailly won the 1998 World Cup and took part in the 2002 World Cup. He won Euro 2000 and played in Euro 1996 and Euro 2004. He won the 1994 Champions League with Milan and the 1993 Champions League with Olympique de Marseille.
In the German national team, the legendary goalkeeper Andreas Köpke stands out in Joachim Löw's coaching staff. He was World Cup winner in 1990 and European Champion in 1996. He played in the 1994 and 1998 World Cups. He was a substitute for Bodo Illgner at Euro 1992, where he finished runner-up after losing to Denmark.
In the sporting director's office is Oliver Bierhoff. The former Milan striker won the 1996 European Championship and participated in the 2002 European Championship. He also finished second in the 2002 World Cup and took part in the 1998 World Cup.