O tecelão

 

"Then Klopp walked on stage and the chemistry changed, in the way it sometimes can in a large arena. He smiled - that huge megawatt smile — and started answering questions from John Bishop, the MC, about his nine-year tenure at the club. Yet the German didn't want to talk about the matches, goals or highlights, but rather the moments behind the scenes that had, he believed, proved crucial.

He talked of a moment at the start of his reign when he asked the players to gather in the media room while the staff - gardeners, cooks, fitness coaches etc — walked through one at a time. He asked the players: "Do you know these people? Do you know their names?" Embarrassed, the players realised that they often didn't have a clue. "They are here to help you to perform 100 per cent. They are part of the team," he said.

Another moment regarded by Klopp as "seminal" in those early days was a trip he arranged to Tenerife with the whole of the backroom team. "I didn't know these people before I came here, but they became friends," he said. "Friends for life." Bishop couldn't help smiling and the crowd murmured, glimpsing the significance of what Klopp was saying.

And as he talked, I found an image forming in my mind. It wasn't of Klopp the manager, but rather of Klopp the weaver. I couldn't help thinking that, for all his tactical knowledge and formidable competitive instincts, his deeper strength lies in knitting people together, weaving disparate individuals into a shared ethos. "We had to get the culture right," he said. "That's what this club is about." 

E na sua organização, quem é/são o(s) tecelão(ões)?

Trechos publicados no The Times do passado dia 1 de Maio em "Liverpool offer lesson in succession"