Just a short post to point to an interesting book I enjoyed reading: Mike Carson’s The Manager: Inside the Minds of Football’s Leaders.

We have all heard anecdotes or seen outrageous behavior by footballers off and on the pitch. From Mario Balotelli throwing darts at youth players, wrecking £100,000 cars or trying to break into a women’s prison (Mirror 2012) to Luis Suárez biting Branislav Ivanovic during a 2013 Liverpool vs. Chelsea match (The Guardian 2013). And how can we ever forget the now popular German phrase Doing an Effe, which refers to Germany’s 1994 midfield star Stefan Effenberg, who ‘flicked his middle finger at the jeering German fans and kissed goodbye to playing for Die Mannschaft again.’ (Goal 2010)

It is always the manager of that respective team, who has to deal with the craziness of these talents. However, the question is, ‘How does a manager handle such high-maintenace footballers?’ In his 2013 book, The Manager: Inside the Minds of Football’s Leaders, Mike Carson describes the formulae for handling outrageous football talent like the above-mentioned. I can highly recommend the book, if you are interested in football leadership. In the meantime, here a slideshow that gives you an overview of the five key principles to consider: