“A small squad means everyone feels part of it and integrated.”
― Michael Laudrup
“We can all have a bad day. It happens for me as well.”
― Michael Laudrup
“You can’t play with fear in football. There is a lot of respect – you have respect for everybody, the ones on top and the bottom – but never fear.”
― Michael Laudrup
“Michu and Van Persie are similar. They look alike. They are both tall, left-footed players. They are not fast, but they know when to make the runs.”
― Michael Laudrup
“If you lose a player who scores seven, eight, or nine goals, you have to find another one.”
― Michael Laudrup
“Of course money is important – to say it is not in football would be a lie. But to find a good player with potential for a small amount of money and then to develop him in the group is a great pleasure for a manager and for a club.”
― Michael Laudrup
“At Brondby, we had Daniel Agger, who came up from the youth. He had two years in the team, and then we sold him to Liverpool for nearly ã7 million, which is a lot of money in Denmark. As a manager, that gives you even greater satisfaction that winning something as a player.”
― Michael Laudrup
“The Messi of the early years was a phenomenon, but he always wanted to finish off the move. Now he goes past one, two, or three players and is happy to give an assist to a team-mate – it makes him more dangerous and more difficult to stop than ever before.”
― Michael Laudrup
“Yes, in 1983, I had the opportunity to sign for Liverpool.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I don’t think people can imagine a Liverpool team without Gerrard. It is like Raul at Real Madrid and Puyol at Barcelona. They are a rare breed, these types of players.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I think there are a lot of great strikers in Europe.”
― Michael Laudrup
“That is one of the problems big teams face – their rivals always take the field very motivated, and I say this from experience.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I do not like to use a player solely to make a member of the opposing team, for one simple reason: when we cannot retrieve the ball, we are forced to defend with ten men, giving the opponents an advantage.”
― Michael Laudrup
“For me to be speaking of the referees, then you know it must be something big.”
― Michael Laudrup
“The Copa del Rey is a two-legged match, but it is an important game like every other.”
― Michael Laudrup
“The Copa del Rey is a different competition. It is football in its purest form and is different from the continuity of the league.”
― Michael Laudrup
“It’s easier to change the manager than all the players. It’s never easy to choose who should be in the dugout.”
― Michael Laudrup
“When things aren’t going well, it’s very easy to blame the coaching staff.”
― Michael Laudrup
“When you’re struggling, especially mentally, it’s only the team who can bring you out of that situation. It’s not one or two players.”
― Michael Laudrup
“The biggest clubs in Europe, whether they be Barcelona, Madrid, Manchester United, or Chelsea, always want to win, whatever they are participating in.”
― Michael Laudrup
“If something happens for one season, for me, it is a coincidence. Twice, we can start talking about it.”
― Michael Laudrup
“We have to let them grow, because young players can always improve. That goes for Jack Wilshere, too.”
― Michael Laudrup
“You don’t want to push your young players too much.”
― Michael Laudrup
“It’s always difficult to play the big teams, but I would rather play them at the start of the season.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I would rather have a job where I can look up in the table, not downwards.”
― Michael Laudrup
“It’s impossible to always move forward, but sometimes even maintaining the status quo is enough.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I don’t like to make comparisons, as it’s different coaching a Spanish team to coaching a German or English team. Each country has their style, more or less, and within each country, they have different styles.”
― Michael Laudrup
“The Bundesliga is different from La Liga, it’s different from Serie A, it’s different from the Premier League, so you have to adapt to the circumstances.”
― Michael Laudrup
“Robben is more of a one-on-one individualist. He’s a player who can decide a game.”
― Michael Laudrup
“Circulation of the ball is important, but it’s only useful if you can give it to someone who can make the difference.”
― Michael Laudrup
“Cruyff defined a philosophy and a style of how we had to play: positional play, type of players, the profile of the coaches, even.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I don’t think I’ll see the next Messi in my lifetime.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I was in Spain, with Mallorca and Getafe, which were exceptional experiences.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I enjoyed my time in the Premier League and in Qatar.”
― Michael Laudrup
“In the end, we all want to win, and you have to use all the resources at your disposal.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I played the way I did it because I knew it was effective. My intention was to win always, not to gain applause.”
― Michael Laudrup
“It’s always flattering when others are talking about you.”
― Michael Laudrup
“It’s not being disrespectful, but the less you know an opponent, the more work you have to do.”
― Michael Laudrup
“We all know when you have a huge price tag on your shoulders, there’s always a lot more pressure on you, a lot more expectation.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I believe in treating players like adults – though if some of them behave like children, you have to treat them as such! – and I think there is big respect the other way from players to the manager.”
― Michael Laudrup
“To play for almost two months without your manager is not easy.”
― Michael Laudrup
“Regarding my coaching philosophy, I think it is important to adapt to the team/players and the culture in the country where you are coaching, but to keep possession is a key issue wherever you are.”
― Michael Laudrup
“It’s always good to hear when players aren’t out for as long as you thought they would.”
― Michael Laudrup
“As a manager, you always want as many players available as possible, but injuries are a part of football, as it is a contact sport.”
― Michael Laudrup
“It’s always an honour to receive recognition, but I always consider them more important when they come from your colleagues.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I think that when you are part of a football team, it is a group. That means the players and the staff, including the manager and all that administration.”
― Michael Laudrup
“Money is not all in life, and not in football, but it’s quite important, and to have the lowest budget in the league means to finish in the top 10 may be an even bigger result.”
― Michael Laudrup
“When I see a game on the television, and you see afterwards ‘possession percentage 60-40,’ that doesn’t say anything for me because it could be that one team is playing the ball between the back four 120 times.”
― Michael Laudrup
“For me, possession is to keep the ball while you are waiting for the possibility to penetrate. Every pass is for a reason.”
― Michael Laudrup
“To think about attacking is also to think about positioning.”
― Michael Laudrup
“Football, if we bring it down very simply, it’s when you have the ball and when you don’t.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I had won 64 caps by the age of 25.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I was a big talent.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I do not like to live in the past, I live in the present. I think that is very important as a player, as a coach, and as a human being.”
― Michael Laudrup
“If you are always talking about the past, then you don’t really have much in the present.”
― Michael Laudrup
“We can talk about some small differences between the Premier League and La Liga, but they are the two best leagues in the world.”
― Michael Laudrup
“Everyone makes mistakes, but when players or managers make mistakes, they are all accountable and have to take responsibility. When I talk about referees, you wonder, ‘Can I say this?’ You have to be careful – but they are the only group in the world of football who are treated like that.”
― Michael Laudrup
“If you are a manager at the top level, there is pressure, but you have it because you want to be there. If not, you would do something else.”
― Michael Laudrup
“If I have a keeper who makes a mistake in consecutive games and is dropped, when he plays again, there is pressure on him because that is the level of the game we are at.”
― Michael Laudrup
“Playing on a Thursday and then a Sunday is not a problem.”
― Michael Laudrup
“It’s a good place for me, Wembley. In 1983, I played for Denmark when we beat England there 1-0, and in 1992, I played for Barcelona when we beat Sampdoria 1-0 in the Champions League final.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I sometimes go for drives with my wife around south Wales, and always the people are so friendly and so passionate.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I’ve played under many managers – some fantastic, some average, and some not so good. Even if it’s not intentional, you log the good ideas and the bad ones.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I don’t mind individuality in a team. In fact, I encourage it. I don’t care if you have green hair, white boots, or are full of opinions. All I ask if that you are never above the team.”
― Michael Laudrup
“You can’t think you can find a top scorer for free.”
― Michael Laudrup
“Honestly, who knows 100 per cent what they will do next year?”
― Michael Laudrup
“When people are booing at the stadium when they win, then it has nothing to do with the results. It is something to do with emotion and feelings, which is an important part of football. The relationship there has nothing to do with results.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I’ve never said I didn’t want to manage a big team. I’ve never had that dream – that’s different.”
― Michael Laudrup
“I played at the highest level for 17 years and won so many titles.”
― Michael Laudrup
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