Anyone who knows me is most likely to be aware that, for my sins, I am a mad and passionate #Everton fan. Those who don't know me yet - well, you've been warned! It's a curse and a privilege at the same time, but even if I wanted to try to change, I simply couldn't. As one of the club's more famous sons - the England 1966 World Cup-winner, Alan Ball - once said: “Once Everton has touched you, nothing will be the same.”
There is of course a more poignant reason for this post today. Fellow Evertonians will join me in celebrating that a couple of weeks ago, the club confirmed the signature on a 5-year contract of Andre Gomes - a 25 year-old Portuguese international player, whose evident ability prompted the mighty Barcelona to commit a handsome €55 million for him as a 'high potential' 22 year old.
However in his first season among the Galacticos, Andre struggled to live up to the exceptional expectations of this move, and didn't quite manage to make the breakthrough to claim a regular first team place. It is now apparent that there were some deeper psychological scars associated with this experience.
Andre is an articulate and urbane young man, and just last week in an interview with The Telegraph, he gave an insight into the intense pressures he felt as a talented young star-in-the-making, being thrust into the spotlight of expectation at one of the biggest and most famous clubs in world football. In a show of honesty and integrity, he admitted to needing psychological assistance to restore his self-confidence and his love of the game after an unsettled spell at the Nou Camp.
“I had some help,” said Gomes, reflecting on a difficult two years at Barcelona. “At that time I had one person I was speaking to, to try to help me to figure out some issues I had with myself. I’m the kind of person who [normally] doesn’t want to talk."
"It’s not a big deal to have someone close to talk to, someone neutral who knows the environment and, like everyone knows, playing football you have pressure, but everybody has pressure on a normal day in each kind of job."
“Now I’m just doing my normal things. If I need I can speak and talk about different things with a specialized person... Now more I am open to talk about different issues. That’s the big difference.”
The transformation in his attitude, and in his ability to cope with the extraordinary pressures of his burgeoning talent, show all the hallmarks of the benefits of a #coaching experience.
“Right now, the big difference is the way I enjoy more the simple things,” he said. “When you enjoy and you are happy you will give all your best and be at a high level."
Now, while Everton are no Barcelona (at least not yet!), it's ironic that he has joined a club whose motto is Nil Satis Nisi Optimum - 'Nothing but the best will do'. It will be interesting to see his development as a player and a person in this new environment, and how he lives up to that motto! The signs are encouraging, if the refreshing self-awareness of this interview is anything to go by.
In any professional environment, striving to be the best in a highly competitive team can bring stress, anxiety, self-doubt and lack of confidence to the best of us. Andre's story, even as a young man, is a further example to us all of the remarkable power of coaching.
If this resonates with your own work environment, for the people you manage that you want to see realize their true potential, please visit my website at www.elreyconsultancy.co.uk to find out how I can help you.
Or simply get in touch at ianking@elreyconsultancy.co.uk
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