FA Cup magical for managerial learning
After giving a talk at Cambridge United’s Abbey Stadium on Wednesday night, I stayed on in the Dion Dublin bar to continue the debate. We talked about Cambridge managers past and present, John Beck and Neil Harris, and also a youngster who learned at Cambridge and went into management. Lee Johnson.
One of the Cambridge staff recalled how Johnson hid in the kit skip to listen to Beck’s half-time talks when his dad Gary was Beck’s assistant. In his career, Johnson has seized every opportunity to learn. He spent time with the SAS seeing how they dealt with pressure. He spent time in an Accident & Emergency ward observing how NHS doctors and nurses handled life-and-death situations.
Johnson’s got a cocky streak but also a hunger – he calls it humility - to learn. So he grabs every chance to study what makes the top managers tick. This is another reason why the Cups are so important. During the 2017-18 season, Johnson’s Bristol City beat Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United in the EFL Cup quarter-finals – which still cost him a £450 bottle of wine as a gift to Mourinho. But after the match Johnson was able to talk, amongst other things, about tactical periodisation with Mourinho, a training methodology developed in Portugal. Johnson’s understanding of periodisation expanded so much that it eventually involved explaining his tactical approach to players’ partners so they become an active part of the process of preparing the player’s mindset for match-day.