Leandro Trossard has undertaken a coaching qualification
Leandro Trossard is already making preparations for life after Arsenal.
The Belgium star has not yet been at the club even two years but, at 29, the forward has already laid the groundwork for his post-playing career. Not that he’s finished just yet, having completed 180 minutes and scored for his national side over the international break.
But, Trossard wasted little time in equipping himself with the qualifications required for what comes next. While he is now a senior pro and happy to give advice, he was already providing himself with options while still at Brighton.
The ex-Genk ace joined the Seagulls in 2019 and it was not long until he was living in an environment impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Trossard took the opportunity to undertake a coaching course and has earned his A-licence.
“Well, I have done my A License,” he said. “I enjoyed the on-pitch side of it, giving the sessions, but the theoretical stuff – that was a bit much! And actually designing the sessions was really hard work.
“You might not think it, because when you are playing, you just get on with it. You come into training, do your stuff and everything is done for you. But once you need to design them yourself, you actually see what goes into it.
“Even the things like the coaches need to referee in training as well. When the ball goes out of play, the players will moan, but when you do it yourself you see it’s not always the easiest call to make!”
Trossard is not committed to moving into coaching when he hangs up his boots but has given thought to his philosophy. The Arsenal ace has learned from Mikel Arteta, and his other coaches, and has also increasingly become interested in analytics.
Leandro Trossard enjoys working on the training pitch
“It would be to play attacking football,” Trossard explained. “Play nice, offensive football. I’ve learned a lot from the coaches I’ve worked with. I’ve worked with some great coaches and I think I could have some good ideas from them, but I’m not sure if I would do it. Obviously being a head coach is a lot – a lot of work. They spend so much time at the training ground, it’s actually crazy.
“But the older I get, the more I enjoy the analysis side of it too. Before I never had any interest in that, but I think I’ve developed more in that way as well. I want to know more about my stats, what I do in games and I think it’s also a good way to recover, when you know how you feel after the work you’ve done. We have a tough schedule, so any stats you can use to help recovery is great for that.
“There was none of that when I started in Belgium. We went on the pitch, trained, then went home!”