Ange Postecoglou’s title win with Japanese club Yokohama F. Marinos is vindication for anyone who has ever wanted to do things their own way and not simply follow the crowd.
I have walked the picturesque port city streets of Yokohama many times, but I never thought the next time I’d do so would be after an Aussie coach had won the J.League.
My mate Takeshi once invited me to a bar on the edge of the city’s famous old Chinatown, telling me it would be worth our while to seek out the tiny, eight-seater hole-in-the-wall.
“What’s so special about this place anyway?” I asked the grizzled old proprietor after he’d eyed us off warily and only let us in after exchanging business cards and the requisite introductory small talk with Takeshi.
“Do you know who Commodore Perry was?” asked the owner.
“Sure,” I said of the US naval captain whose 1854 visit to Kanagawa opened Japan up to Western trade by force and transformed Yokohama from a sleepy fishing village into the nation’s second-largest city.
“My great, great grandfather met his Black Ships down by the port,” he replied.
“There’s been a bar here for more than four hundred years.”
It was a sobering reminder of how much history lurks around every corner in Japan, and how carefully the Japanese hang onto it.
Now Ange Postecoglou has made history as the first Aussie coach to win a major foreign championship, and in the toughest league in Asia at that.
And the outpouring of emotion after Postecoglou’s swashbuckling F. Marinos side downed nearest title challengers FC Tokyo 3-0 in front of some 63,854 fans at Nissan Stadium – despite having goalkeeper Park Il-Gyu sent off after 67 minutes – says much about Australia as a football nation.
(Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
We’re a parochial bunch; quick to celebrate success and claim it as our own whenever someone successfully flies the flag, even if it means downplaying the contribution of others.
There wasn’t a lot of analysis down under of Theerathon Bunmathan’s deflected opener for F. Marinos, nor of Erik Lima’s well-taken second or substitute Keita Endo’s title-sealing third.
But given how unfamiliar the average Australian fan is with Japanese football, perhaps that’s understandable.
If exposure is all it takes to spark some interest in the J.League and get the average Aussie football fan out of their comfort zone, then Postecoglou is leading the charge.
And the former championship winner with South Melbourne and Brisbane Roar has broken the mould in another unspoken way.
For all the passion of fans in Australia, there’s often been a feeling among certain supporters that Asian football is somehow inferior.
Perhaps it’s an attitude borne of ignorance, but Postecoglou – who was an admirer of the Japanese game long before he signed on as Yokohama F. Marinos coach – has shattered the myth.
It was Postecoglou who instructed goalkeeper Park to play a high defensive line outside his penalty area all season, and the one-time Socceroos coach was typically nonchalant about his last line of defence being sent off with more than 20 minutes still to play.
“Paky was doing his job,” Postecoglou said in his press conference after the match. “It’s his job to come out and sweep.”
That’s Ange for you. He’s always had an unwavering self-belief in his players and tactics and anyone who doesn’t buy into it is usually surplus to requirements.
Ange Postecoglou (Photo by Masashi Hara/Getty Images)
After becoming the first Australian coach to win the Japanese title, hopefully Postecoglou gives the AFC Champions League a red-hot shake next season.
Then it’s on to Europe – because there’s no stopping Australia’s most singular coaching talent now.
I’ve been to close to a hundred games in Japan over the years and there’s no doubt in my mind that Postecoglou’s title win is one of the greatest in J.League history.
He did it his way.
So to Ange and his assistants Peter Cklamovski, Arthur Papas, Greg King and their translators, arigatou gozaimashita.
Punter
Roar Rookie
Well said Will, I don't get this can coach club but not country rubbish. A good insight from John Didulica in the World game website. "His vision for the game in this country was too uncomfortable for too many." 'the choice of short-termism over Postecoglou's long-term vision resulted in the country's greatest football coach abandoning the Australian game.' https://theworldgame.sbs.com.au/postecoglou-rejected-australian-football-pfa-boss-calls-for-ffa-introspection
Punter
Roar Rookie
Thanks Mid, this is correct, he was tasked to improve the footballing technical excellence of Australian football, but the FFA wanted results & money from the WC qualification. This had nothing to do with the fact that Ange did not / could not coach at international level. He had a goal & he was inflexible, my issue with him was that he thought he was above criticism, this was my only issue.
Punter
Roar Rookie
A good coach can coach both club & international. Ange can, this is a myth. Even Hiddink said the Golden generation wasn't really good enough, but he molded them to compete, that was his role. Fad, you know, I know & Ange knew, we do not have players in Australia with the technical excellence, I can count on 2 fingers those that did ever in this country, so why not try to achieve this, it will take time, but again with Van Marrwick & Arnold we have stopped this experiment, which I find is silly. Ange's role was to try to get players to play at a technical excellence then they have, build from the back, play the 21st century football, but....
Ad-O
Guest
Winning the J-League didn't stop Arsene Wenger winning the EPL at his first try and revolutionising English football in the process. I don't think the J-League has as much quality as Holland or Portugal, but that doesn't mean Ange hasn't earned his shot if a big European team decides to give him a chance. His Socceroos results are mitigated by the fact we are seriously lacking quality across the park.
Fadida
Roar Rookie
They also can't expect to do what they want without questioning, just because they are "one of our own "
Fadida
Roar Rookie
Read above Kanga. At least 3 times I've said he is our greatest ever coach at club level. Unfortunately international and club football aren't the same The rest of your comment is immature
Midfielder
Roar Guru
Mike busy day and only now have some free time... excellent article and some excellent comments as well... AP for his personal achievement I give him heaps of praise... the way he lead us in his first WC was brilliant and the way he won the Asian cup was superb... After the Asian Cup he decided to experiment with styles and players... at some point he loss the confidence of many arm chair critics and they in turn worried FFA who needed the WC money as another distraction.. Losses in key games we expected to win hurt and all coaching is about results and post the Asian Cup the results were not there... his decision to leave will forever be a mark against what is otherwise an amazing career... The simple truth is what I said all coaches get judged on there results and post the Asian Cup our results slipped... Massive achievement in japan and huge congrats to him.
Redondo
Roar Rookie
And you conveniently forget how bad Aus were for over a year before Ange resigned. He's a good coach and I was a big, big fan of his Roar team but he got it wrong with the national team.
Kanggas2
Roar Rookie
No one sacked him , naively forgetting the politics of Australian soccer On a day of great triumph for Ange , his 2 roar keyboard critics double down with their anger at qualifying for a World Cup . Where would Australian be without the tall poppy syndrome.
Redondo
Roar Rookie
Nah - Fadida is correct about Ange. You can be really good in general but still be wrong about particular things. Ange was clearly wrong about how the players he had should play football together. Regardless, if Ange was really so confident about his philosophy he should have stayed on and tested it at the World Cup. Nobody sacked him so he kind of admitted defeat.
Kanggas2
Roar Rookie
Fadida What punter said.
Punter
Roar Rookie
This is where we differ Fadida. We didn't do anything in WC anyway, we played 2 very well organised games, where we really didn't create much & the only game where we had to go get a result we got smashed. Why not continue with Ange's experiment. It's a slow burn, we were not going to create Ninkovics or Baumjohans overnight, we needed to keep making mistakes until we get more & more players in our system having better technical excellence. We have to start somewhere. Where are we now? I love Arnold, he is a great club coach but he has his limitations, Ange does not. Maybe Stevie Corica, his team playing wonderful football.
con
Guest
yes true but mate he is just human and not a good politician [ two things that have never been done by many ] and he has a young family at the end its just a job not worth loosing his family over ungrateful people ,and we all forget the nasty FFA politics going on at the time ,makes for a very dark surroundings being a national coach
anon
Roar Pro
I just have good taste is all
con
Guest
He was given what all other coaches get from a rich country like ours ,but he was never backed up and supported for his theories that had bared fruit than and has now ,he stood up for his players and was belittled and made to apologize by gallop ,he called for change more teams, encouraged a second division, more teams in the A league and was ignored for a man that has broken all the records in Australian football history, who had vision more important than results , and too become a nation of self belief and our own style, I think that was even more important ,for those players and staff that have worked next to him have come out and all worship his ideas and theories , even our current coaches are , no one that has ever played for Ange has a bad word to say ,but you mr FADIDA you know so much ,give me a break mate ,the guy is a genius
con
Guest
Sydney run FFA and the Sydney media just cant stop from making bad calls and mistakes after the other, their still in charge their still making mistakes and that is why our sport suffers what they did to the two national coaches was and is a disgrace, living both women's and men's national teams rudderless months before the world cups , Ange did not quit he was hassled out, no respect for a job that was super hard with a hundred thousand km traveled in far away places away from his young family and bagged along the way and that was after we won the Asian cup , tell me when has Australia ever won anything in soccer , mmm NEVER !! and the rubbish we have been told about Alan stajcic the whole FFA should resign over it they should have sacked them selfs
Kanggas2
Roar Rookie
Finished equal second on points , Without rewatching I think the players missed about 20 goals against Thailand twice , Honduras away . Chances among the 8 other group games . He empowered them to play and create , the players lack of finishing skill is not the fault of a national team coach . That’s a sad reflection of the poor technique under pressure of our team .
Fadida
Roar Rookie
He wouldn't have got there Punter. He wouldn't change from his only way. We didn't have the players. I agree 100%. Given that he needed to adapt. He couldn't. Wouldn't. Again, this isn't too take away from an amazing achievement. Our greatest ever achievement by a coach. Let's not rewrite history though and pretend we would have achieved great things had he stayed, or that he was comprised behind the scenes. We would have been torn apart at the WC. Can he coach internationally? He'd be brilliant for a country with players of the technical excellence his system requires. Japan even?
Fadida
Roar Rookie
He was criticised because we played really poorly for a year, results were average at best and we almost missed qualification from a good group. We came third in a two horse race. He wanted discussion. When it was positive about him
Fadida
Roar Rookie
I'd advise you to re-watch the games Kanga. Struggled to create decent chances and were terrible defensively. The j-league success shows what a great club coach he is. I don't think anyone on here doubts that. He lost his way badly as NT coach. We struggled to qualify, predominantly because of his tactics and selections. It's ok to critique someone. It's not black or white. Ferguson was a great manager but struggled tactically in Europe. Still the greatest British manager