‘What my team can learn from Jordan’s will to win’
RODGERS HAS TOLD HIS SQUAD TO WATCH NETFLIX SERIES ON CHICAGO BULLS’ TRIUMPHS
BRENDAN Rodgers wants his Leicester City players to learn from the success of Michael Jordan and the 1990s Chicago Bulls side.
The City boss has revealed he told his squad to watch the ESPN/ Netflix series The Last Dance – which chronicles the Bulls between 1991 and 1998, a period in which they won six NBA championships – in order to learn what it is to be an elite player.
In the series, Jordan, regarded as one of the greatest sportsmen of his generation, is shown to be relentless in his pursuit of improvement, not only in himself, but in his team-mates, too.
It struck a chord with Rodgers, who told the City players in April: “I don’t know what you’re watching while you’re off but if you get the chance, start watching The Last Dance.
“If you want to know what being elite is and what being at the very top level in terms of preparation is, and focus and improvement and being better and winning, this is what you should be watching.”
Reflecting on the show, Rodgers told the Mail on Sunday: “Jordan was blessed with talent, but he absolutely maximised his talent.
“His whole mentality around being the best and being elite, every player should follow that. It was about the work he put in and how much he was prepared to suffer and his mentality.
“Some people had a problem with the way Jordan behaved towards his team-mates but we judge people on today’s standards when that was more than 20 years ago and the world was different.
“He wanted to win and he wanted others to win. It was like that in football as well. Times have changed, but at the very highest level, sometimes you have to be harsh to be clear.”
Rodgers also learned from Phil Jackson, the Bulls’ coach through the era, who had a unique approach to each player to ensure he got the best out of them. He was also able to find emotional hooks for the players, something Rodgers believes will be key when City return to action behind closed doors, without fans cheering them on.
“You have to find a cause,” he said. “It’s about emotionally activating the players as if there were supporters there, to play with intensity and purpose in our game.
“It is within our grasp to have an absolutely brilliant season. It is finding that leadership to ensure we’re ready for every game.”
At the very highest level, sometimes you have to be harsh to be clear.