Coach’s right-hand man earns his wings in Scotland
THE coaching credentials of the American looking to puncture Celtic’s Europa League aspirations come stamped with a Scottish seal of authenticity. Jesse Marsch may have chosen to swap one wing of the Red Bull sporting empire for another – leaving New York for Leipzig in the summer – but it is to Glasgow he regularly returns to complete his coaching education as he looks to open the door to additional opportunities.
The 44- year- old spent three seasons as the most successful coach in New York’s history before being summoned across the Atlantic to join sister club RB Leipzig in the summer.
Officially the right- hand man to Ralf Rangnick who has taken on the demanding joint roles of director of football and head coach for this season, those with their ears to the ground in Leipzig insist Marsch’s job is rather more significant than simply laying out the cones and handing out the bibs in training.
“The assistant coach is a very important job at Bundesliga clubs and it is the same with Jesse Marsch here,” said Stefan Krause, RB Leipzig beat reporter for Bild newspaper. “He is the boss on the training ground every day. It is him that tells the players what actions to do, holds the team talks and discusses tactics and strategy. So, he has been trusted with a very important job.
“Marsch told me he is learning every day from working with Rangnick but he already has a lot of responsibility himself. And when you see how they are doing this season it seems to be working.
“Rangnick was very happy to get Marsch as he knew him from working together at winter training camps. When Rangnick decided he would become the trainer again for this one season, Marsch was the guy he wanted beside him.”
To ascend to one of the leading jobs in European football, however, the
American requires the necessary qualifications which is where his Scottish jaunts come in.
Showing astute foresight, the t wice-capped US international signed up to the Scottish FA’s Pro
Licence course at the start of last year when he was still with New York, joining the likes of Barry Robson, Stevie Crawford, Jack Ross and Martin Canning at regular intervals throughout the 18-month programme. There he has heard coaching seminars from sporting luminaries such as Roy Hodgson, Frank Dick and Gregor Townsend.
“One time I noticed after a match this season that Marsch was wearing normal clothes rather than his RB Leipzig uniform,” Krause said. “I asked him why and he said he was running to the airport to fly to Scotland to continue his coaching studies.
“He told me the last session is in December and at that point he should hopefully be a fully qualified coach and able to be considered for some of the big coaching jobs.”
That SFA grounding will stand Marsch in good stead over the long term, but he is already making his mark at Leipzig who take on Celtic in the third match of their Europa League group on Thursday.
Among his more revolutionary moves has been the introduction of a “wheel of misfortune” where players with poor time- keeping or bad dressing-room etiquette are handed novelty punishments such as mowing the training pitch or working in the club shop, rather than the traditional monetary fines.
Leipzig’s meteoric rise through the ranks of German football on the back of Red Bull’s investment has been well-documented and they are currently in the midst of another seismic transition. Julian Nagelsmann, the wunderkind of German football coaching, will leave Hoffenheim to become their head coach at the start of next season, leaving some to wonder what this might just mean for Marsch.
A t wo-year contract, however, suggests they want the American to stick around.
“He told us when he arrived in the summer that he is really confident he will be here next year, even when Julian Nagelsmann comes to Leipzig,” Krause said.
“He’s very proud to be working in Germany and all his family are with him. He is learning the language too and can speak it pretty well already, so I think he plans on being here for a long time if he can.”