{"id":11949,"date":"2018-04-01T09:00:47","date_gmt":"2018-04-01T00:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/?p=11949"},"modified":"2018-03-31T22:02:45","modified_gmt":"2018-03-31T13:02:45","slug":"interview-tactical-analyst-loran-vrielink-evolving-player-behavior","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/2018\/04\/01\/interview-tactical-analyst-loran-vrielink-evolving-player-behavior\/","title":{"rendered":"INTERVIEW: Tactical analyst Loran Vrielink on evolving player behavior"},"content":{"rendered":"

With the addition of goal line technology and video assistant referees in recent years, modern football has undoubtedly entered a new technological era. But as many clubs begin to rely on \u2018big data\u2019 to improve performances at a team level, tactical analyst Loran Vrielink is making an impact at the individual level with his innovative take on player behavior.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

Loran sat down with Football Tribe earlier this month to discuss his take on the game, joined by one of his rapidly-growing stable of clients: Urawa Reds midfielder Quenten Martinus.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

How would you describe your profession?<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Vrielink:<\/b> I\u2019m a tactical analyst of individual professional players. I focus on the individual because at the club they\u2019re focused on the team, as is the head coach. The agent takes care of the individual, and I also want to help players go to bigger clubs and develop their performances.<\/span><\/p>\n

Why did you choose this career?<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Vrielink:<\/b> I played professional basketball, which is more individual because you have smaller guys like me, and taller guys who need to dunk. As a result there are different trainers who focus on dribbling skills and individual aspects. Football is more team-based.<\/span><\/p>\n

I also worked in schools, making videos of kids\u2019 behavior to show their parents how kids behave in classes. I combined these two into football and started this company two years ago. I studied in Barcelona for a month and saw how important individual influence can be.<\/span><\/p>\n

What makes football a harder sport to analyze statistically than basketball or baseball?<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Vrielink:<\/b> It\u2019s harder to apply because it\u2019s more complex. There are 22 players interacting with each other in football, while basketball has 10. Basketball has a lot of statistics such as shot location.<\/span><\/p>\n

Data in football is advancing quickly. But I don\u2019t look so much at data; I look at behaviors. If [Martinus] beats his opponent but his teammate doesn\u2019t score, he\u2019s played well but nobody has seen that performance. You can see some things in statistics, but not everything.<\/span><\/p>\n

How do you visualize behavior?<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Vrielink:<\/b> It can be tricky. I take small video clips from each game and look at his behavior. I look at him for 90 minutes, so I don\u2019t know what the left back did. I see his behavior every week, so I see how he performs on crosses or when defending. When you do that every week, you understand the player\u2019s behavior.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Martinus, what inspired you to bring on an analyst?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Martinus:<\/b> I think I\u2019m hard on myself. I know I have a lot of qualities but I saw that they weren\u2019t coming out as much as they should; I thought I could do a lot more. My agent saw the same thing and proposed this to me. I spoke with Loran and we did a private session, and from that I saw a lot of good things. I saw that I could improve myself, and I saw a lot of things that made me question what I was doing on the pitch.<\/span><\/p>\n

He showed me what I need to do on the pitch, and you can\u2019t see that with data. Behavior has nothing to do with statistics. I thought I could learn a lot more from Loran, because in football you not only need talent and statistics, but also the mentality.<\/span><\/p>\n

Is Martinus a good student?<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Vrielink:<\/b> He\u2019s is a very good student. In the beginning everyone doubts what we do, because I\u2019m a nobody. I\u2019m not a former player. But there\u2019s a certain moment where something changes in the player\u2019s behavior, when they think \u201cHey, Loran was saying something interesting\u201d and I see that back on the field. I love to work with him, otherwise I wouldn\u2019t be here.<\/span><\/p>\n

Is it easier or harder to learn these new behaviors when your teammates aren\u2019t going through the same training?<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Martinus:<\/b> It\u2019s really individual. I only look at myself and what I need to do. If he tells me to work a certain way, I will. If I don\u2019t get the ball, it\u2019s not my mistake. Loran isn\u2019t telling me what to do, he\u2019s asking me why I do these things. So he\u2019ll ask how my coach wants me to run, or how my teammates react to me doing certain things.<\/span><\/p>\n

Vrielink:<\/b> Every coach has a different strategy, so I need to adapt that, rather than apply my vision. I help the player get better in that system. The goal is to make the best Martinus possible within the coach\u2019s philosophy.<\/span><\/p>\n

Martinus:<\/b> He looks at my position, so if he sees that I stay and wait instead of going for the ball when it comes in a certain direction, he\u2019ll point it out. It\u2019s individual for me, but I need to fit in a team.<\/span><\/p>\n

What\u2019s your process like?<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Vrielink:<\/b> We start with a free tactical session, because I want to show players their capabilities. I\u2019ll look at each half, and in one half I might have 70 clips. I show players the good things, but also bad things they\u2019ll do in the same situation.<\/span><\/p>\n

We start with one fundamental each for offense and defense, and add more until all of the individual fundamentals are mastered and the player knows what he does, good or bad, and how he can do better the next time.<\/span><\/p>\n

What does it feel like to go through that process?<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Martinus:<\/b> It\u2019s kind of fun. Every week you look at yourself, and you also make progress, which is good to see. If you see the things you normally do and you fall back in your old patterns, you reflect on it. It\u2019s nice to look back on how you play and what you did well.<\/span><\/p>\n

Vrielink:<\/b> The longer you work, the more positive things will happen. He may do something wrong the first time, but then the second time he does it perfectly because he knows what will happen. During the process he will be \u2018consciously competent\u2019. Most players are \u2018unconsciously incompetent\u2019, and by showing them these clips they become conscious about what they\u2019re doing right and wrong. A player like Iniesta is \u2018unconsciously competent\u2019: he does everything well without knowing why.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

How did you learn so much about football even though you didn\u2019t play professionally?<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Vrielink<\/b>: Some players doubt me because of that, coaches as well. They\u2019ll call me a \u2018laptop coach\u2019, especially the ex-professional players who are coaches. Football is changing to include more data and analysis. In Germany they\u2019re ahead of (Holland) because young coaches put so much time and energy into understanding the game. Ex-players played, but they didn\u2019t put time into understanding the game. As a coach you need to understand everyone\u2019s role, not just your own.<\/span><\/p>\n

Martinus:<\/b> I think we need to combine these viewpoints. Sometimes something happens on the pitch, and you don\u2019t see it on video. I explain why I did something, and he understands it. We analyze together. And that helps him understand my behavior.<\/span><\/p>\n

It sounds like there\u2019s a lot of trust involved in your relationship.<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Martinus: <\/b>When Loran asks me what happened in a certain moment, I think \u201cwhat answer are you looking for?\u201d But I explain and he understands.<\/span><\/p>\n

Loran:<\/b> It\u2019s important to have a connection with each other, or it won\u2019t work. I only want happy players who think they can improve. When I see a player do something I\u2019ve discussed with them or taught them, that\u2019s amazing to see. Every week I sit in front of the TV and hope all of my players will play their best game yet.<\/span><\/p>\n

What\u2019s the common quality in the players you work with?<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Vrielink<\/b>: They need to want to work on themselves. Most players are critical about themselves, but also about their teammates. Players have to be open and willing to look at their own performance. It takes time to work on these things, and you need a work ethic because there\u2019s training and analysis on top of that. Sometimes it can be frustrating, but all of my players are willing to do it.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

What would you suggest to those interested in this sort of work?<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Vrielink<\/b>: Watch one player for 90 minutes. You\u2019ll understand the influence of that player. 80 percent of the fans watch the ball, or behind or in front. But if you watch the player you\u2019ll see his behaviors and see behaviors nobody will see. Sometimes I\u2019ll show (Martinus) clips and he\u2019ll say \u201cwhat? When did this happen?\u201d The things you\u2019ll see won\u2019t be statistics. It takes concentration to see the influence of the individual.<\/span><\/p>\n

Your company seems to be growing quickly.<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Vrielink<\/b>: During the first year I did everything by myself. I started with (Dutch international and Swansea midfielder) Leroy Fer in November 2016. In January I started with Quenten. Now there are eight staff and I\u2019m already looking toward next season, because more players are coming. We have 18 clients and are in talks with another 15.<\/span><\/p>\n

You\u2019re 26 years old and already a pioneer in the field; what\u2019s the end goal?<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Vrielink<\/b>: I want to be a head coach; for me this is a first step. It\u2019s gone very fast in two seasons. I hope to get better and then go to a professional club and show what I can do, and coach a big club in Europe.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With the addition of goal line technology and video assistant referees in recent years, modern football has undoubtedly entered a new technological era. But as many clubs begin to rely on \u2018big data\u2019 to improve performances at a team level, tactical analyst Loran Vrielink is making an impact at the individual level with his innovative take on player behavior. Loran sat down with Football Tribe earlier this month to discuss his take on the game, joined by one of his rapidly-growing stable of clients: Urawa Reds midfielder Quenten Martinus. How would you describe your profession? Vrielink: I\u2019m a tactical analyst of individual professional players. I focus on the individual because … Continue reading “INTERVIEW: Tactical analyst Loran Vrielink on evolving player behavior”<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":90,"featured_media":12015,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[1360,127,1087,95,316],"class_list":["post-11949","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-japan","tag-interview","tag-j-league","tag-quenten-martinus","tag-slider","tag-urawa-reds"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11949","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/90"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11949"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11949\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12015"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11949"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11949"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11949"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}