REPORT - Mathias Bossaerts and Aimane Mdouari are coaching the next generation at Hoogstraten VV

‘These are the details that make the difference,’ shouts football coach Aimane Mdouari after one of his U13 players at Hoogstraten VV passes the ball onto the wrong foot of his teammate. The 23-year-old Aimane is a perfectionist by trade. Every training drill has to be done correctly by his team. There is no point in doing a drill just to simply do it. Aimane wants perfection. Perhaps if I had a coach like that I would have made it myself.

Aimane Mdouari: 'Football can be very tough, people underestimate that.' Photo: © Rik Tuinstra

It's six o’clock in the evening. I’m standing on an artificial pitch just outside the main road of the Belgian town of Hoogstraten. The floodlights shine brightly. But even more brightly shine the headlights of the parents’ cars as they watch their kids train from the car park. The lights are so blinding that one of the kids even has to tell his father to switch his headlights off.

Aimane is the coach of Hoogstraten VV’s U13 team and the assistant of the U17 team, which he coaches together with former professional footballer Mathias Bossaerts. They both started coaching at Hoogstraten VV at the beginning of the season.

End of a promising career

The 26-year-old Mathias quit playing football three years ago. He was known as a big talent in Belgium and played in the youth academies of Beerschot, Anderlecht and Manchester City. After he left the English Premier League club at the age of 20, he spent two seasons at Belgian side KV Oostende and one season at Dutch side NEC Nijmegen, before his promising career came to an end.

‘When I quit, I was searching for something else to do with my life. I cannot just be sitting at home all day, so why not teach children how to play football and share my experiences,’ says Mathias.

The love and fulfilment Aimane Mdouari and Mathias Bossaerts receive from coaching is irreplaceable. Photo: © Rik Tuinstra

Aimane, was just like Mathias, a kid obsessed with the dream of becoming a professional footballer. Aimane was not a defender like Mathias, but a goalkeeper. When he was fifteen, he moved to Belgium to pursue a professional career. He played in the academy at second-tier side KV Turnhout and later on also had trials at many clubs in the UK, including Queens Park Rangers, before he got offered a scholarship at the then-League Two side Accrington Stanley. After a tough six months in which he suffered from a number of injuries, he returned to Lierse SK in Belgium. But, once again, luck was not on his side as the club went bankrupt at the end of the season.

Since then, Aimane has rediscovered a passion for coaching and guiding the next generation of talents. His interest in coaching started from a young age, as, when he was playing for the U16s at KV Turnhout, he was already the assistant coach for the U14s.

Aimane is also an agent for fifteen players. ‘But it is more than just being their player agent. I offer them full guidance. I organise games so they can show their qualities to scouts and professional clubs, but I am also there for them when they need someone to talk to or for advice.’

‘I lacked the mental guidance when I was pursuing a career myself’ – Aimane Mdouari

‘I lacked the mental guidance when I was pursuing a career myself,’ reveals Aimane. ‘I offer them what I never received, but what I did need. I am first and foremost friends with every player I guide.’

Aimane’s friendly approach is apparent when he greets his U13s with a strong and playful handshake. He jokes with them and the players are happy to see him. Aimane tells me how he invited the players over to his home when Belgium was playing against Morocco during the World Cup and how they went bowling. He’s their friend, but when training starts I noticed that he became an authoritative leader who demands respect, concentration and quality. And if I learnt one thing, there is definitely no place for weak passes.

Aimane's advanced passing drill surprises me. Photo: © Rik Tuinstra

His passing training drill is advanced. Players have to make constant movements before receiving the ball. One player passes the ball onto the wrong foot of his teammate and Aimane interrupts. ‘Onto which foot do you need to pass the ball?’ ‘Onto the furthest foot,’ his players say. ‘That is right, so why do you pass it onto his right foot? It should go to his left. These are the details that make the difference between a good pass and a bad one, boys. Alright, start again,’ Aimane says.

He's very attentive to detail. Aimane notices the smallest things and pauses the training drill to highlight them to his players. I realised that I was not just at some amateur football club’s training session. The six coaches that trained me when I was playing in the youth at amateur clubs in my hometown, did not give me this kind of information.

Fierce rivalry

After the passing drill, the boys were awaiting a big challenge: a friendly match against the U14s. But ‘friendly’ is not the way I would describe it. This was a fierce rivalry. I was about to witness the equivalent of local derbies like Manchester City vs Manchester United, Celtic vs Rangers or Boca Juniors vs River Plate.

The U14s are about a head taller than the U13s. It is only a year difference, but boy do they look bigger and stronger. The match starts and I take a seat on the bench with the substitutes of the U13s. They have become my new favourite team, whom I support passionately after I have observed them for a mere 45 minutes.

‘We really want to win against them, they are always laughing at us’ - a U13 player

‘We really want to win against them, they’re always laughing at us,’ says one of the U13 players to me when we are sitting on the bench watching the action unfold. As someone who was always skinny and a head shorter than anyone I played against, I felt their frustration.

When I still used to play I had to rely on my technical skills and speed. I needed to be smarter than my opponent because physically I could not compete. And if I turned out to be better than my taller and stronger opponent, I was in for a long day of receiving kicks and falling to the ground. The white shirt I used to play in, would often be brown from the mud if we were playing on normal grass. Luckily for my parents though, I mostly played on artificial grass and washing the shirt did not turn out to be a nightmare.

The U13s of Hoogstraten have played against the U14s four times this season in training sessions but have yet to win. Hopefully, today is their lucky day.

The U13s are preparing for their friendly against the U14s of Hoogstraten VV. Photo: © Rik Tuinstra

Aimane places himself on the pitch during the match. He is not standing on the sideline like the coach of the U14s. He’s coaching his players right there and then amidst the heat of the game. The Dutchman has a very hands-on approach. ‘Do not just press,’ shouts Aimane at his players. He’s very tactical and this is clear when you watch the two sides play against each other. The U13s have to outsmart them. Even though Aimane’s team is struggling physically they are playing with a plan. There seems to be a thought process behind every pass and movement of his team.

Strict approach

Given his attention to detail and the fact that he was pointing out his players’ mistakes, I started to wonder whether Aimane might be too strict on the boys, but his players are happy with his approach. ‘He’s strict, but in a good way,’ says one of his substitutes. ‘He focuses on the details and he wants us to play well and to develop. He is not a strict human being.’

Earlier during the warm-up, Aimane explained to me how the U13s were not being trained properly the season before. Much to his frustration. ‘They did not train seriously. It was all just fun and games for them. But even the players complained to their parents about it and lost some joy in football.’ The substitute tells me the same. ‘Last season was not serious, I learnt nothing and felt like I was not progressing. Now, there’s a big difference. We’ve all been getting a lot better.’

Mathias Bossaerts has also joined for the last part of the match before his training session with the U17s starts. ‘Get out of the box,’ shouts Mathias as he focuses his attention on the defensive lines. ‘At Manchester City, we had a designated coach for the defenders. Unfortunately, we do not have that here but I try to pay special attention to the defenders. I teach them how to move backwards, how to protect each other and how to mark within the penalty box. These are things that have not been taught here before.’

The U17s made their way onto the training pitch. Photo: © Rik Tuinstra

Unfortunately for the U13s though, Mathias’s coaching cannot help them win. Another day with another disappointing result.

It’s something I have become used to as an Everton supporter myself. Maybe I should stop supporting the underdogs so I can finally celebrate something. But after the match, I mainly felt proud of Aimane’s team. Even though they lost 3-0 and did not have a single shot on target. They worked hard, and in the end, they only lost because of the physical disadvantage. Maybe next season, when they have grown, we can finally see David win against Goliath.

The physical U17s

After the U13s’ training session, the U17s make their way onto the pitch. And how? I am impressed by how physically developed some of the players are. I have the feeling I am about to watch some professional athletes. I almost forget these guys are just sixteen-year-olds. ‘Every Thursday before training, the boys have a workout session in the gym,’ says Mathias.

During the training session, Mathias watches his players with a keen eye and his hands crossed. With his blue cap, blue jacket and blue training bottoms, he looks like a proper head coach. ‘The quality needs to be higher boys,’ he shouts as the players are playing a rondo, where two players try to intercept the ball as the others try to pass it around. The players anticipate and encourage each other to do better too. ‘The passes need to be more neat boys,’ shouts one of the players.

But perhaps, they try to raise their levels because they know there are consequences if they fail. If they are not able to pass the ball between them twenty times before a defender intercepts it, they all have to do twenty pushups. When I used to play as a teenager, there was nothing me and my skinny body feared more.

‘At Hoogstraten, there are a couple of boys who are making the move to the academies of Royal Antwerp and Club Brugge next season and we are trying to get them ready for it’ – Mathias Bossaerts

But consequences like these are part of the game and the industry. ‘Football can be beautiful, but there’s also a different side to it,’ says Mathias. ‘At Hoogstraten, there are a couple of boys who are making the move to the academies of Royal Antwerp and Club Brugge next season and we’re trying to get them ready for it. Mentally and technically.’

‘Mathias and I have often discussed how some things need to be changed in youth football,’ says Aimane. ‘Right now, there is a big difference with first-team football. Developing mental power and resistance should be a big part of youth development, but at the moment there is too much focus on what happens on the pitch. Talent alone is not enough to make it.’

‘At the beginning of my career, I was not prepared for setbacks,’ says Mathias. ‘So we try to prepare them for setbacks and to know that there are consequences to certain actions,’ says Aimane. ‘Football can be very, very, very tough. People underestimate that. Mentally it can be so challenging.’

‘At the beginning of my career, I was not prepared for setbacks’ – Mathias Bossaerts

And the consequences are heavy. The latecomers to the U17s’ training session are awaiting a hefty punishment. They have to run through an intimidating tunnel of players who will try to give them a little smack on the neck. A big treat for the players who were on time, but a nightmare for the players who arrived late.

Challenges

Training the U17s has been a challenge for Aimane and Mathias. Before the winter break, the team was sitting second from last and the performances were poor. ‘There are so many basics that these players never got taught. Like effectively coaching each other on the pitch and knowing how to move. In this age category, it’s much harder to get rid of certain automatisms in their game.’

In order to tackle this, the coaches are asking the players to analyse video footage from the matches. They send clips to the WhatsApp group and ask them what was going wrong in these clips the next time they get together. And, during training, Mathias puts considerable emphasis on good basic skills, positioning, neat passes and high tempo. He wants his training drills to imitate the tempo and intensity of a game. When the pace is too slow, the players have to start again.

I’m impressed by Aimane and Mathias. They’re teaching training drills that have a clear purpose. In the nine years I played football myself, I had never seen drills like them. Never did I see my trainer take the defenders apart and teach them how to position themselves as a back four and how to move in different scenarios. Never did I receive training on when to press and when not to. If I had had trainers like them, perhaps I would have made it as a professional. Well, probably not, but I like living in that dream.