Technology-unsung hero behind British football club's miracle

Paul Balsom, head of sports science and performance at Leicester City, during a Korean performance workshop hosted by Catapult at Imperial Palace Hotel in Seoul on Thursday / Korea Times

Sports scientist says Sweden is not easy team to play against

By Kang Hyun-kyung

British football club Leicester City’s stunning rise as champion of the Premier League last year still resonates with football fans. Some British media outlets described the underdog’s victory as the greatest sporting upset ever.

The club has long been depicted as the favorite to face relegation for their disappointing performances, so their Premier League championship came as a surprise.

Among others, the coaching staff’s leadership, great defenders, strikers and goalkeeper were lauded for the underpaid players’ dedication and passion for football, which were the key factors that moved the underdog team to clinch their first premier league victory ever.

Paul Balsom, head of sports science and performance at Leicester City, said there is an unsung hero behind the British club’s surprising surge as a premier league champion _ technology.

“What was unique at Leicester City was that our coaching staff, sports scientists, medical staff and players were all together,” he told The Korea Times at the Imperial Palace Hotel in southern Seoul, Thursday.

Balsom said the club’s championship was the result of systematic and constructive cooperation between the club’s staff and players. “We, sports scientists, can do it if the coaching staff listens to us. But none of us can do it if the players don’t understand what we say, buying into the concept that the players need to eat properly, rest properly and prepare properly,” he said. “So it’s fair to say what we did worked for us, and this was the secret behind the club’s stunning victory last season.”

Balsom, who also serves as head of performance for the Swedish national team for the 2018 World Cup, noted sports science is “one of the critical factors” that saw the British club win the championship. “I think it’s wrong to say sports science is more important than any other element,” he said, however. “If sports scientists are good, if the coaches are good, if we have no injured players, if tactics are good, and if all those things come together at the same time, that’s when everything is powerful.” He visited Seoul to present the significance of sports science at a workshop hosted by Catapult.

Sports scientists help football clubs and players perform better by advising them about how they can prevent injuries and reduce their mental and physical load.

Last year Leicester was considered a relatively weak team compared to such big clubs as Arsenal or Manchester United. But Leicester had a lower injury rate _ only 18 during the season _ than those clubs, so most players were able to play in all of the games.

Injuries are a headache to professional sports clubs around the world. The U.S. Major League, for example, spends $7 billion per season on injured players. Injuries also cost British Premier League clubs $3 billion annually.

According to Balsom, about 40 percent of injuries are preventable.

Injuries can make or break great players such as Neymar, so sports scientists working for the Brazilian athlete reportedly pay extra attention to help the star avoid injuries.

Asked if great players such as Neymar and Messi are born or made, the Swedish football expert, who has worked in football for 35 years, said he believes practice is more important than talent.

Citing two Swedish football legends_ Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Henrik Larsson_ with whom he has worked, Balsom said great players spend lots of time practicing to improve their football skills. “They worked harder than any other players that I knew,” he said. “If you were born with the right genes, you can find it easier to be a great player. But you can never compensate for hard work. If you look at Neymar or Messi, one of the characteristics they share in common is that they practice many hours. That’s the characteristic of great sports people.”

Balsom was careful when asked to comment about the Korean national team’s overall strength and their chances to advance to the Round of 16 during the Russian World Cup.

But he warned Sweden is not a weaker team as some Korean football experts have commented.

Korea and Sweden are in the Group F. The remaining two other teams in the group are Mexico and Germany.

National team coach Shin Tae-yong commented Group F is neither the best nor the worst for Team Korea. He said Korea’s first game will determine its fate for the Round of 16. “As everyone knows, Germany is one of the strongest teams, so I think it’s fair to say it will be very tough for Korea to defeat Germany,” he said. “But I think Mexico and Sweden are different stories. I think they are the teams that we can play equally with. If we play well in the first game against Sweden, I think we may be able to advance to the Round of 16.”

Balsom disagreed. Only 32 selectively chosen teams are to compete in the World Cup and thus there are no teams that are stronger or weaker. The Korea-Sweden match is one of the three games each team has to play to win the ticket to the Round of 16, he noted.

“What I do know is that we, the Swedish team, will watch every game South Korean players have played in the past and will study every player and their performance,” he said. “I guess South Korea will also do the same.”

He declined to give further details of the Swedish team’s preparations for the World Cup.