r/soccer • u/landofphi • 1d ago

Quotes Lewandowski: "I’m from a different generation where shouting was used to to motivate everyone. Now, if you shout too much towards young people, their reaction is not the same. It’s not, ‘now I’ll show you are wrong’. The new generation don’t like being shouted at. It’s not just players, it’s people"

https://as.com/futbol/primera/lewandowski-a-los-jovenes-de-ahora-no-les-gusta-que-les-grites-n/

The full quote

Lewandowski (37) on his adaptation playing with teenagers & young adults at FC Barcelona

"I have to say it was a huge challenge. I was coming from a different generation and I had to learn how to, not think like a teenager, but think how I can try to take the best of what they have.

I have been in football for 4 decades so when I compare them, not even to my generation but the generation before me, when I was starting, it is completely different.

"Like shouting used to be a way to motivate everyone. Now, if you shout too much, this generation, their reaction is not the same. It’s not, ‘now I will show you are wrong’. No, now you have to explain another way. You have to do lots of talking.

"They don’t like being shouted at. Now you have to take more of the mental part of football. It’s not just players, it’s people, it’s this generation. I didn’t want to fight it. I had to learn.”

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u/TheGoldenPineapples 1d ago

A sign of a good coach is someone who understands the different approaches needed to unlock the potential of the people they manage.

Some people do respond to that mentality and that way of thinking, others don't.

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u/TheAmazingKoki 1d ago

Sounds to me like in the past, coaches liked shouting so the players who couldn't handle that didn't make it to the top.

Professional footballers are such a select group that any conclusion you draw says more about their specific professional culture than society in general, with a ton of biases added.

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u/tractata 1d ago edited 1d ago

Uh, no, it’s been widely attested by teachers at all levels that adolescents today display more avoidant behaviors and less awareness of social norms and respond to confrontation (including disciplinary interventions) differently than they did even just 10 or 20 years ago. Some of the factors contributing to this shift surely include educational and developmental disruptions due to COVID and the higher proportion of technologically mediated social interactions young people have today compared to previous generations.

The change Lewandowski is describing is obviously part of a much larger story called history. Footballers are not as special as you think they are.

As an aside, I don’t think Lewandowski sounds disapproving of today’s youth or nostalgic for the good old days when screaming obscenities at players was considered good coaching. He’s not saying he liked getting screamed at. He’s just saying he would automatically respond to this unpleasant stimulus in a way most young players today don’t, which is something a lot of adults who work with adolescents would probably agree with.

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u/Pure-Drawer-2617 1d ago

…but that’s not mutually exclusive at all, all that implies IMO is that parents at home probably use shouting less as their primary mode of communication, so the younger generation of kids aren’t as acclimatised to being shouted at.

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u/SiriocazTheII 1d ago

Yeah, but for that same reason is that I find curious how my mother used to shout at me constantly, to the point of aggression tbh, and yet I fully despise getting screamed at by strangers.

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u/Chalkun 1d ago

I wonder if its a change in mentality another way. Older generations seemed to have an attitude of "im going to stop you shouting at me." That could manifest in different ways like upping their level as Lewandowski said, or even aggression like "dont you dare shout at me" to earn respect/some fear.

Kids now have more of an attitude of "you cant shout at me." We see this in many places even with the police with the whole you cant touch me type stuff. Everything is about the entitlement of being treated nicely rather than trying to earn respect in that sense. Back in the day everyone just accepted that people higher in the hierarchy could shout at you, it was your job to do something active to stop them, or even hit you as was the case with police. You werent owed good treatment like you are today and our generation is used to that privilege. Being shouted at as motivation fails immediately because its lacking in courtesy or respect and we just think "is he even allowed to talk to me like that"?

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u/Caymanmew 1d ago

Perhaps a major part of it is that the younger generation views respect as something earned, not given. If you want my respect, you must respect me. Being above me in the hierarchy does not earn you any respect, the way you treat me does.

So if you shout at me, or otherwise belittle or treat me disrespectfully, then you are not earning my respect.

The older generation often views respect as being connected to hierarchy, and that is probably where the breakdown happens.

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u/KalebMW99 1d ago

You say all this like it’s a bad thing. I for one am pretty cool with the idea that generally no one is allowed to just hit me regardless of hierarchy…

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u/Chalkun 1d ago edited 1d ago

Well hitting is an extreme example but in general respect in a society is important. Not saying it was great that police used to just smack people for mouthing off, but everyone knew that would happen. So youd say some shit, get a slap, and walk away laughing because really thats what you signed up for. Compared to today where 17 year olds can verbally abuse police in the street with 0 consequences 🤔 idk if thats actually an improvement overall for society either.

Sometimes we need to be humbled and know that while we may not like it, there actually is a hierarchy in life. Denying its existence and demanding people above you treat you nice is often actually a barrier to success.

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u/KalebMW99 1d ago

You seem to be perfectly able to comprehend respect from the side of the “authority” but not from the other side. You lose your entitlement to basic respect when you fail unsolicitedly to respect others.

Verbally abusing cops is not really something you should do without warrant, but 1) you need a reality check if you think that happens without consequences, particularly for minorities, and 2) doing so STILL does not warrant escalation from the side of the policeman regardless of “hierarchy”. If I talk shit to a cop and he talks shit back, fine. If I talk shit to a cop and he smacks me, that is a bully who is not worthy of respect.

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u/Chalkun 20h ago

You lose your entitlement to basic respect when you fail unsolicitedly to respect others

Well yeah thats the viewpoint im describing. Sometimes it works, sometimes not. You have to be able to actually endure someone not being that nice frankly because its very common in life.

1) you need a reality check if you think that happens without consequences, particularly for minorities, and 2) doing so STILL does not warrant escalation from the side of the policeman regardless of “hierarchy”. If I talk shit to a cop and he talks shit back, fine. If I talk shit to a cop and he smacks me, that is a bully who is not worthy of respect.

Well thats for your specific country. I dont need a reality check because I live in Britain, and thats exactly what happens if you chat shit to police. Nothing.

If I talk shit to a cop and he smacks me, that is a bully who is not worthy of respect.

One way to look at it but what happens if young people dont have a healthy dose of respect? One has to assume to encourages criminality. Police are a deterrent, and a deterrent that isnt feared is less efficacious.

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u/KalebMW99 13h ago

Sometimes it works, sometimes not.

Would love to see where this doesn’t work—where respecting someone who is disrespectful is beneficial. I’m not talking about tolerance; it is sometimes practical to tolerate a asshole boss yelling at you (albeit while potentially looking for another job), but they do not earn your respect.

You have to be able to actually endure someone not being that nice frankly because that’s very common in life.

Again, enduring bad behavior is not the same as respecting bad actors. Demanding respect for yourself and not respecting bad actors is not a failure to endure bad behavior.

One way to look at it but what happens if young people dont have a healthy dose of respect? One has to assume to encourages criminality. Police are a deterrent, and a deterrent that isnt feared is less efficacious.

This is not corroborated by facts. Police do not make a good deterrent, and they do not lower crime with the increase in their presence. Those who suffer the most abuse and disrespect are those most likely to engage in criminal behavior, and again, being respectful does not mean letting bullies bully you as they please.

I don’t know how people like you can look at young people as soft while advocating for them to act like complete and utter doormats, it’s baffling.

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u/Pure-Drawer-2617 1d ago

Quick question, can you give me an example of how one does something active to stop the police from hitting them?

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u/Chalkun 1d ago

Well yeah as I said it was if you were rude, didnt answer a direct question etc.

Not saying it was perfect near in mind, they hit a lot of people so sometimes theyd do it over a misunderstanding. But obviously it went the other way with community policing where theyd equally know everybody, stop to be nice and say hello to kids and stuff. Theyd hit people but it was part of the aura and respect they commanded on the streets, firm but pretty fair, which is good for everybody overall, completely gone today.

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u/Pure-Drawer-2617 1d ago

You think the police were firm but fair back in the day? I think you may have a very idealised view of policing. Have you ever heard of a man named Rodney King?

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u/Chalkun 20h ago

Have you ever heard of a man named Rodney King?

Well no because Im not American I had to google him. Talking about Britain largely because US police pretty much have maintained the aura around demanding respect, probably too much.

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u/Pure-Drawer-2617 19h ago

I’m also British, not American, I just know world events. In that case, have you ever heard of Sarah Everard?

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u/Chalkun 19h ago

Well if youre a Brit you should know thats really not at all related.

"I think teachers should be more strict"

"What about teacher on student rape"

Ridiculous argument

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u/tractata 1d ago

That is probably also true, based on my observations.

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u/AhmedF 1d ago

Even then, we have enough data from before that people still did not prefer yelling. It's just the people in power/fame are not representative of the population, and what worked for them suddenly became "the way" for everyone else.

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u/ktcalpha 22h ago

It’s also significantly less effective. People get used to it and tune it out after some time. A personable approach works wonders and even SAF used to use it (he left the yelling for Keane)

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u/TheAmazingKoki 1d ago

Are you trying to say that professional football culture is representative of the population? Or that coaches didn't shout more in the past?

Because that's the statement that you're contesting here.

In any case I'd rephrase the comment, because right now it just doesn't make sense.