A Sports Psychologist?

Nickyboyblue

Well-Known Member
After Ryan Kent’s comments last season,regarding pressure etc.,Does Gerrard have someone in his backroom staff qualified for this? and if not do we think it’s something we should look at to help the players,if they are indeed “struggling” with this side of the game?
 
I'd imagine the majority of professional football clubs either have access to or employ a psychologist, sports or otherwise.
 
Having read his book Gerrard made use of sports physiologists in his own career (after World Cup with England and after the Slip) - you can 100% guarantee we will have use of one.
 
Lee Richardson (who many will remember from his spell at Aberdeen in the early 90s) is now a sports psychologist and has been highly praised for his work with Liverpool.
 
Yes. our mentality is the biggest challenge we face. We have a management team that has been too stuck to its system and a group of players that can’t find a way to win in a battle, and won’t make adjustments to style on the pitch to get the job done. This is all despite having the best technical group of players in the league.

We also have a star striker that despite being generally immense, makes ridiculous decisions and misses chance after chance against our main rivals.

We have defenders that switch off and players that too often miss their target in important moments, particularly when getting into good crossing positions, despite their undoubted ability to get it right.

Mentality is the biggest issue we face, we need to bring in players with a win at all costs outlook and embrace psychology as it can only help.
 
According to my google skills, we have a trainee sports psychologist working with the youth academy.

Not going to link it because it's someones linkedin account but it's easily found.
 
No sports psychologist can prevent refs from cheating us out of victories.
That’s very true however what they can do is teach management techniques to deal with adversity particularly perverse adversity. I’m sure out management team are on the case with regards to toughening up mentality and replacing those who they feel won’t be able to improve in this aspect.
 
No sports psychologist can prevent refs from cheating us out of victories.
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Imo these guys are mostly a waste of time.
Everything is forgot about when he walks out the door or you run onto the park.
Its like all these stupid life / business coaches.
I dont need something to phone me in the morning or gee me up.
Most of the life coaches are failed businessmen.
 
Becoming a sports psychologist and getting a gig at Ibrox occasionally appears to be my last chance to have an affiliation with the club :) . Like others have said I imagine the players will consult one regularly, I know Ryan Jack does/did.
 
After Ryan Kent’s comments last season,regarding pressure etc.,Does Gerrard have someone in his backroom staff qualified for this? and if not do we think it’s something we should look at to help the players,if they are indeed “struggling” with this side of the game?

Its an important part of the game, more so now than ever. This and a CEO that is a top Lawyer are a must nowadays.
 
No sports psychologist can prevent refs from cheating us out of victories.
Perhaps not, but maybe they could help the players deal with the unfair decisions made during a game in a positive way and that could help negate needless yellows or reds.
 
Ryan Kent may have referred to the pressure, but he more than most is equipped to deal with it and I’d rather have him in the trenches with me than a few others.
 
Perhaps not, but maybe they could help the players deal with the unfair decisions made during a game in a positive way and that could help negate needless yellows or reds.

Address the cheating ref issue and we won't be receiving needless yellow or red cards.
 
Totally agree that this needs addressing. Post xmas when we went a goal or 2 up I’d be thinking don’t blow this then when put under a bit of pressure you could see their collective bottle crashing (apart from Braga) and they would blow it, you could almost write the script and hear the annoying commentators patter about how we let it slip. Mental toughness is not something you get after a psychologist session though we need to sign players with that in them in the first place the sessions may help with a stronger team mentality.
 
I'm surprised at how many people seem to think there is no point in using a sport psychologist.

I was under the impression that a lot of top sportsmen were using them now. Not just football clubs, or individual players, people involved in all sorts of sport.
 
I'm surprised at how many people seem to think there is no point in using a sport psychologist.

I was under the impression that a lot of top sportsmen were using them now. Not just football clubs, or individual players, people involved in all sorts of sport.
The great managers of the past were really homegrown psychologists. What you put in a players mind when they run out on the park is the main part between winning and losing. More so than tactics and God knows I’ve rambled on about that often enough on these boards.
 
The great managers of the past were really homegrown psychologists. What you put in a players mind when they run out on the park is the main part between winning and losing. More so than tactics and God knows I’ve rambled on about that often enough on these boards.

I remember the coach of the GB cycling team talking about "small gains". They looked at every aspect of what they did and how they could change it. They got 1% improvement here, 0.5% improvement there. Just doing that moved them from competing to dominating. They got the very best out of everything they did.

If a sport psychologist can improve players, then it is something which should really be seriously considered. If they could for example help a striker convert some chances which they were missing then that could make a huge difference to who wins a cup, wins a league, makes it through in Europe etc.

Football matches are often won or lost by the odd goal. The difference between a draw and a win is always one goal. How many draws converted to wins (or vice versa) can a league swing on, at 2 points a time.

If people think it makes no difference fair enough. I just get think dismissing it out of hand is the wrong way to go.
 
Did Ryan Jack not bring up in an interview that he had used one after that 1st season where he kept getting sent off?
 
you shouldn't be signing players who need one in the first place

Ah well we wouldn’t be interested in C. Ronaldo or Messi if they were available then.

The elite sports stars use them like Tom Brady, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, the former team sky used them and made champions out of Wiggins and Froome.

Thanks to technology and system like money ball everything is down to the finest of details and stars use these guys help.
 
Think it’s one of the biggest issues successful players with the attitude the likes of Gerrard had/has when stepping into mgt, the likes of Roy Keane etc had it too, it’s difficult to create the type of attitudes that they had when they were players in the guys they are now responsible for.
 
No sports psychologist can prevent refs from cheating us out of victories.
This isn't necessarily true.

You'd be surprised how effective a siege mentality can be, we saw that at Parkhead on the 29th.

Also saw it at Hampden from most of the team. Morelos badly needs help with his mental block against Celtic, it has to be addressed if he stays
 
They might not need it without tens of thousands of angry people screaming at them for the first misplaced pass and holding it against them for the rest of their career here.
 
This isn't necessarily true.

You'd be surprised how effective a siege mentality can be, we saw that at Parkhead on the 29th.

Also saw it at Hampden from most of the team. Morelos badly needs help with his mental block against Celtic, it has to be addressed if he stays

Your correct Man City have a referee psychologist. His job is to study the refs and what way they control the game and what they let them away with.
 
Sports physiology is a massive part of the game now. Every top level club, will either employ, or have access to, their services. Football isn’t just played with the feet, but also with the head.
 
I remember the coach of the GB cycling team talking about "small gains". They looked at every aspect of what they did and how they could change it. They got 1% improvement here, 0.5% improvement there. Just doing that moved them from competing to dominating. They got the very best out of everything they did.

If a sport psychologist can improve players, then it is something which should really be seriously considered. If they could for example help a striker convert some chances which they were missing then that could make a huge difference to who wins a cup, wins a league, makes it through in Europe etc.

Football matches are often won or lost by the odd goal. The difference between a draw and a win is always one goal. How many draws converted to wins (or vice versa) can a league swing on, at 2 points a time.

If people think it makes no difference fair enough. I just get think dismissing it out of hand is the wrong way to go.
I believe Carlton Cole credits his psychologist with being the person who benefitted him so much to get into the England squad. They are essential to the game, anyone who disagrees perhaps needs to study modern football In more detail.
 
I would be very surprised if the club did not have one at least on call, and i would think some players might be in contact with one at times. If you want to be the best you can be you should be using every tool available to you.
 
I don’t know whether or not we have or need a sports psychologist, but what I do know is we currently have some really good players in our squad, many of them being young players.
Our European run and our league performances for part of the season proved that.
However, all that was missing from that squad, imho, in order to win the SPFL
was ‘steel’ - a John Greig or Richard Gough or Ian Ferguson or John Brown - guys who would put their bodies on the line to avoid losing.
Can you imagine walking into our dressing room after one of our capitulations last season when Gough was our Captain?
I hope Stevie G has one or two of these types of players on his shopping list!!
 
Not for me. I think we just need someone on the park to gee them up a bit. All this pussying about with psychologists is just modern rubbish imo. The more theyre talked up, the more people think they need them, next thing you know theyre indispensable. A bit of old fashioned dig along with someone who will lead the fight is what we need.
 
Not for me. I think we just need someone on the park to gee them up a bit. All this pussying about with psychologists is just modern rubbish imo. The more theyre talked up, the more people think they need them, next thing you know theyre indispensable. A bit of old fashioned dig along with someone who will lead the fight is what we need.

Again I’m sure the likes of C. Ronaldo, Messi, Tiger Woods, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, Tom Brady would have loved to have heard this from you before they paid thousand and thousands for their sessions saving to help them become the elite in their fields. I could imagine them just needing someone just to do a bit of digging in there for them to achieve.

Sports have never been at point where games, race or events can literally hinge on the smallest of detail, never has the abuse and criticism be so sharp
for the smallest of errors.

Ryan Jack has shown the benefit of having one. He’s gone from being sent off and not scoring or bossing a game too now scoring, bossing games and pick up less yellows and reds.

Liverpool is another great example, they gone from dossers to Champions league winners and runaway winners of the EPL.
 
Lee Richardson (who many will remember from his spell at Aberdeen in the early 90s) is now a sports psychologist and has been highly praised for his work with Liverpool.
He was a dirty bassa, sat next to him at a Velvet Underground gig in 93 in Edinburgh( cool story bro :cool: )
 
Not for me. I think we just need someone on the park to gee them up a bit. All this pussying about with psychologists is just modern rubbish imo. The more theyre talked up, the more people think they need them, next thing you know theyre indispensable. A bit of old fashioned dig along with someone who will lead the fight is what we need.

Your ignorance knows no bounds. The study of psychology lets us understand how people think and behave in certain situations. In other words, the most effective way to 'gee' someone up. Sports Psychologists play a similar role to sports scientists in modern high-performance teams.
 
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