Albert Rudé presented!

Monday, January 8th, was the day of Alberto Rudé's first press conference. The Spanish coach openly and comprehensively answered questions from the numerous journalists gathered. We invite you to read the written report from the event.

Before the press conference began, there was a brief moment for photographers, during which the new coach stood before the cameras with undisguised optimism, holding the Wisła colors. He was accompanied by President Jarosław Królewski and Sporting Director Kiko Ramírez, conveying a clear message of their willingness to work together.

President Królewski was the first to speak, introducing the new coach: "I think much has already been written about the selection of this coach. I'm very happy to have Albert with me. If you've seen his profile, you know it aligns with our vision for the club, especially in terms of knowledge. Personally, I believe this will be a project lasting more than six months and will, of course, culminate in promotion to the Ekstraklasa. We also have the Polish Cup, in which we are a 'dark horse.' However, we have a huge amount of work ahead of us, and the coach is aware of that." "It's clear that for many of you this choice isn't obvious. I think that, having closely followed our progress, you know what choices we could have made, but we approached this process very methodically, in a way that was probably experimental for you, but much more rational for us than it seems. I think we did it in the best way possible, considering the latest methods of selecting coaches. Even today, over breakfast, we had a conversation with Albert about similar processes at Toulouse, Brighton, and other clubs that are modern and want to build something very valuable and long-term, where they really focus more on many aspects that often elude us. Contrary to appearances, I think that our unfamiliarity with this league will be an advantage for us, because I hope that thanks to it, we will surprise with a few solutions in the next round," he said, giving the floor to the new coach.

"First of all, I'd like to thank Jarosław, Kiko, and everyone who made it possible for me to be here today. I'm very happy to have joined such a great club. Wisła is a 'sleeping giant,' and I'll be working day and night to wake it up. I'm happy to be here," Albert Rudé began.

The first questions naturally revolved around the question of "why Wisła?": "How I ended up here is a long story. Kiko Ramírez was the first to approach me. He explained Wisła's situation and its goals. Then everything unfolded in stages. I presented my project, my idea, my point of view. This was to see if our visions aligned. It was very important to me to be at a club where everyone was on the same wavelength. The contact with people at Wisła was very good, and we continued talking. In the next phase, I met the owner. We decided to enter into a partnership. I know the club's goal for this season, it's very important. This team has to play in the Ekstraklasa, everyone knows that – both inside and outside the club: players, fans, coaches. I'm ready to take on this challenge," emphasized the Spaniard.

The coach was asked about his football philosophy: "I'm focused on challenges. I want my team to have that mentality. Competition is the foundation of everything. Developing the habit of daily work in training and developing automatic skills is very important to me. Teams like Wisła play under great pressure, and in such situations, habits allow players to behave naturally during matches. Pressure then doesn't interfere with the game. Another thing is identity. I want my team's playing style to be recognizable. My team has to dominate, and to achieve this, possession and high pressing are crucial. Developing players and young talents is also important to me. Daily work to help players showcase their skills. Working with data is also important to me. The President and I think similarly in this regard. However, understanding data and numbers is key – including the things that aren't visible at first glance but can be implemented in real life. That's my philosophy," he noted.

There was also a question about his coaching role models: "I'm impressed by many coaches. I can name Pep Guardiola, Klopp, Bielsa, Kovac, De Zerbi. I'm simply a coach who loves football. I'm an ambitious and passionate person, and I want to pass that on to my players. I want to instill a winning mentality in my players. Working on building the team is important to me. I know we don't have much time, but we'll work hard on everything," he continued.

Next came questions about Wisła's current situation and what the coach generally knows about Polish football: "I prepared a full analysis of the team. Both collectively and individually. I observed the team and also focused on the numbers. I compared the team to others in the league. I wanted to understand this competition as best as possible and adapt to it as quickly as possible. What's important to me is that I'm here with Erik, my assistant, but the staff consists primarily of people from your football. They know the culture, football, and very important things. We will learn from them and implement this knowledge as needed. I'm glad we will be able to work together," he said. "We watched and analyzed First Division matches. We wanted to understand it as best we could. We analyzed the numbers to understand things that aren't immediately apparent. Analysis is key to achieving our goals. I also spoke with people who played or worked in this league. For example, Junior Diaz – my assistant in Central America, who played for Wisła. I wanted to understand the club from the inside, the culture, the people, the fans. He was here, and that was also an important source of information for me," he continued.

Journalists were curious whether coach Rudé wasn't concerned about the differences in mentality. "I'm very excited. I really am. I've been in different cultures – Mexico, Costa Rica, MLS, Spain. Adapting is very important for me in every environment. Kiko knows local football very well, he managed this team. Now he's here in a different role, but he will be a great help to me. He will give me clear information. Day by day I will know more. My staff will also provide me with information about this league, the culture, the players, the current squad, what things are good and what needs improvement, even based on last season. I have an open mind to help. I want to learn, I want to contribute to the success of this club," he replied.

The coach received numerous questions about the squad situation. He was asked to comment on the current players, especially those from his homeland. "Of course, I know some of the players from their days in Spain, like Marc Carbo and David Junca, who are from Catalonia. Junca played for Girona, which is my hometown. Others also played for good clubs in the lower Spanish leagues. I know them very well and know how to utilize their potential. However, I don't forget about the rest of the team. We need to work together. The Spanish can give us one thing, the Poles another. For me, the most important thing is to treat everyone as people. We have to understand them, approach them with empathy. Only then will they be able to show their best potential." Rudé also addressed the issue of possible transfers from America, where he has already had the opportunity to work extensively. "The question about transfers should be directed to Kiko Ramirez. He's the boss here when it comes to these matters. I trust him, we work very well together. I care about working with ambitious players. Those who are ready for challenges. In my opinion, Wisła has such a team. We have different players who know how to behave. They know what to do depending on the situation on the pitch. There is a lot of skill here. If we decide to add quality in the form of incoming transfers, it is always welcome. As for the type of players I worked with in Central America, they were creative players. Those who grew up playing football in the backyard. When I was young, that's how I started. Now - even in Spain - you don't see it very much, but in America, both Central and South America, you see kids playing on the street everywhere. And then the creativity they show as adults is often acquired by playing in such places. This type of player could give us a lot, but I trust the players I found here. I believe the skills in the team are great enough to achieve our goals," he continued.
President Jarosław Królewski weighed in on the transfers: "For the first time in this transfer window, we will be working on a model managed by the sports department, but with significant support from the analytics department. We have a team, we have processes that we will share soon. We want to demonstrate how it works. However, there is no way for artificial intelligence to make a transfer decision without the consent of the sporting director and the coach. These two people are key to the final decision-making." (…) "We spoke with Kiko and the coach about this this morning, so we have up-to-date information. The coach needs to look at the players in training, and personnel decisions will be made immediately afterward. The strategy is to ensure the squad doesn't change too much, to ensure it remains stable. This doesn't mean there won't be any moves "in" or "out" of the club. We have a few positions we could strengthen. It's good that we've been observing the players before, during the last six months, also using technology. This will become clear in the near future. There are players who can leave, there are positions we can strengthen," he added.

The journalists in attendance then asked questions directly related to working with the team. One of them concerned the development of young players and their introduction to the first team. "This is a very important issue for me. When I worked at Pachuca, one of the best teams in America when it comes to developing young players, I had contact with players like Hirving Lozano, who later went to PSV and then Napoli. I also had contact with Erik Gutierrez. I have experience in working between the first team and the youth teams. I strongly believe in talent development. We have a program at the club based on a game philosophy, and we will implement it. This is crucial in the transition of juniors to senior football. The goal is for young players to be able to compete with more experienced players. Five young players will now begin pre-season training with us. We want to connect all the teams: the first team, the reserves, and the juniors. We want everyone to work in the same way and for everyone to reach their potential," the coach noted. When asked about set piece training, he replied: "I know we have a lot to improve on set pieces. They can be decisive when the game is close. I have experience working on them. At Castellon, I had some technological tools at my disposal that helped me work on set pieces. When you're fighting for your life in a match, they can be very helpful. At Castellon, for example, we played a play-off match against Deportivo La Coruna. We won with a goal from a corner."
The question about the Polish weather and training conditions at the beginning of January was inevitable. "It's very cold, that's true, but I'll get used to it. I've spoken with my coaching staff. I have my plans for the very beginning of preparations, but they might have to be changed depending on the weather. We now have two weeks of work in Poland, and then we'll fly to Turkey. The conditions there will be completely different. Regardless of the weather, I can assure you that we'll be very well prepared for our first league match," he assured.

Next, the coach was asked about his professional experience, especially in Europe. "I founded the company in 2013. I worked as an advisor to players and clubs. I worked with many clubs from all over the world, including those in Europe. I advised players from Real Madrid, Villarreal, and other players from clubs in the top five leagues. Later, I gained experience working with Diego Alonso in Pachuca, Mexico. We worked together for six years in Mexico and the United States. It was a great experience. Later, I decided to work independently, as a head coach. The first opportunity arose in Costa Rica. The sporting director there was from Spain and gave me my first such opportunity. I was 34 years old at the time. After that job, I had various offers, but I chose Castellon. It's a team with a huge history, just like Wisła Kraków. I took on a challenge there similar to the one here. I learned a lot there. Unfortunately, I lost the play-off final in the last 30 minutes. To play in the final, you have to do many things well, you have to play good football, you have to achieve good results. When you lose a final in the last 30 minutes, you also learn a lot. I used this experience to become a better coach and face greater challenges. This time, I will achieve the goals set before me!" he said with conviction.

Albert Rudé was asked if he wasn't afraid to take on the challenge of taking over a new team with such little time. "I'm not worried because I have a staff that knows the league, knows the opponents, and knows the current squad. I'm very happy that Mariusz Jop will be my assistant. He did a great job here in the last three games of last year. I'll learn everything from him. I'm open, I'm ready to learn. I'll combine my philosophy with the experience of the people I've met at the club. Only by working together will we be able to achieve great things. That's the way to success. There's no other way," he suggested.

The topics related to tactics and team formation turned out to be very interesting. "I'm very flexible, and that's how the team's formation on the pitch has to be. It has to be adapted to win matches. I'll do everything to win. I want to play attacking football, but I can adapt my approach to achieve success. I like to play with four at the back, but when it's necessary to play with five or three to defend victory, I'm also ready for that. My teams can play with two or three strikers, in different systems that will give us three points. I don't like to stick to one philosophy. If it doesn't produce results, it has to be adjusted," he noted. "Regardless of the environment I find myself in, I try to learn and adapt to a new place as quickly as possible. To cooperate with the people I work with, you have to understand the whole picture, the context, the situations the players are in. Working as an assistant at Inter Miami helped me a lot, when I worked – one might say – from the backseat. The knowledge I acquired as an assistant helped me apply it when I was given the opportunity to become head coach. I care about working with people, understanding their needs, Good contact with colleagues. This type of knowledge is crucial to achieving success. If I had to point to one place that gave me the most, it would be Inter Miami, David Beckham's project. It was a lot of pressure. It was the club's first season in MLS. Everything was new there, including the training center. We had to create everything: the vision, the identity, the game model. The players started from scratch. The experience gained during this job was enormous. I was the only member of the staff who spoke Spanish and English. I was involved in absolutely every aspect of the club's work. It was encouraging, and this experience helps me to this day. Of course, it's a shame that Leo Messi joined Inter after I was no longer there. However, I worked with other top-class players; we had a great squad, many different personalities in the locker room that we had to manage. There was Blaise Matuidi, who came from Juventus, Lewis Morgan, Rodolfo Pizzaro. We had a strong squad. The locker room was great. At some point, however, I decided I wanted to take on a job on my own. I didn't have "I didn't have the chance to become head coach of Inter Miami, so I chose a different direction. I hope that one day I'll be able to coach players of Leo Messi's caliber. But now I have a huge development challenge ahead of me, and I'm happy to take it on," he said.

The final question, addressed directly to the new coach, concerned what he considers most important when working with a football team. "The path coaches follow is one of development. When I was younger, I focused very heavily on tactics. As I gained experience over the years, I understood how important the locker room and the team are. A winning mentality, a positive approach to people, and passion. These are key to achieving success. Of course, tactics and numbers can be attributes that help with recruitment, strategy, and opponent analysis. However, for me, the most important thing today is the relationship with the team and the team's belief in the coach. A team achieves success when they feel they're working in the right direction," concluded the new Wisła Kraków coach.