Andree Jeglertz: The coach behind Manchester City’s WSL title win

Manchester City vice-captain Kerstin Caspariz described Zeglertz as the “daddy” of the group, emphasizing his ability to make everyone feel part of the family.

The boss encourages players to speak up in meetings, contribute to the tactical gameplan and urges them to express themselves on the pitch.

“He’s someone I can go to for almost anything and he’s the same with everybody. It’s not just me because I’m the captain,” Greenwood said.

While in Linköping, Skoog said Zeglartz would leave home at 7 a.m. and return home at 6 p.m., working extra hours on training plans and video analysis.

Within two weeks, “the players loved him” because of his commitment and took confidence from his detailed plan.

“His whole life is football – he’s obsessed with it. He talks to the players on the phone and watches the games. He’s a perfectionist,” Skoog said.

“Maybe that’s why he’s been so successful as a coach and why the players love him, because he always gives 110%.

“He talks to the players a lot and listens to them. If they say something good, he lets them try on the pitch. He doesn’t dictate anything.

“The players felt they could have input into the training sessions because he listened. It wasn’t like that before he arrived – the players weren’t used to it.”

Similar to his outlook on life, Zeglertz’s football philosophy centers on people and getting the best out of everyone.

According to him, players have to be decision makers on the field. They need to be unpredictable, creative and flexible. But above all, they need to be a team.

“There was always a strong team spirit. At Umeå, the other teams hated us. We were always against them. He was good at making us feel strong together,” adds Skoog.

Zeglertz has always loved Dutch football and was a fan of Johan Cruyff. He reads other coaches’ books and is constantly testing new methods.

He became more interested in physical fitness and adopted a 4-3-3 formation, which he developed during his time at Manchester City.

“Andrei was a modern coach. He was very precise with the planning of each training session,” Skoog reflected on their time at Umeå in the mid-2000s.

“Every session was like they were playing a game. He was very serious. He had a great ability to push players – if they got lazy he would push them.

“It was high quality training. He started with video analysis and we talked a lot about football in the evening.”