The new West Brom Manager has begun his education on the Pro Licence.
Roberto Di Matteo has had just one year in football management but his decision to study for the UEFA Pro Licence suggests he plans to be in the dugout for a very long time.
The recently appointed West Brom Manager spent that one year at MK Dons where he took them to third place in League One and his new objective is to plot the Baggies’ route back into the Premier League.
At the same time he will also be studying for the Pro Licence, which takes 12 months to complete, and he has already identified a few areas which he believes will help him at the Hawthorns next season.
“Certain aspects of the course are very interesting,” he said.
“Obviously you communicate with the other coaches on the course and you get an insight into their world and their thinking and that is very important. You do take what you think will enhance your knowledge and you take it straight away into your job.
“The Pro Licence gives you a lot of information,” he continued. “It gives you an insight into subjects that you might not be faced with on a daily basis, but are nevertheless key factors. It gives you a foundation and a structure of how management should be. It also covers leadership and motivational strategies and psychology and all of those things are very important in a manager’s job.”
The most successful period of Di Matteo’s playing career came at Chelsea, where he won two FA Cups, a League Cup and a European Cup Winners’ Cup between 1997 and 2000, scoring in three Finals. He will no doubt be hoping to replicate that volume of success from the dugout, but how difficult did he find the transition from player to manager?
“I didn’t find it difficult to be honest. I remember one manager telling me ‘Humility is the foundation of every success’ and this has been my philosophy ever since. I guess you go in [to management] not thinking that you know everything and then you can learn every day, from the players and from your staff.”
Di Matteo cites Arrigo Sacchi as the most influential manager he has ever played under and in his brief time in management the 39-year-old has attempted to copy Sacchi’s effective simplicity.
“Sacchi was like my mentor,” Di Matteo revealed. “He was a great coach. I thought it was brilliant the way he got his information across. It was very informative but very simple and everyone understood the message and what they had to do.
“He was a great example for any coach or manager to follow because although you may know how the game should be played, it’s important that you’re able to communicate that to your players.”
Di Matteo knows how the game should be played and the message to his new team is simple. He wants to win the Championship, and his Pro Licence studies could well complement that aim.
Click here for a full list of this year's Pro Licence intake
TheFA.com was granted access to the University of Warwick for the opening week of the Pro Licence and over the coming days we will publish interviews with both the new intake and the graduation group of 2009.