🔗 Share this article

A decade ago, Anthony Barry was playing at a lower division club. Now, he's dedicated to assist the head coach secure World Cup glory in 2026. The road from athlete to trainer started with a voluntary role for Accrington's Under-16s. He recalls, “Evening sessions, a partial pitch, organizing 11-a-side … deflated balls, scarce bibs,” and it captivated him. He had found his calling.

Rapid Rise

His advancement is incredible. Commencing in a senior role at Wigan, he built a reputation through unique exercises and strong interpersonal abilities. His stints with teams led him to Chelsea and Bayern Munich, and he held roles with national teams across multiple countries. He has worked with stars like top footballers. Today, as part of Team England, it’s full-time, the peak according to him.

“All begins with a vision … However, I hold that passion overcomes challenges. You have the dream then you break it down: ‘How do we do it, each day, each phase?’ We aim for World Cup victory. Yet dreams alone aren't enough. We must create a systematic approach that allows us for optimal success.”

Obsession with Details

Passion, focusing on tiny aspects, defines Barry’s story. Putting in long hours all the time, they both test boundaries. The approach include player analysis, a heat-proof game model for the finals abroad, and fostering teamwork. He stresses the national team spirit and rejects terms like “international break”.

“You’re not coming here for a holiday or a pause,” Barry says. “We needed to create an environment where players are eager to join and, secondly, they feel so stretched that going back is a relief.”

Ambitious Trainers

Barry describes himself and Tuchel as extremely driven. “We want to dominate each element of play,” Barry affirms. “We strive to own the entire field and that’s what we spend many of our days on. Our responsibility to not only anticipate with developments but to surpass them and create our own ones. It’s a constant process focused on finding solutions. And it’s to make the complex clear.

“We get 50 days with the players prior to the World Cup. We must implement a complex game that offers a strategic upper hand and we have to make it so clear in our 50 days with them. We need to progress from concept to details to understanding to action.

“To build a methodology enabling productivity in the 50 days, we must utilize all the time available after our appointment. In the time we don’t have the players, we need to foster connections among them. We must dedicate moments in calls with players, we need to watch them play, feel them, touch them. If we limit ourselves to that time, it's impossible.”

World Cup Qualifiers

He is getting ready for the final pair of World Cup qualifiers – versus Serbia in London and away to Albania. England have guaranteed their place at the finals with six wins out of six without conceding a goal. Yet, no let-up is planned; on the contrary. This period to build on the team's style, for further momentum.

“We are both certain that the football philosophy ought to embody everything that is good of English football,” Barry explains. “The physicality, the flexibility, the physicality, the integrity. The Three Lions kit needs to be highly competitive but comfortable to have on. It ought to be like a superhero's cape not protective gear.

“For it to feel easy, we have to give them a style that allows them to operate as they do in club games, that resonates with them and lets them release restrictions. They need to reduce hesitation and increase execution.

“There are emotional wins for managers at both ends of the pitch – building from the defense, closing down early. Yet, in the central zone in that part of the ground, we feel the game has become stuck, especially in England's top flight. Everybody has so much information now. They can organize – defensive shapes. Our aim is to focus on accelerating the game through midfield.”

Thirst for Improvement

The coach's thirst for development knows no bounds. While training for the Uefa pro licence, he was worried over the speaking requirement, especially as his class included stars like Lampard and Carrick. For self-improvement, he sought out tough situations he could find to improve his talks. Such as Walton jail locally, where he coached prisoners in a football drill.

He completed the course as the best in his year, with his thesis – The Undervalued Set Piece, in which he examined numerous set-plays – became a published work. Lampard was among those impressed and he recruited the coach to his team at Stamford Bridge. When Lampard was sacked, it said plenty that the team dismissed virtually all of his coaches while keeping Barry.

Lampard’s successor at Chelsea was Tuchel, within months, he and Barry won the Champions League. After Tuchel's exit, Barry remained in the setup. But when Tuchel re-emerged at Munich, he recruited Barry from Chelsea to work together again. The Football Association view them as a partnership similar to Southgate and Holland.

“I haven't encountered anyone like him {in terms of personality and methodology|in character and approach|