FC Basel is Fabio Celestini's fifth coaching stint in Switzerland. Today, he is no longer the same person he was when he made his debut in Lausanne almost ten years ago. One factor in this was Pep Guardiola.
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- Fabio Celestini has "learned a lot" during his coaching career.
- While he wanted to organize training sessions perfectly when he first started out as a coach, he now gives his players more freedom. More freedom to create their own solutions.
- Celestini was the notorious thinker, today he can put football aside for a few hours - thanks to Pep Guardiola.
Fabio Celestini's career at FC Basel is running like clockwork. In autumn 2023, he pulled the relegation-threatened club out of the mire, and now he is reaching for the stars with FCB.
Basel is Celestini's sixth stop as head coach, his fifth in Switzerland. After making his coaching debut at Italian fourth-division club Terracina Calcio, he moved to the touchline at Lausanne in 2015.
As a 39-year-old, Celestini gained his first experience in the Super League. "I learned a lot," he recalls of his time with the Vaud club. Celestini was a chronic perfectionist. His mind never stopped, the search for a solution to defeat the opponent was a never-ending process. "I was thinking the whole time." Sometimes he couldn't see the solution, even though it was right in front of him.
The opening conversation with Pep Guardiola
It took a conversation with Pep Guardiola to breathe new life into him. Before this happened, however, Celestini was blindsided when Guardiola (then coach at Barcelona) assured him that he would not be watching the Real Madrid game. The reason: a movie night with his wife.
"What, you're not watching the opponent's game? He can't say that," were Celestini's first thoughts. Only then did he realize: Guardiola could watch the game later, with a clear head in the office.
So Celestini looked for a way to compensate. He started boxing, his thoughts about football faded away. He started dancing because he had always wanted to learn. He consciously took time out from football and put his cell phone aside.
These steps soon bore fruit. "I felt much fresher in the morning." As a result, Celestini was much more likely to find a way to break down the opposition than before. "I understood that sometimes less is more." The decisive factor for this was Pep Guardiola.
Celestini remains true to one principle
As much as Celestini has changed during his coaching career, he has stuck to one credo: power football. "My idea has never changed. I always want to see my team attacking." Sometimes his staff have to point out to him that the team also has to defend.
Under Celestini, FCB is doing a great job in both areas. Basel have the best offense (51 goals in 24 games) and the best defense (26 goals conceded) in the league.
Celestini's attacking plan has worked so far. FCB are in second place in the Super League, one point behind Lugano. Next up for the Baslers is FC St.Gallen.
Until that game, Celestini will probably take to the dance floor again, put his cell phone aside and leave football behind for a few hours before another three points are at stake in St. Gallen on Saturday evening.
