Granit Xhaka on Régis Le Bris’s calm advice and leading from the front | OneFootball

Granit Xhaka has praised Régis Le Bris’s composed approach, while the Sunderland head coach says authenticity and balance are the foundations of leadership. The pair’s on and off-field partnership has been central to Sunderland’s season.

“He’s very special. The first call that I had with him, it was exactly what I was hoping he is,” Xhaka said. He told The Times.

“I have to balance him out,” Le Bris joked. “It’s a privilege to coach a player like Granit Xhaka, he’s so demanding with himself and he creates the condition to be demanding with others.”

Le Bris said Xhaka’s vocal leadership raises standards for team-mates and staff. “As a manager you set the tone for the players. If you are too high or too low it becomes a problem but you have to stay real to yourself as well.”

He admitted he once lost his temper as a younger coach and called it a mistake. Now he chooses rare, intense moments to speak, stressing that balance matters because it influences everyone.

Le Bris added that Xhaka’s emotion and intensity are strengths, and whenever he becomes a manager there is no rush, he will have to respect his personality while leading from the front.

Source: Sunderland Echo