Giovanni van Bronckhorst knows what it’s like to be in the spotlight. As a player, he lifted the Premier League trophy and won the Champions League. As a manager, he guided Rangers to the Europa League final. Yet today, instead of prowling the touchline as the leading man, he sits on the Liverpool bench - not even Arne Slot’s number two.
Similarly, Gabriel Heinze, once a fierce competitor for Manchester United and Real Madrid and a respected coach in Argentina, is now part of the Arsenal staff.
Both men could easily pursue head coaching roles elsewhere, yet they’ve chosen supporting positions at two of the world’s biggest clubs. Why?
Are we forgetting that sports stars are human?
“There is no place for weak men in my dressing room.” That was England captain Ben Stokes’s frustrated verdict after …