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Wed 21 July 2021 | 16:30

Top facts about Paulo Sousa, the nomad manager

Paulo Sousa is a Portuguese football manager and former professional player who played as a defensive midfielder. He has previously managed Leicester City, Fiorentina, and Bordeaux. Read on to find out more facts about Paulo Sousa.

Paulo Sousa is a retired competitive footballer who featured as a defender midfielder in Portugal. He is the Polish senior squad's head coach.

Paulo Sousa age

is 50. Here you can find out the most important facts about Paulo Sousa, the Portuguese coach.

Sousa was a part of the Golden Generation in Portugal and participated in the 2002 World Cup and two European Championships with the national squad.

Sousa made 51 appearances for his country in a career that included successful spells at

Benfica

, Juventus, Borussia Dortmund, and Inter Milan. During his playing career, he won two UEFA Champions League titles as well as domestic league and cup successes in Portugal, Italy, and Germany. Sousa played for Portugal's national team at UEFA Euro 1996 and 2000.

In the late 2000s, he began coaching, managing teams in various countries and won national titles with Maccabi Tel Aviv and Basel.

Top facts about Paulo Sousa:

The first

fact about Paulo Sousa

is that he began his career with Benfica and also played for Sporting in his native Portugal, where he accumulated 117 appearances and 3 strikes in five years.

From then on, he primarily played in Italy and Deutschland capturing the Champions League and the Intercontinental Cup with Juventus and

Borussia Dortmund

, respectively. Injuries significantly hindered his latter career.

Paulo Sousa early life

On August 30, 1970, Paulo Manuel Carvalho de Sousa was born to Maria Madalena Sousa and Delfim Silva Sousa. He was raised in the Portuguese city of Viseu. In terms of nationality, he is a Portuguese citizen who was born in Portugal to Portuguese parents.

An important

fact about Paulo Sousa

is that he has been a fan of football since he was a child, and he began his professional career with S.L Benfica. In 1991, he won the Primeira Liga title and two years later, he won the domestic cup.

Paulo Sousa personal life

Cristina Mohler is Paulo Sousa's wife. The 45-year-old is the second wife of

Poland national team

coach (previously he was associated with Cristina Neto de Almeida). The pair has been formally dating since 2006, and they wedded in Estoril, Portugal, in January 2007.

Soon later, though, a church wedding took place, this time in Morocco. The pair has been together since then and prefers to keep their romance out of the spotlight and live a low-key lifestyle. Paulo likewise keeps a low profile when it comes to his marriage and personal life.

Paula Sousa and Cristina Mohler are one of Portugal's most well-known couples. The Polish national team's new coach is a well-known player, coach, and respected specialist. His wife, on the other hand, was a model who rose to prominence in her own nation fast.

You may still enjoy her pictures online, even if she hasn't engaged in photo shoots in years. Paulo Sousa's wife is a well-known Portuguese television personality. Her celebrity peaked at the turn of the twentieth and twenty-first century.

She was well recognized for her work as a weathercaster. Her materials as a reporter, however, may be found on the internet.

A notable fact about Paulo Sousa is that he and Cristina Mohler have never had children together. The coach of the Polish national team has two children from his first marriage: Maria, who is 26 years old, and Guilherme, who is 18 years old. Cristina Mohler, on the other hand, is the mother of a 22-year-old daughter named Natacha. It's the result of a prior relationship she had.

Paulo Sousa professional career

Paulo Sousa started his career at Benfica; he also represented Sporting in his country, where he amassed Primeira Liga totals of 117 matches and three goals in five years.

He mainly competed in Italy and in Germany, winning the Champions League with Juventus and Borussia Dortmund and the Intercontinental Cup with the latter side.

Paulo Sousa club career

Paulo Sousa played for a number of Europe's best teams, notably Benfica and Sporting in Portugal, as well as

Juventus

, Dortmund, Inter Milan, and Espanyol.

Benfica

Sousa, who was born in Viseu, started his professional career with S.L. Benfica and was a regular from the beginning. In 1990–91, he claimed the Primeira Liga, and two years later, the Taça de Portugal.

After Neno was sent off and his side had no more substitutes, he was required to perform in goal in a league match against Boavista FC on 10 April 1993, resulting in a 3–2 victory.

Sporting CP

An important

fact about Paulo Sousa

is that he and his colleague António Pacheco joined for

Sporting CP

, a Lisbon rival, in the summer of 1993. He joined Luis Figo and Krasimir Balakov in midfield for one season, but the Lions failed to win any trophy.

Juventus

Sousa spent 2 years with Juve F.C. after signing in 1994, helping the Italian club win the UEFA Champions League in 1995–96. He also conquered Serie A the previous season, as well as the domestic cup and supercups, as well as coming second in the UEFA Cup.

Borussia Dortmund

Sousa subsequently went to Borussia Dortmund in Deutschland, where he won the Champions League again the next season The final came versus his old team Juventus, and although he played in that match, his time at Dortmund was marred by injuries that haunted him for the rest of his career.

Inter Milan and the end of playing career

Sousa later returned to Italy to play for Inter Milan, retiring in the summer of 2002 at the age of 31 following loan stints with Parma A.C., Panathinaikos F.C., and RCD Espanyol.

Paulo Sousa international career

A notable fact about Paulo Sousa is that he earned 51 appearances for the senior national team after being a part of the Portugal side that won the FIFA World Youth Championship in 1989. On January 16, 1991, he made his international debut in a 1–1 tie with

Spain

in a friendly.

Sousa represented Portugal in the UEFA Euro 1996 and 2000 tournaments, as well as the 2002 FIFA World Cup, when he was a member of the team but did not play a single match. His most recent outing was a 2–0 friendly victory against China soon before the latter tournament.

Paulo Sousa playing style

Sousa was a diligent, technically gifted, and flexible player who, despite his lack of speed, was successful both offensively and defensively due to his awareness and talent to analyze the game.

He was frequently used as a deep-lying creator during his tenure because of his passing efficiency precision, and ability to control the pace of his teams' play; his playing approach earned parallels to Paulo Roberto Falco throughout his career. Sousa was known for his leading skills in addition to his talent and creativity.

Paulo Sousa coaching career

An important fact about Paulo Sousa is that he started his coaching career as a member of Portugal's senior team's coaching team, leading the U16s before being named associate coach of the senior squad in the summer of 2008.

However, in November of the same year, he was named head coach of

Queens Park Rangers

, an EFL Championship club. He went on to coach Swansea City for a season, guiding the club to its best EFL Championship finish in 27 years, barely missing out on the play-offs.

Sousa won the Hungarian League Cup with Videoton in 2012 after a stint in charge of

Leicester City

, before joining Maccabi Tel Aviv in 2013, when he won the Israeli Premier League in his only season in command.

He won the Swiss Super League with Basel in 2015, and he has previously managed Fiorentina in Italy's Serie A, Tianjin Quanjian in China's Super League, and Bordeaux in France's Ligue 1. In January 2021, he was named manager of Poland's national team.

Portugal

Sousa started his managerial career by joining the Portugal national team's coaching staff, taking charge of the under-16s, then in the summer of 2008, he was named assistant to first-team coach Carlos Queiroz, his former Sporting and Portuguese youngster’s boss.

Queens Park Rangers 

Sousa was named head coach of Championship club Queens Park Rangers on November 19, 2008. However, he was fired on April 9, 2009, when the team stated he had revealed confidential material without the consent of the leadership, including Dexter Blackstock's loan transfer to Nottingham Forest, which had been arranged without his awareness.

Swansea City 

On June 18, 2009, Sousa was offered the position as

Swansea City

manager after the departure of Roberto Martnez to Wigan Athletic. On the 23rd, he orally accepted the offer and signed a three-year contract before being formally appointed.

Sousa guided Swansea to their best league finish in 27 years (seventh), barely missing out on the play-offs. He left by mutual agreement on July 4, 2010, to take up the empty position at Leicester City.

Leicester City

On July 7, 2010, Sousa was appointed as the new coach of Leicester City. Milan Mandari, the team's president, expressed his pleasure at "acquiring a manager of such high quality," saying he was "the ideal guy to lead our side forward."

Sousa was dismissed on October 1, 2010, after just three months in command, after a dismal start to the season, with the club winning only once in his first nine league games.

Videoton

A notable fact fact about Paulo Sousa is that he inked a 3 years deal with Videoton FC, the recently crowned winners of the Nemzeti Bajnokság I, on May 15, 2011. In the Champions League qualification round, he earned his official debut against SK Sturm Graz in a 0–2 away loss, followed by an unconvincing 3–2 home victory.

Videoton hosted

Trabzonspor

in the season's last Europa League qualifying round on 30 August 2012, his 42nd birthday. "The qualifying was the most wonderful birthday of my life," he said after the 4–2 penalty shootout victory (0–0 after 120 minutes). Videoton stated on January 7, 2013, that they have decided to terminate Sousa's employment owing to family obligations.

It was claimed the same day that he would be named the next manager of the New York Red Bulls, but nothing came of it.

Tel Aviv Maccabi

Sousa was officially named head coach of Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C. on June 12, 2013.In his first and only season in command, he won the Israeli Premier League.

Basel

On May 28, 2014, Sousa switched teams and nations again, penning a three-year deal with

FC Basel 1893

of the Swiss Super League. After capturing the national title for the second year in a row, he departed on June 17 of the following year.

Fiorentina

Sousa signed Serie A team ACF Fiorentina on June 21, 2015. After Stefano Pioli's promotion, he departed on June 6, 2017.

Quanjian Tianjin

Sousa replaced Fabio Cannavaro at Tianjin Quanjian F.C. in the Chinese Super League on November 6, 2017. He resigned on October 4th of the following year.

Bordeaux

Sousa agreed to a three-and-a-half-year contract with FC Girondins de Bordeaux on March 8, 2019, after Gus Poyet and Ricardo Gomes. Disagreements with the management led to his departure on August 10, 2020, after he finished 12th in his first complete season.

Poland

Sousa was named head coach of the Poland national team on January 21, 2021, by Polish Soccer Federation chairman Zbigniew Boniek, who succeeded Jerzy Brzczek, who was fired soon after securing Euro 2020 qualifying. In his debut game in command, on March 25, his team drew 3–3 with Hungary in a World Cup qualifying match for 2022.

An important fact about Paulo Sousa is that after losing in the group stage of the last tournament finals, despite three goals from star striker Robert Lewandowski, the manager was guaranteed to keep his job.

Paulo Sousa coaching style

Portuguese coach Paulo Sousa had built an attacking-minded squad that had gone far beyond expectations since joining

Fiorentina

.

That year, his team had been lauded for their possession game, which had garnered widespread accolades.

Former Juventus player created a fast-paced, passing squad that played in a 3-4-2-1 system with a focus on attacking from midfield.

On his first year in command at

Bayern Munich

, Pep Guardiola's motto was "Put the excellent players in the midfield." There is little doubt that Sousa followed the Catalan coach's suggestion of crowding the midfield with a large number of talented players.

In reality, the former Basel boss continued to his six-man creative midfield formation, with playmakers Matias Vecino and Milan Badelj in the center positions and attacking wing-back Marcos Alonso out wide on the left.

Federico Bernardeschi, on the other hand, played a traditional right-wing role. Borja Valero and Josip Ilicic were also inverted strikers who played more centrally, directly behind the lone striker Nikola Kalinic.

Despite the fact that Fiorentina was one of the finest European clubs in terms of ball control, Sousa was not a fan of possession for the sake of possession. Instead, Sousa built a squad in which his players must have understood how to keep possession and move vertically.

One of the most important qualities a manager may possess is the ability to instill strong beliefs in his or her staff and players. When he decided to become a coach, he wanted to concentrate on player development.

His concept began with the desire to create tactical, clever players. The offensive organization is the most difficult to create. Football is all about time and space for him; recognizing the area and having the proper moment to execute moves.

An important fact about Paulo Sousa is that he likes offensive play from his teams, but he puts a high value on organization. This is a must-have in football, business, and life. He must first choose where he wants to go and how he wants to get there.

He cares about every aspect of the game, but he believes that his team's attacking performance is where he needs to provide more tactical and intelligence to his teammates.

He won championships and medals as a player, and this instilled in him a winning attitude. He has been a member of teams that had to win and had a strong attacking dynamic.

He understands that playing a counter-offensive style and defending effectively may win leagues, but the way he thinks about football and how to develop great players is to assist them deal with attacking situations.

With football, there are many variables to consider, such as teammates, opponents, and referees, all of which influence the player's choices. They must analyze, determine, and carry out their plan, and the faster they can do it, the better.

He learned something from each boss with whom he worked. Carlos Queiroz provided structure and a playing style, but most importantly, the desire to compete with the best. They won the Under-20 World Championship after three years of collaboration with Portugal. He was a man with strong beliefs and a winning attitude.

It was more than anything else Sir Bobby Robson's attitude that made the difference. He expressed his delight at being at work, as well as his passion and energy for football.

Sousa was constantly working on attacking, finishing, and making training fun. Bobby instilled his teammates with his enthusiasm and confidence. These qualities have shaped Paulo Sousa’s philosophy greatly.

Marcello Lippi, an Italian coach, assisted him in learning and developing his positional awareness, as well as the connection between defense and offense. Lippi also provided him with the opportunity to develop his communication abilities.

Ottmar Hitzfeld instilled in him the value of a positive connection between coaches and players, as well as the necessity of accepting responsibility for his actions. He brought drive and concentration to the table. Paulo Sousa learnt a lot from these supervisors, as well as others.

Early in his career, when he was in his first managerial positions in England, he attempted to influence people's minds, and it was a difficult task. He believes he should have taken more time to make such adjustments and attain more consistency.

Results are everything in football, yet you don't always have time to get them. At that point, he realized how critical it was to connect his ideas to his team's image. He wanted to grasp the players' qualities, as well as the country's culture and the club's culture, so that the club's fans, who are its lifeblood, can recognize their team from the way he has organized them.

Of course, he will have to adjust his methods and football concept to the club and its culture. He still has his views and techniques, but he needs to take the time to integrate them into his job rather than changing everything at once.

Paulo Sousa quotes

Sousa explains his philosophy in his own words, “Winning matches is the most important concern for any trainer or manager in professional football - but we also need to amuse and play beautiful, passing football at a fast pace, pressuring the opponent and causing errors. This is the attitude I used as a player, and it is the one I will maintain throughout my career.”

Speaking about his present position as manager of the Poland national team – his first in international management – and how it compares to club management, he has said, “The national team coach in Portugal is known as a'selecionador nacional.'

One of the most significant distinctions is that the term refers to a person who chooses. Before our games, we spend the time by observing all of the guys we believe have a chance to make our national team, so we can make the best decision possible.”

He continued, “It's sometimes a particular football trait, and other times it's leadership. There are many variables to consider while forming a national team that are distinct from those that must be considered when forming a club squad.

We are representing a country. As a result, the first step in our process is to identify the greatest players available for the national team, which involves factors other than football actions or qualities.”

About his managerial highlight to-date, he has pointed, “I like watching young players improve, make the first team, and, with our emotional and tactical assistance, reach their professional level and achieve success.

However, if I had to choose one particular memory, it would be my UEFA Champions League matches as manager of FC Basel versus Liverpool. I was up versus Brendan Rodgers, a fantastic coach and a man I like much.”

He continued, “My players controlled the games from start to finish, exemplifying exactly what I want from my sides in terms of functionality and outcome. Reaching the round of 16 was a significant accomplishment, but there have been many more memorable events in my coaching career. I want to have more big accomplishments and championships in the future, and to share them with my staff, players, and fans.”

Speaking about working in various leagues and cultures and how he modified his managerial style, he said, “These experiences, in my view, have made me a fuller person by allowing me to see various cultures and meet new individuals who have taught me new ways to think, act, decide, and communicate. It has given me greater confidence in my own abilities, as well as improved my communication and made me a more modest human being.”

He continued, “It has given me greater emotional control in dealing with challenges, and I am confident that I have developed as a human and as a trainer as a result. Traveling, living, and working in various locations has benefited me in a variety of ways and forced me to go outside of my comfort zone, which is beneficial to all of us.”

Speaking about Euros, the most important tournament that he had been in his managerial career, he said, “As I have said, the fans are the heart and spirit of football.

Our sport is all about emotions, and we never know what will happen in the future, particularly in these tough times of instability and sorrow, therefore football has served to give us all life and hope. Players, coaches, and spectators are all in the same boat. We are drawn to football because of the feelings it evokes in us.

“What I've seen is that the intensity is lower, with less passion, since we don't have the crowd to drive us. It's obvious to me not just in terms of how I feel when watching, but also statistically.

In football, we both give and receive emotion, and it's a fantastic relationship. Supporters are necessary for players. I'm hoping we'll have fans at the Euros this summer, and it seems like we will in certain nations. It would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for everyone engaged in the game.”

Paulo Sousa social media

Regarding

Paulo Sousa social media

, it should be mentioned that he has an Instagram page (

@paulosousa6official

) with 54.3k followers. On the page, we can see various pictures of him with the fans and his family as well as his time next to his players both inside and outside the stadium.

He also has a Twitter account (

@paulomcdsousa

) with 27.4k followers. He rarely posts new stuff on his Twitter page.

Paulo Sousa body measurements

Speaking about

Paulo Sousa body measurements

, it should be mentioned that the Portuguese coach is 5 ft 10 in (177 cm) and weighs 157 lbs (71 kg).

Paulo Sousa net worth

Paulo Sousa, a former national player who is now a coach, has not revealed his earnings, although we estimate it to be in the $14 million range.

An important fact about

Paulo Sousa net worth

is that he has been active for more than 30 years and hence, he has amassed a great fortune from his playing and coaching career, as well as his personal endorsements with famous brands.

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source: SportMob



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