Zsolt Lőw: I have to decide which path I want to take

–Several statistics show that Thomas Tuchel had ninety-nine games with Chelsea. Is it possible that you have one more?
– Yes, it is! – Zsolt Lőw replied. – And more than one! As I recall, there were three clashes during our career in London where Thomas couldn't be with us. In February this year, he missed the FA Cup match against Plymouth, then the Club World Cup semifinal against Al-Hilal four days later due to COVID infection. Then, at the end of August, he was forced to watch the league game against Leicester City from the stands due to a ban.

– What was it like to be in the “lead role?”
– There was no way of me having a leading role. All Thomas asked me and the other assistant coach, Arno Michel, to divide the match duties between us and decide who does what. I might add that he helped me where he could before the matches, and we always found a way to consult with each other. In the end, Arno guided the team against Plymouth, then the Club World Cup semifinal was my turn, and we conducted the game against Leicester together.

– Did you enjoy it?
– I had mixed feelings. On the one hand, the responsibility was huge for me. At that moment, Thomas was not with me; the umbrella he had been holding over us all had disappeared. It's a different situation when you have to stand where the head coach usually stands and do his job. It made me realize how stressful it is. But I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy it. It had its charms, that's the truth. But it's hard to put it into words because since I've been working with Thomas, we do and discuss everything together, so we've shared the responsibility until now. Nevertheless, it's obvious that there is a lot more pressure on him as head coach. To give you just one example: I had to be very well prepared for the press conference leading up to the semifinal and the final because I had to be careful what I said and what information I gave out about the team. It made me realize how many pitfalls a press conference can have. In the semifinal, we played against al-Hilal, a team we had never met beforehand. The Chelsea management was, of course, professional in that respect, too: I was given a detailed press folder, and I studied it thoroughly before I sat down in front of the journalists. I even knew the history of the opponent... When you make a statement representing Chelsea, it has its beauty but also its dangers.

– Not in your case anymore: on September 7, the club announced that Thomas Tuchel was no longer the head coach, and shortly afterwards, it was revealed that you were leaving as well.
– We had to take note of the fact that the club's owner had a different vision for the future. Unfortunately, this is part of our profession. Nevertheless, we had a great time at the club and enjoyed working there from the first day until the very last. We were warmly welcomed last January when we found ourselves in a professional but familiar environment. We knew we could prove ourselves in one of the strongest leagues in the world, where top coaches and top players raise the standard. In addition, a club with a glorious past and a wonderful present invited us – just weeks after we had to leave Paris Saint-Germain. We couldn't have been in a better place. The fact that we celebrated a Champions League victory four months after our arrival says more than anything, and that we felt at home. If we aren't surrounded by a positive and creative atmosphere, if we don't sign for a practically flawless club, we are unlikely to win the Champions League. We found our place in the structure immediately as a strong link, which is why we were able to produce quality work from the very first moment.

– Was the highlight of your time at Chelsea the 0-1 win against Manchester City on May 29, 2021?
– Every era, every success has its beauty and value, but it is undeniable that the greatest professional honor among coaches and footballers is the Champions League triumph. If I'm not mistaken, in the four and a half years I was with Thomas, we won nine trophies and reached the Champions League final twice. We have an intense but successful period behind us, which we capped off by winning the European Super Cup and then the Club World Cup after conquering the Champions League. You could say it's the holy trinity of club football, or at least it meant a lot to us to win all three trophies. We loved working at Chelsea, we enjoyed every single day.

– We are now talking in Budapest - does this mean anything for the future?
– I don't know what the future holds for my family and me yet. I've been coaching for about a decade, and it's been a busy time, so maybe it's time to take a break. A friend of mine summed up the current situation best metaphorically: Ten years ago, I got in a car, my family sat next to me, and we set off. We were driving on the fast lane of the three-lane highway speedily! However, if you drive a car for ten years at two hundred kilometers an hour, sooner or later the gas will run out, the tires will wear out and the oil will need to be changed. Not to mention that it's not just the driver who gets tired on a long journey, but also the people sitting next to him... I think that after having pressed the pedal to the metal all the way from the Austrian third division to the highest level of football, it's not a bad idea to stop for a little. I've had some wonderful experiences and memories, and my family's support has helped me to enjoy unforgettable successes, but I haven't had time to process what has happened to us in these ten years. Fate being what it is, I think it is time to reevaluate what we have been through. My wife and I have therefore decided to stay in London until the summer so that the children can finish this school year there. I am looking forward to new experiences, but this time not as a coach, but as a family man. In the meantime, of course, I'm not forgetting that I have to decide which path I want to take. Or, if you will, what car should I get into?

– Are you sure you want to get into one?
– I wouldn't be telling you the truth if I said that the little boy who started on the bumpy road of football in Újpest in 1988 had not thought thirty-four years later that he might have a chance to have a life outside of football. There have been talks of returning home to our beloved country and finally settling down. After twenty years abroad and moving ten times, we'd have a real home... I wonder if I could achieve such success in other areas. Another question is whether it's worth taking a new path and throwing away the knowledge and experience I've gained over the decades. It is too early to say anything about this right now. I want to give myself some time because I need to make a responsible and good decision. Fortunately, there is plenty of time before the summer.

– As if I've heard you say that before...
– Right. After PSG parted with us at Christmas two years ago, I planned to spend the next few months with my family. Instead, we flew to London on January 26 and were on the bench the next day for the game against Wolverhampton... At that point, we would have accepted a few offers only, but when Chelsea came along, we felt we were a mutual fit and saw this job as an opportunity we didn't want to let go of. And although the end didn't turn out the way we wanted, we don't regret for a second that we took the plunge.

– It could happen next week that your phone rings and Thomas Tuchel on the other end of the line starts by saying that he has received a tempting offer, how about...
– It could happen, yes. Even independently of Thomas. If an offer came along that I felt gave me a significant professional challenge, while all the country, the city, and the club added something to our family's life, then I could conceivably say yes. It's no secret that there are already opportunities that I can wait with until the summer, but I may have to make a decision at any time.

– It was reported a week or two ago that the VfB Stuttgart management would have welcomed you to take over the team...
– I wouldn't talk about specific clubs. All I can tell you is that I have had several inquiries from the Bundesliga in recent years, but they always came to me when there was no realistic chance of me accepting any of them. I have also received a couple of offers recently, but I turned them down. I will tell you why. Two or three days after my trip to London last January, the borders were closed due to the virus situation, and my family could not come after me. My wife was stuck in Paris with our three daughters, and a 20-square-meter hotel room was my home. We couldn't see each other for three months. Well, I never want to go through that again! Even if the greatest success of my career is when we won the Champions League in May. Maybe it was because I had my family with me at the end of April, but I had some good ideas again in May... All joking aside, those opportunities would have meant that while my loved ones stayed in London, I would have been away from them trying to make my dreams come true. My dreams are not worth being away for months from the people who matter to me the most.

– You've mentioned summer opportunities...
– I hope everyone will understand that I cannot talk about anything specific. It's no secret that I'm a loyal guy, so the first option is to continue working with Thomas. We'll see if there's a challenge we can't say no to. We understand each other very well, both humanly and professionally, and the number of trophies we have won and the trust we have in each other are proof that our partnership is a success. When I received an offer, Thomas was one of the first people to know about it and the first to talk about it in a meaningful way. He is aware of my values and the opportunities I had and have, but he wants us to continue working together in the future.

– So, is it possible that you'll take a job as head coach?
– It is, but... I'll tell you something about myself that I haven't talked about publicly. I'm a spiritual person, I'm interested in how people develop and how they can spend most of their days happily. I've noticed that in this hectic world where we're bombarded with so much information, there's time for everything but living in peace. Of course, this is also true in my profession: playing a match every three days in front of 50,000 spectators is a huge challenge. We have to learn to deal with this situation, we have to find the state of mind we need to be happy. It's obviously a long road, I'm a long way from the end, but I feel the direction is right. My two hobbies, fishing and hiking, help me a lot in this, which, even if only for a short time, take me out of this crazy world, calm me down, and recharge me. Especially at a time when I have to make perhaps the most important decision of my life.

– Does that mean you've gone away somewhere recently?
– I went up to the mountains of Tyrol for a week. First, a friend accompanied me, then my wife. In three days, I climbed a 2500-meter-high crag three times. It was a breathtaking feeling just to have achieved the goal I had set for myself over and over again. Along the way, though, I also realized that happiness was not to be found at the summit, but rather on the way there. There were difficult moments, I wanted to turn back more than once, there was a chasm to the left and the right, and I couldn't help thinking that if I slipped, I would never see my family again... But I told myself that this was my path, I had to go all the way! Of course, I was driven by defiance and adrenaline, thinking that this is what a head coach's journey can be like. The more I progressed, the more I realized that it's not about the dangers you face, but how you overcome the obstacles – because the road is full of pitfalls and doubts, but you can overcome them. When I finally got to the top and looked around, I was struck by the sight and said to myself: “This is what the life of a successful head coach can be like!” And the more time I spent up there, the more I enjoyed it...