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A decade ago, the England assistant coach was playing at a lower division club. Now, his attention is fixed to assist Thomas Tuchel win the World Cup next summer. The road from athlete to trainer began through volunteering with the youth team. Barry reflects, “Nights, a small field, tasked with 11 vs 11 … poor equipment, limited resources,” and he was hooked. He had found his destiny.

Metoric Climb

The coach's journey is incredible. Beginning as Paul Cook’s assistant, he built a standing with creative training and great man-management. His stints with teams took him to top European clubs, while also serving in international positions across multiple countries. His players include big names such as world-class talents. Currently, in the England setup, he's fully immersed, the top in his words.

“All begins with a vision … But I’m a believer that passion overcomes challenges. You dream big and then you plan: ‘What's the process, each day, each phase?’ Our goal is the World Cup. However, vision doesn't suffice. We have to build a structured plan that allows us to maximize our opportunities.”

Focus on Minutiae

Dedication, focusing on tiny aspects, is central to his philosophy. Toiling around the clock all the time, the coaching duo challenge limits. Their strategies include mental assessments, a heat-proof game model for the finals abroad, and creating a unified squad. Barry emphasizes the England collective and avoids language such as "break".

“This isn't a vacation or a pause,” he explains. “We had to build something that attracts the squad and, secondly, they feel so stretched that returning to club duty feels easier.”

Ambitious Trainers

The assistant coach says along with the manager as extremely driven. “Our goal is to master all parts of the match,” he states. “We want to conquer the whole ground and that's our focus many of our days on. We must to not only anticipate of changes and to lead and create our own ones. It's an ongoing effort to have this problem/solution-finding mentality. And to simplify complexity.

“We have 50 days together with the team before the World Cup finals. We need to execute a complex game for a tactical edge and we must clarify it in our 50 days with them. We need to progress from concept to details to know-how to performance.

“To build a methodology for effective use during the limited time, we have to use all the time available since we took the job. In the time we don’t have the players, we have to build relationships with them. We have to spend time in calls with players, we need to watch them play, understand them, connect with them. If we limit ourselves to that time, it's impossible.”

Final Qualifiers

He is getting ready on the last two of World Cup qualifiers – versus Serbia in London and in Albania. England have guaranteed qualification with six wins out of six with perfect defensive records. But there will be no easing off; quite the opposite. This period to build on the team's style, for further momentum.

“Thomas and I are both pretty clear that our playing approach must reflect everything that is good from the top division,” he comments. “The athleticism, the adaptability, the physicality, the integrity. The England jersey needs to be highly competitive but light to wear. It should feel like a cape and not body armour.

“To make it light, we need to provide a system that lets them to operate similar to weekly matches, that feels natural and encourages attacking play. They must be stuck less in thinking and increase execution.

“There are morale boosts available to trainers in the first and final thirds – starting moves deep, closing down early. However, in midfield of the pitch, those 24 metres, we feel the game has become stuck, especially in England's top flight. Everybody has so much information now. They know how to set up – defensive shapes. We are focusing to speed up play across those 24 metres.”

Passion for Progress

The coach's thirst for improvement is relentless. During his education for the top coaching badge, he had concerns regarding the final talk, especially as his class included stars including former players. So, to build his skill set, he went into the most challenging environments he could find to hone his presentations. Including a prison in Liverpool, and he trained detainees during an exercise.

He completed the course with top honors, with his thesis – about dead-ball situations, for which he analysed numerous set-plays – became a published work. Frank was one of those won over and he hired Barry as part of his backroom with the Blues. After Lampard's dismissal, it said plenty that the club got rid of virtually all of his coaches while keeping Barry.

The next manager with the club was Tuchel, within months, they claimed the Champions League. After Tuchel's exit, the coach continued with Potter. But when Tuchel re-emerged in Germany, he recruited Barry of Chelsea to work together again. English football's governing body consider them a duo similar to Southgate and Holland.

“I’ve never seen anything like Thomas {in terms of personality and methodology|in character and approach|