WSG marathon man Silberberger: “Serve all facets”

2023-07-12 05:12:54

Coach Thomas Silberberger is the marathon man. When his WSG Tirol starts the season in the cup at fourth division club Bad Schallerbach on Friday, July 21, Silberberger can look forward to his eleventh in the service of the Watteners. This puts the 50-year-old alone in Austria, and he also belongs to an exclusive circle internationally. Silberberger is considered a down-to-earth communicator with adaptability. “I had to serve all facets,” he said.

With Atletico Madrid’s Diego Simeone and Freiburg’s Christian Streich, both of whom have been in charge since winter 2010/11, there are only two coaches in the top ten leagues in Europe who can look back on an even longer tenure than Silberberger. A list compiled by the International Center for Sports Studies (CIES) on March 1, 2022 showed 17 coaches in professional football worldwide (126 leagues in 89 countries were examined) who had been in office longer than Silberberger.

The ranking was led by the South African unique Jomo Sono, who has been training Jomo Cosmos from Johannesburg for 29 years. However, Sono, who is also president and sports director, was relegated to the third South African league with his one-man show, and the list has generally thinned out. In any case, Silberberger now belongs to a club that has little more than ten members.

“There are so many good trainers on a professional level, I’m sure I don’t stand out. Social competence is a big point,” said Silberberger about his supposed biggest advantage. “You can’t learn that, I got it from home. If you have to pretend, you’ll fail terribly.” Ferdinand Oswald sees it similarly after nine years at Silberberger’s side. “He’s extremely good at adapting to players,” said the goalie, who is currently convalescent. “He’s straightforward. That’s what sets him apart. Everyone knows what he’s up to relatively quickly. And he doesn’t give up on players after two bad games. You can have a lot of fun with him off the field, but he can also be uncomfortable,” explained the 32-year-old, who after a disc operation will probably not attack again until winter.

“He’s constantly reinventing himself,” said WSG President Diana Langes-Swarovski in “TT”, describing another strength of the former Bundesliga footballer (80 games for FC Tirol, GAK, A. Salzburg). Due to the considerable annual player turnover and the different starting positions in three different performance levels since taking office in 2013, Silberberger has been forced to make constant adjustments. “I had to serve all facets – from title favorites in the regional league to relegation candidates in the Bundesliga.”

With one exception, Silberberger always solved the tasks, in 2019/20 the WSG was saved by the Mattersburg bankruptcy. He also “survived” – similar to Freiburg’s prank in the descent in 2015. Silberberger is part of the Watten triumvirate. He, Langes-Swarovski and sports director Stefan Köck joined the club in just a few months in 2013. “We started together ten years ago. These people are the face of the club,” says Silberberger.

Even if there is currently no expiration date, Silberberger, who previously only coached FC Kufstein, does not want to hide certain ambitions for higher consecration. “I’m not pursuing a career ladder, but of course there’s something else that also appeals to me,” he said. “But – and that’s also the curse of long-term commitment – I’m never on the market. I would have to become active there. And I won’t do it by force. I’m very grateful to the club. I can shape things here, the distances are extremely short .”

Whatever comes. The home farm of his parents is always open to Silberberger as a place of retreat. Most of the agricultural land is currently leased, “but I can imagine activating it one day,” he ventured a preview of the football pension. The forest is always good for relieving frustration: “Sometimes I have to cut down a tree.”