Jurgen Klopp has admitted he had never heard of a throw-ins coach before he hired Thomas Gronnemark.
Gronnemark has been in the business of training players to execute the art of throw-ins since 2004 and has praised his impact on the club’s center-back Joe Gomez so far.
“To be honest, I’d never heard about a throw-in coach. When I heard about Thomas, it was clear to me I wanted to meet him; when I met him, it was 100% per cent clear I wanted to employ him.” Klopp admitted.
“If I was a defender I would not want to be on the end of one of Gomez’s throw-ins. In general, against Liverpool, I would not want to put the ball out for a throw-in. I am not saying Liverpool will do a lot of long throw-ins, but you never know when they may do it,” said Gronnemark.
“If you are expecting professional footballers to be world-class throwers without coaching then you are pretty optimistic. Generally, the standard is quite poor. A focus on throw-ins can save the life of small clubs, as a technique to survive,” the tactician opines.
The Danish explains that the science behind clinical throw-ins dictates how a team counter-attacks or keeps possession during a game.
“I focus on everything you can imagine. It is not just the technique of the throw, but how to receive it, how to make the right runs, the positioning, creating space.” Gronnemark explains
