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A decade ago, the England assistant coach was playing in League Two. Now, his attention is fixed supporting the head coach secure World Cup glory in the upcoming tournament. The road from player to coach commenced as an unpaid coach for Accrington's Under-16s. He recalls, “It was in the evenings, third of a pitch, asked to do 11 v 11 … flat balls, not enough bibs,” and he was hooked. He had found his destiny.

Staggering Ascent

Barry's progression stands out. Starting as Paul Cook’s assistant, he established a reputation with creative training and great man-management. His stints with teams included Chelsea and Bayern Munich, plus he took on roles with national teams for Ireland, Belgium, and Portugal. He's coached stars like top footballers. Today, as part of Team England, it’s full-time, the “pinnacle” according to him.

“Everything starts with a dream … But I’m a believer that obsession can move mountains. You envision the goal then you break it down: ‘How do we do it, gradually?’ We dream about winning the World Cup. Yet dreams alone aren't enough. We must create a methodical process enabling us to have the best chance.”

Obsession with Details

Dedication, particularly on fine points, is central to his philosophy. Toiling around the clock all the time, he and Tuchel challenge limits. Their methods feature psychological profiling, a heat-proof game model ahead of the tournament in North America, and creating a unified squad. Barry emphasizes the England collective and avoids language such as "break".

“You’re not coming here for a holiday or a break,” Barry notes. “We had to build something that attracts the squad and they're pushed that returning to club duty feels easier.”

Ambitious Trainers

Barry describes himself and Tuchel as extremely driven. “Our goal is to master all parts of the match,” Barry affirms. “We strive to own every metre of the pitch and that's our focus long hours toward. We must not just to keep up of changes but to surpass them and create our own ones. It’s a constant process with a mindset of solving issues. And it’s to make the complex clear.

“There are 50 days together with the team before the World Cup finals. We need to execute a complex game that offers a strategic upper hand and we must clarify it in our 50 days with them. We need to progress from idea to information to know-how to performance.

“To develop a process for effective use in that window, we must utilize the entire 500 days we'll have since we took the job. When the squad is away, we need to foster connections with each player. We have to spend time communicating regularly, we need to watch them play, feel them, touch them. If we limit ourselves to that time, we won't succeed.”

Upcoming Matches

Barry is preparing ahead of the concluding matches for the World Cup preliminaries – facing Serbia at home and Albania in Tirana. England have guaranteed a spot in the tournament after six consecutive victories with perfect defensive records. But there will be no easing off; quite the opposite. Now is the moment to strengthen the squad's character, to gain more impetus.

“We are both certain that the football philosophy should represent all the positives about the Premier League,” he comments. “The fitness, the adaptability, the physicality, the honesty. The England jersey must be difficult to earn but comfortable to have on. It ought to be like a superhero's cape and not body armour.

“For it to feel easy, we need to provide a system that lets them to move and run as they do in club games, that resonates with them and encourages attacking play. They must be stuck less in thinking and focus more on action.

“You can gain psychological edges you can get as a coach in the first and final thirds – playing out from the back, closing down early. However, in midfield on the field, that section, we believe play has stagnated, notably in domestic leagues. Everybody has so much information these days. They understand tactics – mid-blocks, deep blocks. We are really trying to speed up play through midfield.”

Drive for Growth

The coach's thirst for improvement is relentless. While training for his pro license, he had concerns about the presentation, since his group featured big names such as Frank Lampard and Michael Carrick. For self-improvement, he sought out difficult settings imaginable to practise giving them. Including a prison in Liverpool, where he also took inmates during an exercise.

He earned his license in 2020 at the top of the class, with his thesis – The Undervalued Set Piece, for which he analysed thousands of throw-ins – became a published work. Lampard included won over and he recruited the coach as part of his backroom at Stamford Bridge. When Lampard was sacked, it was telling that the team dismissed nearly all assistants except Barry.

His replacement with the club was Tuchel, and, four months later, they secured European glory. After Tuchel's exit, Barry remained in the setup. Once Tuchel resurfaced with Bayern, he got Barry out away from London to work together again. English football's governing body see them as a double act akin to Gareth Southgate and Steve Holland.

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