The Nati Cosmos: They guide and guide Murat Yakin

In the summer of 2021, Murat Yakin (49) will enter the Nati cosmos. What is striking is that he comes alone. Unlike his predecessor Vladimir Petkovic, who was allowed to bring along his good friend Antonio Manicone as an assistant. The most important people above and next to Yakin have been there much longer than the coach.

Dominique Blanc will succeed Peter Gilliéron in May 2019. As candidates for the amateur competition, the Vaudois won against Kurt Zuppinger and Jean-François Collet. He is not the preference of everyone within the association. The former entrepreneur is a friendly man and in the background supports various SFV goals, including the promotion of women’s football and the construction of a Home of Swiss Football. But Blanc is hardly present in public and that is why he seems colorless. The most recent example: On Tuesday, 38 hours after the 3-3 draw against Belarus, the president was quoted on the SFV homepage as follows: “Murat Yakin is and remains our national coach and he enjoys our full confidence.”

Breiter has been a familiar face to observant Swiss football fans for years: as chief lawyer of the SFV, he followed the cup draws on Swiss television for years. When Alex Miescher resigned after the tournament following the communications debacle surrounding the match against Serbia at the 2018 World Cup, Breiter became his successor as general secretary. The 50-year-old is seen more as a driver than an innovator, is less present and is not as close to the A-Nati as its predecessor. Wider appears on administrative matters: for example when the amateur season was canceled in the Corona year 2020 or last week after the Israel match was postponed. He stays out of sports topics.

As a player he won the Ticino Cup with Lugano and played almost 200 Super League games. In 2011, he reached the final of the European Championship as a coach with the U21 national team. Three years later he wants to take over A-Nati, but loses to Vladimir Petkovic. Five years later, he took on the newly created position of Nati director, becoming Petkovic’s boss on paper. When he arrives, he says, “I’m not here to disturb you.”

His attitude is toothless, he only shows a clear advantage when it comes to communication when he speaks Italian: after the 3-3 draw against Belarus, he only supports Murat Yakin on television in Ticino. Internally, however, Tami certainly has assertiveness. For example, he persuades ex-Nati coach Petkovic to personally visit the most important players at his clubs. As the only one with a professional past, Tami is the sporting conscience at the top of the association. Whether he can significantly influence Yakin’s future depends on his skills as a backroom politician. Tami must be able to convince the representatives of the trainer election committee and the central board of his opinion.

Within ten years, the Vaudois managed to work his way up within the association. In 2011, then-U21 coach Tami Cavin, who manages the Ticino team, hired as a match observer. In the Petkovic era (2014 to 2021), Cavin became a video analyst and later a sports coordinator. He also visits players who are active abroad. When Yakin takes over, Cavin offers to be his assistant and gets the job. Cavin is considered an excellent video analyst with a good eye, but also an opportunist internally. His position within the team is not the best. Xhaka’s criticism of the coach and association is also aimed at him, who has never belonged to the staff of a professional team. Cavin is currently acquiring his UEFA Pro license in Italy.

The fact that Swiss goalkeepers regularly steal places from the German top dogs in the Bundesliga has a lot to do with Foletti: after joining the association in 2011, he revolutionized the goalkeeping academy – with great success. The national team will be well-staffed in goal for years to come. Foletti not only takes care of A-Nati’s goalkeepers, he meets and supports the juniors and also checks in with the women. The goalkeeping department can now also be described as a service provider for the individual selections of the national teams. And thanks to his internal status, Foletti’s word on the goalkeeping issue carries enormous weight – more than is usual for clubs.

Foletti is not only connected to Yann Sommer on a sporting level, but also as a friend. Annoying. ‘Fox’ is defending the summer in all areas and his number 1 status has been confirmed. This caused the then BVB regular goalkeeper Roman Bürki to resign from Nati in 2019. Reason: “I wanted a chance in an important match, but I didn’t get one.”

On February 1, 2020, the former foreign and federal parliamentary correspondent for SRF will take on the position of head of communications for the SFV. The smart Valaisan will not find an easy environment, as Nati coach Vladimir Petkovic has great internal power. With the move to Murat Yakin, Arnold gains influence, and the two also maintain a friendly personal relationship. “We don’t want to create headlines that could have a negative impact on the team,” Arnold told Blick after the successful start of European Championship qualifying in the spring. Ultimately, the association cannot prevent this. Xhaka’s general criticism after the match against Kosovo put the association on the wrong track. The failed performance against Belarus caused a media storm, also because Yakin presented a poor communicative image before and after the near defeat.