Players' temperaments: how to talk to each of them

Players' temperaments are the first thing worth knowing before you talk to a player about his game. The same clip shown to four players means four different conversations for me, because each of us needs a different stimulus and a different way of communicating. I will show you how I talk to each of the four types and how I then set a goal for the match with a player in 4 steps.

Why the same message does not work for everyone

I am not a psychologist and I do not need a complete report on a player. I just need to know who I am talking to. None of these types is better than another. The point is to speak the other person's language.

It helps me most in a one-to-one video session, but not only there. The same goes for working with the staff and for team talks, where all four types sit in one room.

The temperament test: a first step that takes 5 minutes

I use a simple test of the 4 temperaments of Hippocrates. It is free and takes 5 minutes. It is not very comprehensive, but it lets you see what kind of team you have and try to adapt to your players. I treat it as a first step, not a full picture of a person.

DISC is more popular, with types marked by colours (choleric is red, sanguine is yellow), but it is paid. For me the temperament test itself was one of the game changers, and not only at work.

How to talk to each temperament

Choleric: one clear point

Dominant, fast, task-focused, cares about the result. I give him one message to take to training: "when it is 1v1, you always slow down. That is it". No stories and no jokes. When he asks follow-up questions, I do not treat it as an attack - he simply wants clarity.

Sanguine: vivid and short

Enthusiastic, emotional, wants to be at the centre and gets distracted easily. I speak vividly, with energy and briefly, and a joke is fine. I make sure he does not take over the session, and I end on one clear point, because he will not remember the details.

Melancholic: detail and precision

Thorough, analytical, a perfectionist. A simple message is not enough for him. He needs details, data and logic, and ideally going out on the pitch to check it. I speak precisely, in time, metres and numbers: "15:15" instead of "in 10 minutes". And I keep my word, because he remembers promises.

Phlegmatic: calm and time

Calm, needs time, avoids conflict. I do not push, I do not rush him artificially, I do not shout and I do not stress how much the match matters. I give him room to think it over and ask whether he feels good about it. A sense of safety and a simple "we are in this together" help.

My temperament and the mistake I make myself

My test result is choleric with a touch of sanguine. I find small talk at the start of a conversation hard, because I go straight to the point. I give feedback on homework quickly: fix this, fix this, fix that. I do it without emotional pressure and without judging, but sometimes it comes across as an attack.

It is the same with questions. For me a question is a need for clarity, while many people take it as a personal attack. My intention was completely different, but the other person does not hear it. That is why I try to make clear what I mean and to be gentler, especially with people of other temperaments.

A goal for the match: a conversation in 4 steps (the A4 model)

The head coach asks you to set a goal for the match with a player. Instead of asking straight away "what goal are you setting yourself?", I run the conversation with the A4 model:

• Analysis - I step into the player's shoes: "What has worked for you in recent matches?", "Where do you see room to improve?".
• Aspirations - I turn the problem into a goal: "What would your best match look like?", "What do you want to be happy with after the match?".
• Alternatives - with no pressure, hypothetically, which works well with phlegmatic players: "What exactly can a player in your position do to achieve this?".
• Action plan - only here comes the concrete point the choleric player has been waiting for from the start: "Give me two specific behaviours you want to deliver, and let us agree how we will check them".

An example with a winger. Analysis: few crosses, often drifting inside. Aspiration: wants to be active on the wing and dangerous in the final third. Alternatives: position himself higher, ask for the ball earlier, run in behind more often. Action plan: at least 4 runs in behind when the ball is open.

A goal 100% under the player's control

"Score a goal" is a bad goal, because it also depends on the opponent and the team. A good goal is frequent, repeatable and fully down to the player. He does not have to be a football genius, but he can always react after losing the ball.

I once talked to a player who was frustrated by goals, because he kept setting himself "score a goal". I asked him when he is happy after a match and which behaviours he has 100% influence on. He decided himself: after every loss of the ball, press and close down. He tried again, relaxed, and met the goal. The A4 model saved me in that conversation.

Lower demands, shorter period

Instead of "you had 5 crosses, now make it 6", it is better to lower the demands and shorten the period. If he averages five crosses, give him two per half. The shortest sensible period in football is exactly half a match.

Summary

Temperament does not tell you what to tell a player - it tells you how to say it so that he hears it. The choleric player gets one clear point, the sanguine energy and a short message, the melancholic details, and the phlegmatic calm and time. You set a goal for the match with the player in 4 steps and reach the concrete point only at the end.

🎯 I do not change what I want to get across - I change how I say it.

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