11 Questions with Kasper Pedersbaek

The pursuit of wisdom in any walk of life quickly reveals that what you think you know is not nearly enough to get you to where you want to go. As I'm starting out in my football scouting journey I challenged myself to reach out to those already working in various roles in football to answer a short list of questions. My goal wasn't to get answers but relevant perspectives on the game within the game.

Here is Kasper Pedersbaek:

How did your first opportunity in football come about?

After I’ve been writing tactical reviews on a fan-based website and been posting a lot on twitter I got contacted by one of the biggest teams in Denmark and asked to come to the club for a job-interview.

What attracted you to scouting/analytics? What’s more intriguing now names or numbers?

Well, it started as a passion for football. Then in time I got more and more focus on tactical stuff as I just found out it was easy for me to “read” the game. It’s not one or the other. For me it is important that numbers aren’t standing alone. A good analyst combine both.

Who/what is the first player/concept you "found"? What caught your eye?

It wasn’t one concept that had me hooked. It’s multiple. Dortmund with the quick counter attacks, Man United during Ferguson’s era, Pep’s tiki taka in Barca, the defensive art from lots of Italian clubs to Bielsa through all his clubs.

Who/what is the player/concept you "missed" on? What did you learn from it?

Hmm… Missed on, guess it would be a Danish team named Horsens. Dreadful team to watch play, defensively and like they wouldn’t anything other than defend and throw long throw ins. But with a limited budget and player material, it came around to me that that’s the way they had to play to survive on very limited budget.

If you could start over what skill would you build on first?

Don’t know.

Do you see player development as more of an art or a science? Is development on the club or the player? Why?

It’s science. And skill. You can teach skills, make a good pass etc. But WHEN to make the pass takes football brain skills. A lot can be taught, but to be in the absolute elite takes a natural skillset in terms of reading the game. Well, it’s the clubs responsibility, but it takes a player being willing to learn.

What is your favorite sports moment? Why?

When my team in Denmark, Brøndby, beat our arch rivals FC Copenhagen with 5-0 15 years ago.

What coach/player/team inspires you? Why?

Alexander Zorniger, Bielsa, Ståle Solbakken, Ebbe Skoudahl, Morten Olsen, Michael Laudrup, Dean Smith, Alex Ferguson, Mourinho. Every one of them are inspiring in different ways. But basically it’s how they’re able to coach a team and make the team play in their image and style.

What advice would you give to someone wanting to get into media/analytics?

Start writing, do analyses on games, a good place to start is on twitter. Work your way up to be taken seriously. If possible join for an example a podcast with your favorite team. For me it was purely my passion for the game that drove me and it opened some doors for me that I didn’t see myself.

What is your favorite app/tool to use (for fun!)?

Wyscout – essential for the videos and the stats. Beside that I’m reading a lot of statsbomb articles, and in general articles on the web. Listening to podcast about the subject. And in general just keep watching games over and over and over. There’s something to learn from every game.

What other sport/hobby/discipline do you feel improves your work as an analyst? Why?

Rational thinking (it isn’t rocket science), being able to look for patterns in both the individual game or a series of games. Basically it’s all about being able to think logical. Football isn’t, as I wrote before, rocket science. It is a game, and it’s about being able to look for patterns, for basic skills good or bad. What can improve and help your team, what’s not etc.