Sébastien Pocognoli isn’t wasting any time. It was only just over a year ago that he made his managerial debut, and he has now been ushered through the door at AS Monaco, where he will be expected to repeat his success at Union Saint-Gilloise.

“Everything happened quickly,” began Pocognoli, presented to the press on Tuesday, having just taken charge of his first session as Monaco manager. It was a phrase that referenced the speed at which his move from USG to the Principality took form, but it is equally relevant to his career as a whole.

Retired at 34, the former Belgium international led USG to their first Belgian league title since 1935 at the age of 37, and by 38, he was leading the side in their first-ever Champions League campaign. But it didn’t last long. It was only the previous summer that the Belgian was appointed USG manager, representing his first job with a professional side, having previously had stints in youth football. “It was a great marriage,” said Pocognoli of the club where he played and then later managed. But it was a union that was to be broken when a derby-day defeat to OGC Nice put paid to Adi Hutter’s time at the Principality club.

“What we are doing is trying to anticipate things that we realise could maybe not be in a good place soon. At this stage, we have our season and our goals under control,” said Monaco CEO Thiago Scuro, explaining the decision for the managerial change. It was a pre-emptive strike of sorts, with the club fifth in Ligue 1 and just three points behind leaders PSG, and one not without risk, given the age of the new man at the helm, and the timing of the decision. Scuro assumes that risk: “The risk is always there. Doing something or not doing something, there is always a risk,” said the Brazilian; action, not reaction.

And so Scuro put the wheels in motion. On Friday, Hutter was out; by Saturday, Pocognoli was in. “There is a shared desire to bring about a return to form and a freshness on the pitch,” said Pocognoli, who said that he was easily sold on the Monégasque project. “The sporting project attracted me. The approach is daring […] It gives me a lot of confidence that a big club in France can be interested in a young coach from Belgium,” he said on Tuesday.

Pocognoli liked “intensity” during his first session

He outlined what he aims to bring. “Those who know me know that I like rigour and hard work. In terms of football, I like to go hard, with intensity,” says the Belgian, who showed himself to be a hands-on technician during his first session, attended by Monaco Life. And he was happy with what he saw during that short late afternoon session, as the sun set on the club’s performance centre in La Turbie.

“The first session went well. They were coming back from a few days off, and with a new manager, so there was a lot of intensity, a desire to show things, naturally. I had to calm them down a bit because you can’t go too far, but there was a good dynamic and good intensity,” said Pocognoli.

Intensity is one of his key principles, if not the key principle. Pocognoli is also accustomed to playing with a 3-4-1-2 formation, the one that served him so well back in his native Belgium. However, he would not be drawn on whether he would retain that system at Monaco. “I think we have a pretty hybrid squad,” said the manager, who may have to experiment in the coming weeks in order to find the right formula.

Van Gaal’s inspiration

However, beyond the tactical element, Pocognoli is a manager who lends great importance to the man-management aspect. It is something that he learnt from Louis Van Gaal, during his time as a player at AZ Alkmaar. “I felt myself progressing every day [with him]. When he left, I felt less good. That meant that he was a good manager. That’s when I realised that a coach could be important for a player, and when I said, ‘Why not become a coach?’” recalled Pocognoli.

Prior to playing under Van Gaal at Alkmaar, Pocognoli could have joined Monaco, as he revealed. “They (Monaco) came to see me at Genk, but in the match that they came to see me, I was sent off. I have a second chance, now. It’s good,” joked the Belgian. Handed a second chance, he will now look to seize it and drive his new club towards its lofty objectives.

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Photo credit: Luke Entwistle / Monaco Life