Series 2 Episode 1: Performing Under Pressure & Conquering the Premier League with Adam Lallana, Professional Footballer
Welcome back to The Perfect Athlete, and to a new series of incredible conversations and tips for performing at your peak.
With 34 successful caps for England, a Premier League title and Champions League medal to his name, Adam Lallana has proven himself an invaluable midfield talent at Southampton, Liverpool, and now Brighton & Hove Albion.
He’s played with, and against, some of the world’s most talented footballers, picking up on the physical and mental training regimes that kept Jurgen Klopp’s squad on top of their game for one of the team’s best seasons in years.
Adam joins me for series 2 of The Perfect Athlete as we learn how his parents applied the perfect amount of pressure & unconditional support in his early years, how massively a game is affected by individual & team mentality, and what the future holds for Adam with his move to Brighton.
This episode of Perfect Athlete is sponsored by Precision Hydration who help athletes personalise their hydration strategy using their sweat tests and electrolyte supplements.
Get 15% off first orders with discount code PERFECT15 or book a 1-2-1 call with one of the sweat experts here: https://www.precisionhydration.com/book-a-sweat-expert-call/
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IN THIS EPISODE OF THE PERFECT ATHLETE:
- How parental pressure affects kids’ early years in sport
- Differences between working with Alan Pardew, Mauricio Pochettino & Jurgen Klopp as managers
- Coping with the pressure of the captain’s armband
- How data & technology has advanced strength and conditioning in the game
- Using sports psychologists to improve mental resilience
LINKS & REFERENCES
Chris Billam-Smith: https://twitter.com/chrisbillam
Adam Lallana: https://twitter.com/officialal20?lang=en
Chris Billam-Smith: https://www.instagram.com/chrisbillam/
Adam Lallana: https://www.instagram.com/officiallallana/
Precision Hydration: https://www.precisionhydration.com/
Get in touch: [email protected]
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
“I was very, very fortunate that there was never any pressure put on me from my mum or dad. It was always just enjoyment, always allowing me to play from my grass roots, for my school, with my mates out on the field. I think if there is that pressure there from such a young age, you take the risk that you just take the enjoyment out of it.” – 5:30 – Adam Lallana
“Alan Pardew was the first big manager I played under and he was pretty brilliant with me. He treated me like I was this young superstar, which I wasn’t quite, it didn’t really sit right with me but he made me feel good and gave me confidence to express myself.” – 13:30 – Adam Lallana
“At 24 I got the armband, and it was like, ‘Right, I need to be this type of Captain. If I’m a captain, I need to be mature’. But what I figured out, and what Pochettino taught me is that I just needed to play football and be myself.” – 16:30 – Adam Lallana
“Access to data that’s impacted recovery is now next-level. Even since when I started my career to now, around 15 years, there’s easily a 20-30% difference. With the amount of games played nowadays, it’s so important to recover well.” – 23:05 – Adam Lallana
“The brain is the strongest muscle in your body, and the earlier you understand that, the more chance you have of succeeding for longer.” – 29:05 – Adam Lallana
“I remember coming off the bench, taking a penalty, missing, losing the cup and being devastated. This was when there was so much talk about how Liverpool can’t win trophies. We’d lost in the Europa League final the year before. We played city again, three days later in the league, I scored and set two up. I had the opportunity to react because I had another game 3 days later, and that’s the beauty of football.” – 34:00 – Adam Lallana
“Klopp’s fundamentals and main values were ‘Work hard and give everything for me, that’s all I want’. Because you’re gonna make mistakes, you’re allowed to make mistakes. It’s just about how you react from the mistakes.” – 41:00 – Adam Lallana
“From the outside, you can look at it like, ‘But you’re playing at Brighton, you’re never gonna win the Premier League’. We might not, but if we finish top 10 next year, what an achievement that is. That’s my goal, and I’m going to do everything I can to strive to get there, because that’s what I believe is possible.” – 48:22 – Adam Lallana
