"Keep it simple, stupid!" In a recent interview with The Athletic, former Bayern Munich manager Niko Kovac reflected on his mid-season arrival at Borussia Dortmund during a period of crisis. To steady the ship, the Croatian tactician adopted a pragmatic approach summarized by a single acronym: KISS. "Like any new coach, I arrived with my own ideas and my own vision, but we lost four of the first six league games," Kovac admitted. "We then held a very honest meeting between the staff and the players to discuss what was needed to achieve our goals. We realized that while improvements were necessary, the most important thing was to keep it simple." By leaning into the KISS concept, the coaching staff focused on micro-adjustments rather than massive tactical overhauls. The objective was to strip away "parasitic thoughts"—the cognitive overload that often paralyzes players in a slump—allowing them to rediscover their natural spontaneity and flow. Kovac emphasized that simplicity does not mean a lack of discipline. On the contrary, it requires a clear structure: "We built a framework with high repetition in training to recreate automatisms on the pitch," explains the former Monaco boss. The Result: an eight-game unbeaten run and a masterclass in pragmatism.
Nico Kovac explained that he adopted a ‘KISS’ approach, standing for ‘Keep it simple, stupid’, in order to revive Borussia Dortmund / ©Icon Sport