Adelaide United boss Marco Kurz opens up on his time in Adelaide on and off the pitch
Marco Kurz could have spat the dummy when Adelaide United revealed it didn’t want him. Instead he is leaving SA with his reputation intact, more respect than ever and pride for his achievements and adopted city. And his work is not done yet.
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Adelaide United coach Marco Kurz looks back on his two-year tenure at the club with nothing but pride.
And he is confident his time will have a happy ending as Adelaide prepares for an elimination final against Melbourne City at Hindmarsh Stadium on Sunday.
The 49-year-old is incredibly focused.
When Adelaide chairman Piet van der Pol in March decided the revered German wouldn’t have his contract renewed despite having success on a limited budget Kurz remained the consummate professional.
He knows he will leave a new culture driven by hard work which is the mantra laid down the moment he took his first training session on a paddock at Elizabeth in 2017.
“When the last day comes in Adelaide, it will come, I’m not happy about leaving, we love to live here, we enjoy living here but at the end the positives of my two years here are dominant, in favour,” Kurz said.
“That’s my nature.
“ I’m contracted here until the end of May and the club can expect the best work I can do for Adelaide United, to have the most success, that’s first.
“We had a clear goal as a team and I’m part of the team, we are so focused to reach this goal for the club and for the supporters in this fantastic city.
“I have to work at my best until the end of the contract.
“I know our quality and we’re still hungry to improve and to adapt as a team and that was my energy.
“I will leave the club in the best way I can do.”
The lifestyle that Kurz loved
Kurz adores everything about the Adelaide lifestyle after he gambled on leaving his country for the first time for a job he didn’t know too much about with the love of his life, Tammy.
He didn’t leave anything to chance for the journey and still doesn’t when it comes to football and life.
His short reconnaissance visit to Adelaide to see with his own eyes - to feel the vibe of the city - was the contract clincher but there was still major hurdles to overcome away from the pitch.
Kurz couldn’t and still can’t believe many Adelaide coffee shops shut before mid afternoon.
His favourite hot spot is Ballaboosta on Halifax Street but just like when he is studying opposition teams for a big Reds game, Google became Kurz’s friend.
He wanted a coffee shop with culture, atmosphere and the sun shining in the right place during a lazy afternoon.
“We, as Germans, we like to drink coffee in the afternoon between 3 and 5pm and it was really hard to find a good place in Australia because many coffee shops close before 2 or 3pm,’’ Kurz said.
“We searched a good spot in a nice area with a good spirit that was here because the place outside is always sunny and the cakes are very, very good.”
Kurz is also thankful the Adelaide experience has become a strong bond with Tammy.
During his very little downtime, Kurz and Tammy’s relationship has grown as the pair discovered some of the greatest sights and little pleasures perhaps South Australians take for granted.
“It’s very important Tammy and I were open for the step to come to Australia, if you’re not open for a new challenge in your life you can’t do this,’’ Kurz said.
Kurz lived in Munich and Tammy was based in Germany near the Czech border before they moved to SA.
“Adelaide is a fantastic experience as a private person, it was our first time we lived together in the same city Adelaide,” Kurz said.
“And every day in the same house it worked fantastically.
“The best is when I see the good partnership with Tammy.
“We are so far away from home, the experience with the people here in the city because we are very impressed about how lovely they are, friendly and helpful.
“We found out how beautiful it is to live in Adelaide and the quality of life in Australia.
“The nature is fantastic, the trees, when you drive every morning to training at Playford and see cockatoos then you know you’ve made the right decision.
“We liked jogging on the beach, driving to wineries to spend afternoons there.
“Also hiking.
“Only 10 minutes from home (Norwood) to Mt Lofty, Chambers Gully, Waterfall Gully where you are in the nature with kangaroos and koalas that’s fantastic.
“What we really enjoy is the coffee, it’s so high quality, we will have big problems when we go home.”
What Kurz didn’t like
Kurz could never understand why he felt so cold when he landed in Adelaide in June — the start of SA’s winter in 2017.
Given the average winter temperatures - Adelaide is 12C warmer than Munich - the German wasn’t prepared for the Australian chill.
“I can’t say anything wrong about Australia except the airconditioning is very bad,’’ Kurz said.
“For the first time in my life I was freezing so much, as never before in Australia.
“Also in the apartments, restaurants, supermarkets I was freezing, I don’t think the insulation is right.
“In the first days we froze at the Watson Apartments, it’s funny because in Germany we have minus 20C.”
He was also wary of people not being genuine, afraid of saying “no” rather than being brutally honest.
“Sometimes I’m not sure if some friends are really sincere,’’ he said.
“If you need them they’re helpful, but I’m not sure as a German and a structured person, it’s better to have clear answers, it can be also ‘no’ but that’s clear, it’s straight.”
Has Kurz got another coaching job?
Revered in football-crazy Germany after a stellar playing career where he featured for Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund during the golden age, as well as Schalke and 1860 TSV Munich, he has also survived the cut-throat environment as coach.
A highlight was leading Kaiserslautern to Bundesliga promotion where they just missed out on qualifying for European football the following season.
“At the moment there is interest (in Europe) but nothing is concrete, it’s not my main thought,’’ he said.
“My thought is to complete the next games and after I can find out what is best for me and Tammy.
“We like everything about Australia at the end, the decision, it has to be the right job for me.
“I don’t want to get a job only to stay in Australia to take a big holiday, I’m not the right person for that.
“Sometimes it’s different to the culture here with soccer.
“I came here to also improve the soccer in Australia and Adelaide to go the next step to prepare the boys to play overseas for example.
“And for that they have to learn and train more than before, they can turn it around, that’s a decision for their life.
“But if we find a good club we are open to staying here.”
Will Kurz be emotional on Sunday?
It could be Kurz’s last time he will sit on the bench at Hindmarsh Stadium, even if the Reds beat City.
The immensely popular German has statistics to back why he has earned respect across the country as a coach that is fiercely competitive.
Kurz’s results have done all the talking since his first official match in 2017 when a new-look Reds appeared sharper, fitter, driven, focused and tactically savvy when they beat Newcastle Jets 1-0 in an FFA Cup tie at Marden.
The Reds have never been out of the top six during his 54 A-League matches.
They have claimed the FFA Cup in 2018, runner up in 2017 and Kurz’s points record is the best among all of Adelaide’s coaches.
He has the sixth best overall points record in the A-League where ironically his compatriot, FIFA World Cup winner Pierre Littbarski is No. 1 after his sole season at Sydney FC.
“It’s good to know (about being popular) then I know I have done a good job because some people are not happy that I’m leaving the club and the city,’’ Kurz said.
“Emotionally maybe after the game, not before not during the game.
“I am still focused for the game and how it’s running and we have a new goal and to reach the semi final.
“We need to take our chances and there are five teams we want to be better than City on Sunday.”
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