Building from the ground up

Alex Piache leads a comprehensive training project from Saudi Arabia focused on innovative, human, and decision-based football.

With a career that has crossed continents and cultures, Alex Piache has dedicated his life to football development. From his early days at Marcet to his current role as Head Coach of the U17 Women’s Team and Methodological Assistant at Al Ittihad Jeddah Club, his path reflects a clear vision: to build intelligent, human, and sustainable football by starting at the roots.

“At that time, I was still playing,” Alex recalls about his arrival at Marcet. “I wanted to start transitioning into the coaching side and began as an analyst. That helped me better read the game and enhance players’ traits.” At Marcet, he learned that the focus must be on the person — adapting the process to the player, not vice versa. That belief has shaped his approach to coaching ever since.

His experience at the academy prepared him for what was to come: an international career with stints in eleven countries — Spain, England, Nicaragua, Finland, United Arab Emirates, Estonia, and now Saudi Arabia, among others. “Marcet helped me learn how to adapt my work to different cultural and sporting contexts. It opened my mind to see that football is lived differently in each place — and that’s an opportunity, not an obstacle.”

Today, from his position at Al Ittihad Jeddah, he is helping build a comprehensive project for women’s and men’s football. “It’s gratifying to build from scratch. Saudi Arabia is taking its first steps in this area, quickly making the progress visible.” The country is undergoing a profound transformation, driven by significant state investment to promote sports from the grassroots level.

“We don’t want robots: we want players who think.”

The facilities he found at the club impressed him: four natural grass fields, one artificial field, a multi-sports complex, and above all, an unmatched fanbase. “The most striking thing was the passionate, loyal, committed supporters. Truly one of the most special fanbases in the world.” Al Ittihad’s goal is to build a modern model inspired by Europe but with a local identity.

In addition to coaching, Alex mentors and supports local coaches. His methodological approach promotes brilliant football, centered on decision-making. “We don’t want robots; we want players who think. The work starts by giving tools to the coaches so they can transmit that idea.” As an educator, he also leads the Universal Football Coaching platform, which he co-founded to train coaches worldwide through science and objectivity.

Looking ahead, Alex knows exactly what he wants: to build impactful projects from the ground up. “I dream of joining an elite coaching staff one day, but my passion lies in development. The strongest buildings are built on solid foundations. The same goes for football.”