By Wolfgang Jenewein (Founder of JENEWEIN AG)

The Humiliation in the 16th Minute

It happened in the 16th minute of the match between Atlético Madrid and Tottenham: all of Europe could watch live on TV as the 22-year-old goalkeeper Antonín Kinský was humiliated by his coach Igor Tudor.

Yes, the young Czech had a dreadful day and made two terrible mistakes right at the start of the match, each leading to a goal conceded. Once he slipped on the wet pitch – he was not the only one – and a few minutes later he attempted a direct pass to a teammate that slipped off his foot and landed with the opposition. Yes, it looked amateurish, and yes, it was genuinely poor. But we all make mistakes. The question is not whether we make them, but rather how we ourselves and our managers handle them.

Tudor opted for the harshest possible punishment and substituted Kinský in the 17th minute in what was described as “an act of total ruthlessness.” He did not even look at him, did not put his arm around him or encourage him in any way. It was the opposing crowd that showed empathy, applauding him with compassion as he made his sad exit.

Withdrawing Trust Means Losing Your Team

Tudor later explained his decision with the words: “I wanted to protect him and the team.” Experts subsequently reached a different verdict. Danish goalkeeping legend Peter Schmeichel said: “He should have kept him on at least until half-time. He simply killed his career.” And Joe Hart, the former England international goalkeeper, said he was “deeply shaken by what happened to the boy” and added: “If that’s supposed to be leadership, I’m speechless.”

Yes, coaches bear responsibility for results and sometimes have to make tough decisions in the interest of the shared goal. But with this public removal, Tudor did himself and the team a disservice: on one hand, he massively damaged his goalkeeper’s confidence. It is not uncommon for players to be broken by such public humiliations, leading to depression or burnout. On the other hand, with this style of leadership he also sends an unmistakable signal to the remaining players: “If you make mistakes, I will withdraw my trust in you.”

Those Who Live in Fear Will Never Reach Their Full Potential

Trust and psychological safety are the foundation of high performance. Building a culture of growth and learning is the most important task of a leader. But this is only possible when people know that mistakes are allowed. Otherwise, a culture of fear emerges – and those who are afraid become cautious, and those who are cautious will never reach their full potential. This applies in sport just as much as in business.

Performance and accountability only grow where people feel safe. Igor Tudor has shown us how quickly empathy and the connection to one’s team can be lost under pressure to deliver results. And we all know – he is not the only one this happens to.