Werder Bremen head coach Thomas Schaaf used the international game day break to take part in the UEFA elite coaching forum in Nyon from Tuesday to Thursday as he discussed the newest developments in top level football with other elite coaches throughout Europe. "This is a very good conference," said Schaaf, pointing his praise to UEFA's technical director Andy Roxburgh. "The entire event is superbly organised, well prepared content-wise and gives you the chance to discuss technical things and intensively think about them." The 49-year-old coach added: "This is a great thing. There is a very good atmosphere and you can talk to colleagues about anything and you get a better impression about how things run in other countries."

One of the much-discussed topics of this year's event, which is held annually by UEFA, was the usage of technical devices. "We talked about it and all coaches agreed that there should be as few changes as possible and that football should continue to depend on human decisions," said Schaaf. "It doesn't matter which devices are added, you have to select them with great caution and not let everything be controlled just because it's technically possible."

But Schaaf is a welcomed guest at more than just the elite coaching forum, on which he has taken part for years. Just last May the Bremen coach was an official member of the UEFA Technical Commission and an invited honorary guest at the Champions League final between Bayern Munich and Inter Milan in Madrid. One of Schaaf's tasks was to evaluate the entire Champions League season from a technical-tactical point of view together with other invited experts including coaches and analysts from throughout European clubs and federations.

In addition to Thomas Schaaf, the following coaches took part in the elite coaching forum in Nyon:

Massimiliano Allegri (AC Milan), Carlo Ancelotti (Chelsea FC), Didier Deschamps (Olympique de Marseille), Sir Alex Ferguson (Manchester United FC), Jean Fernandez (AJ Auxerre), Jesualdo Ferreira (Málaga CF), Thorsten Fink (FC Basel 1893), Josep Guardiola (FC Barcelona), Roy Hodgson (Liverpool FC), Jorge Jesus (SL Benfica), Martin Jol (AFC Ajax), Felix Magath (FC Schalke 04), José Mourinho (Real Madrid CF), Nikos Nioplias (Panathinaikos FC), Claude Puel (Olympique Lyonnais) and Claudio Ranieri (AS Roma).