Runge also made use of free time in the holidays at university: For a number of years, he used to drive six hours by car to Alicante every summer with his fellow coach Pere Romeu, "because we knew that there was a very good coach (Fran Beltrán, now U18 coach at Real Madrid, ed.) working there. We spent a week there and compared notes with different coaches from the region." All with the target of one day being in the dugout at a professional club.
own boots on the hook
Sergi Runge ended his playing career at the age of 19 after playing at the highest youth level in Spain against Barcelona and other clubs. He went on to coach at the Hristo Stoichkov School That used the methodology of the former FCB youth coordinator Laureano Ruiz. "I learned a lot from that time," said Runge who fully dedicated himself to coaching in addition to studying for his masters degree. That led him to the Spanish third tier club Unió Esportiva Cornellà – here he signed his first contract as a full-time coach at the age of 25.
One day, a certain duo called Augustin Lleida and Vidal Paloma approached Runge. The Spaniards had worked together in setting up the youth performance centre at the Costa Rican top-flight club Deportivo Alajuelense. Lleida, then sporting director at Alajuelense, and head of youth Paloma were looking for fellow countrymen who could train the local talent as youth coach – and they found Runge. "They dug deeper at the Catalonian Association. I was then lucky that a couple of teachers said good things about me," revealed Runge.
first full-time job the other side of the Atlantic
It was a big move and not just because of the distance. "I'd never been in America before and I went over there all on my own," said Sergi Runge. "But I definitely wanted to do it. Working 24 hours, seven days a week as a coach is my big desire." The Spaniard coached the U17s in the mornings and the U14 squad in the afternoons and he later moved up to the senior squad as assistant coach. Runge was "very happy" on the other side of the Atlantic. The job in Costa Rica ended after 18 months due to an offer from his home country, which he said "definitely didn't happen every day."
Runge joined Barcelona. The club where he had a season ticket with his father for years and enjoyed the great feast of football at the famous Camp Nou. He worked as assistant coach for the U16 squad at the world famous youth academy La Masia and there he coached the current Leverkusen U19 striker Iker Bravo. The youth coach is certain that one or the other talents from the FCB youth team back then will "play at the Camp Nou in the next few years."
