On Friday I was talking with the great Chilean journalist Danilo Díaz about Ben Brereton, that precious stone found by Chile that is the revelation of the Qualifiers. He enlightened us: “An employee of the federation discovered that he was the son of a Chilean woman, Reinaldo Wheel he saw videos of Brereton, liked him and was the first to make contact with him. She convinced him to come and play for Chile. He couldn’t make him debut because he just left, but he arranged for him to come.”
Then we told him about goalkeeper Brayan Cortés, Montecinos, Marcelino Núñez, very promising new talents of the Chilean National Team and, above all, Gabriel Suazo, an excellent left back. “Rueda summoned him when Colo Colo was fighting for relegation and that brought him harsh criticism, but now it is seen that it was a success.” Reinaldo took Honduras and Ecuador to the World Cup, won the Libertadores in great style with Nacional. But it’s bad.
(You may be interested in: Colombia National Team: analysis of the real impact if you do not go to the World Cup)
Egypt, led by Carlos Queiroz, eliminated local and favorite Cameroon and this afternoon they will play the African Cup final against Senegal. He managed six teams, qualified for three World Cups, one with Portugal and two with Iran (Two with Iran…!), He was coach of Real Madrid, Ferguson’s right-hand man at Manchester United, basically because he recommended Cristiano Ronaldo to the Devils Reds (revealed by Sir Alex himself in his book Leadership). But it’s bad.
Pekerman won three junior World Cups and transported Argentina and Colombia to the World Cup (twice). But he was bad, old-fashioned. Jesurún is bad, journalists are bad, Barranquilla as a venue is bad and the public that whistles, too. The only good ones are these phenomenal cracks who are seventh. Seventh out of ten… “The teacher told us to take care of zero,” said Falcao, pushing him into the wheels of the train. They have nothing to do with this Qualifying issue. The problem is the teacher.
(Also read: Don Hernán, the 101-year-old grandfather, who scored Messi’s goals, passed away)
‘They don’t even score a goal for the rainbow’
The Kid Valderrama, which was crack, sent them to him without anesthesia: “They don’t even score a goal for the rainbow.” And Tréllez was even more caustic: “Band of the dead”, he apostrophized them. But to safeguard the prestige (ergo, the price), in case they do not go to the World Cup, it is important to carry the failure in the coach’s backpack. And spread it: “He is outdated”, “he lost his way”, “he does not transmit anything”, “the team got out of hand”…
It is possible that it is gone, with these players it goes to health. They are alone in front of the goal and they shoot it high, or to the goalkeeper’s body, or they miss the shot. But it’s never their fault.
Telling the fans of a country that the players of their national team are less good than they think is an unforgivable affront. It is better to boo the anthem or spit on the flag than not to blaspheme against them. A reused phrase maintains that “it is a crime to miss a World Cup with the players that Colombia has.” So much so…?
“It’s a squad full of talent,” we hear as a cliché. How is talent expressed…? In the dribbling, on a wall, in an exquisite definition in front of the goalkeeper, in a millimetric pass between the lines, in an overflow with a brake and hook, in a feint that generates spaces, in a great goal from the angle, in the memorized understanding of two or three players who combine triangulating, in a great change of front, in the inspiration. There are various forms. We did not see any of them in this Colombia. Everything is struggle, effort, mark, confusion -collective and individual-, impotence, soccer players who want and cannot, pure centers (and poorly shot), lack of ideas. That is why he does not elaborate football or generate goal situations. No goals.
(Read also: Video: Yerry Mina’s header that put Everton to win in England)
There are four elements that stand out: Ospina, Cuadrado, Barrios and Díaz. With the exception of this last one, who is very skillful
There are four elements that stand out: Ospina, Cuadrado, Barrios and Díaz. With the exception of the latter, who is very skilled, Cuadrado stands out for his personality and drive, Barrios for his mark and prodigality, Ospina is an efficient goalkeeper and savior. Diaz truly shines at Porto, Cuadrado is a starter and shows leadership at Juventus, and Zenith fans are supposed to be very pleased with Barrios. It is assumed, because we do not see it. What others stand out in Europe…? What are big club figures…? Davinson Sánchez is a starter or at least plays almost always at Tottenham and Yerry Mina a little less at Everton, but they are not luminaries. And Muriel and Zapata, who score goals for Atalanta but are not the national team.
Several completed their cycle, especially the two banners: Falcao due to age (36 years old), James (31 in July) due to a physical issue; he doesn’t give it. To which is added an additional problem for the teams that do not go to Qatar: until the next Copa América, June-July 2024, there will be no official activity, a long parenthesis of more than two years that the national teams will have to mitigate with friendlies . Some associations may even remain inactive so as not to pay million-dollar contracts for their coaching staff by having goals in sight. Soccer players over 31 or 32 years old would find it difficult to start a new process after such a long time.
And even if we agree that it is a very qualified group, there are other teams that also have good material. Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Chile and Ecuador are at a higher or equal level in potential. And, of those below, Venezuela has twelve or fourteen professionals who work in Europe or the MLS. They do not stand out because they are swallowed up by the federative disorganization. So the directors (Queiroz, Rueda) have been and are responsible for this disappointing campaign, but so have the actors. They can’t get out of this unscathed. And you have to bring down the poster of stars, they are more famous than virtuous and fame does not win games.
(Also read: James Rodríguez, absent in the thrashing suffered by Al Rayyan in Qatar)
Whether there is a Colombian miracle or not, a profound renewal is urgently needed. And there is no need to be afraid of it, although it takes time. Argentina took three years to get out of the chaos. Scaloni had courage and retired from the National Team Banega, Biglia, Rojo, Enzo Pérez, Mercado, Salvio, Fazio, Pavón, Higuaín, Icardi, Benedetto, the goalkeepers Romero, Caballero and Guzmán. He tried more than seventy new ones until he got these thirty from the Qualifiers. He cost him, but he left anarchy and mediocrity behind.
Colombia produces soccer players in good quantity, it can put together another winning team. Better than this. That is good on the field, not just in words.
JORGE BARRAZA
For the time
@JorgeBarraza OK
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