Guillermo Coria, from magician to captain: his illusion with the Davis Cup, the private chat of La Legión and his fanaticism for Gallardo

Guillermo Coria smile with your whole face and walk through the Racket Club. It goes from one place to the other. They greet him, ask for photos. He approaches Agustín Calleri, president of the Argentine Tennis Association, and makes jokes while they watch a match at the Challenger in Buenos Aires.

Coria has just been introduced as the new captain of the Argentine team of Davis Cup in front of the press and is euphoric. “The truth is that I missed this,” he tells TN Sports. And he adds: “It comes to me at a very beautiful moment in my life, more mature and wanting to return to the circuit. I got back the adrenaline from when I played and that just started, I don’t want to imagine when I sit in the chair ”.

As a player, Coria played only one home match for the Davis Cup. It was in 2005 in the Argentine victory 5-0 against the Czech Republic. “I never knew that that was going to be the last. I thoroughly enjoyed it, but I was wanting more. I couldn’t retire with the people. What one dreams of is to retire at home with family and friends on the platform ”, he says.

His first game as captain It will be in March 2022 and the rival will be known at the end of this year after the draw. El Mago jokes with his team about the possibility that the rival is Brazil and home. “Would the most to be able to debut in March of local and to meet again with the public. Although the affection of the people with our entire generation it was always very big and cute until today. They always make us feel it on the street ”, he details.

The “Legion” chat

The “step of command” of the Davis captain’s jacket was nothing more and nothing less than Gastón Gaudio to Guillermo Coria. Two of the greatest exponents in the history of Argentine tennis and protagonists of the most remembered final, that of Roland Garros 2004 with Guillermo Vilas on the court. The grudges and frictions of that time seem to have been left behind. “All of our litter, each one in his place, can contribute a lot to the boys”, remarks Coria.

“The relationship with the players of my generation has been spectacular, we have a fairly active chat group, we talk a lot and when we can we get together here in Buenos Aires or Córdoba, as it was in Tandil at the time. One is maturing and many times we shit with laughter to think what assholes we were in some moments and we spent ”, reveals Coria.

“Jokes always come up, we send each other a lot of WhatsApp stickers. We go crazy. David (Nalbandian) with his rally, with his madness; there is also Lucho Horna from Peru, there is Nicolás Massú from Chile. We are a group of all South Americans who we killed each other for a while and now we have a group chat and we kill each other, but laughing. If we are not mature at 40, he would speak ill of us ”.

The new litter that excites

“There are reasons to be excited,” says the Magician about the new generation of tennis players. “Argentina is always respected and fights, we have an even team, with a lot of change. There are many players among the possible summoned, so I hope that next year, when we have to build the team, we will have that complication when it comes to selecting. Argentina is, was and will be a power and highly respected worldwide. This new breed of boys is representing us very well and they are already firm: Argentine is already spoken in the challenger world”.

Coria and football: the possibility of Gallardo leaving River

Something that never changed for Coria was the fanaticism he has with his soccer club. Enjoy River’s present and refuses to think of a replacement for the Doll.

“The Gallardo thing is unique and I do not think it will be repeated. I don’t even want to imagine the day he leaves. The River fan is upset to think that at some point he is going to leave, because he is going to leave. You have to enjoy it. And even more so in this ever-changing football where the coaches last so little. He is a crack, a phenomenon, we love him with all our soul and I hope we can have it one more time”, It closes.