The life of Leonardo Ponzio still follows a thousand. About to turn 40 and just over a month after announcing his retirement from professional football, the former captain of River try to accommodate his emotional roller coaster. Because although he assures that “he enjoys things that he could not do before”, he adds that “I miss everything” while planning his farewell party in Núñez, “probably for September or October”.
In an extensive and juicy chat with Espn F90, the Lion talked about everything. of what he lived in River, from Gallardo, of his role as leader, of his new challenge wearing the colors of Williams Kemmis and also of his future professionally linked to football, although from outside the lime line. “I want to pour all the experience I gained playing football. Not as a coach, but in another area: for example, I like to see young boys, meet them, advise them… I think now I have a little more time to get into that place”, explained Ponzio, who was considering the proposal of joining the technical secretariat of River.
But before talking about his future, the eternal captain talked about everything he experienced on the pitch. And in particular, he recounted the differences he experienced between being a substitute in the Ramón Díaz era and the last stage of the Gallardo era.
“I started playing with Ramón and from one day to the next I didn’t play. I didn’t speak, nothing. But fate would have it that a week before Ramón left, I got together with Enzo (Francescoli) and Patanian because I wanted to play… And then with Gallardo I had to be a substitute, but in the group I wasn’t…“He explained. And he even gave details of the relationship he forged with the Doll.
“I knew what it was like for Marcelo, and if he needed me I had to be there. It was different from day to day. And not playing or playing little was part of what he was experiencing. I assimilated it, I warmed up when Marcelo gave the team and he wasn’t there. Inside it was hot, but then it passed and went forward. Once I told him to please let me compete, but when he looks like an ass, don’t say anything to me. And he told me yes, otherwise it wouldn’t be me… He managed me well. It helped me to finish in the best way,” Leo said.
He also referred to a piece of advice he himself gave to players who were mating throughout the cycle. “To the new ones I said ‘assimilate that you are going to have some reproaches of Gallardo because it works like that’. It has been like this since the first moment it arrived. But later in the locker room he highlights what he is seeing, even the good. Marcelo, in the one-on-one, is where you are going to get the most out of it because he puts himself in your place. Many have told him that they wanted to play more… Over time I thought that when you play you don’t ask why you play, and therefore when they take you out you don’t have to ask,” added the man from Las Rosas.
In turn, he gave details of how he handled his role as leader and even shared a curious talk he had with Federico Girotti: “In recent times, as with Armani and Lux, we have tried to reflect what one does and not impose it. We never caught one to blame him. With Girotti, for example, I saw that we had to talk to him but outside of the court: they are very open and intelligent kids. And one day he came to ask me if he should buy this or that car, and I told him ‘look at the parking lot: you decided’. I can have a Ferrari at my house, and then What to eat? Do I have to take things out of the Ferrari to be able to eat? I made the wrong boy too, eh…
In fact, Gallardo had a lot to do with maintaining that respect within the locker room. And how? “Marcelo has two things. When he had to reflect on something he did it on the greatest, in terms of authority and others. And later, when he turned around, he set us as an example…”. Undoubtedly, a mutual respect that is perceived today within the campus.
Leo Ponzio, champion in Madrid, and his place on the flag.
And despite the fact that he became the most successful player in the history of River, Ponzio still does not get over his astonishment at being considered an idol in the club, to the point that his face was immortalized on the flag of the club’s referents. “These are dreams that you don’t think about. The truth is that you are in a situation that reflects that the fan puts you there, and it is not one that is located there. You have more responsibility and you have to act accordingly, not believe it. You look to back and the years that have passed… River’s story marks that it will continue to win, but this will be left to my girls, to the children of my girls… For me that story is for my children. The way in which one earned it, without being a 10 or 9 scorer… I turned 12 at River playing my way”.
Other phrases of Ponzio in ESPN F90
Gallardo and communion with his coaching staff. “I think he has his imprint, his message, and he has those around him because they know they are his sides. They go after him. He put together his structure that way, and I know that they have their own voice and that to him It gives him support when making decisions. The team is well put together”.
His talks with Carrascal and how to treat him. “I got very close to him. You have to get close, and it’s better to kick him in a training session and not screw him in a locker room. I saw that he is one of the different ones and he needs that confidence to give what he has inside. He has a lot to dar, and he respected me a lot…
What was the best River of the Gallardo cycle? “It’s hard to choose… Gallardo’s first River began a temperance, it was imposed in a way that perhaps has not been seen in recent times. Then you already marked something there. Luckily I shared a dressing room with many people who left me things.
The title in Madrid. “In River, the goal is always the Libertadores. And when you win it, and more like the one from 2018, it looks different. Surely it is the story that remains the most for me.”
The gift he took to his post-retirement museum. “They gave me the goal net, and I have it in a museum that I have at home. It’s something significant, so I have it there.”
