Wednesday, June 8, an exact month remains for the Copa América Femenina to begin, which will resound in the hearts of Colombians who will experience this event for the first time. The emotion and enthusiasm is intact in the list issued by Nelson Abadía in search of qualifying for the World Cup, and winning Brazilian history by winning the title in the South American sports tournament. That is the panorama of the women’s national team.
For their part, the men already know their new technical director in possession: Néstor Lorenzo. An Argentine who has accompanied José Néstor Pékerman for several years, and was even the technical assistant of Pékerman’s path on Colombian soil. Six years in which they took the eleventh coffee grower to two World Cups, and one that made many dream of reaching the quarterfinals.
Néstor Lorenzo has been surrounded by several comments, both positive and harsh from journalism and public opinion. As much as he has learned a lot from José Néstor Pékerman, as technical director in possession he only had one experience with Melgar, a team he was keeping him as leader and with which they qualified for the round of 16 of the Copa Sudamericana, unseating a great like Racing de Avellaneda in the same group.
At the MasterCard event, official sponsor of the Women’s Copa América, in alliance with Tiempo de Juego, a foundation from Cazucá, a neighborhood of Soacha that seeks to promote soccer in marginalized areas around the country, the prelude to the contest was opened in the highest of Cazucá in the fields they manage. Hundreds of boys and girls pursue the dream, and in an emotional morning and afternoon, they had fun with referents and those close to football such as Nicole Regnier, former player.
It wasn’t just Nicole Regnier. Also players like Jackeline Fonseca and Vennus Pineda, in addition to the journalist, Javier Fernández who with his voice made those who appeared at the top of Cazucá happy. In Futbolred, we managed to interview the ‘Singer of the Goal’, who talked about Néstor Lorenzo, and obviously, the Copa América.
As was said before, there is much speculation about the arrival of Néstor Lorenzo to the national team, giving it as a bet, however, Javier Fernández approves of the Argentine, ‘I think that, like all Colombians, we are simply waiting. But there is one very important thing. Whenever a technician is appointed there are pros and cons. I am one of those who thinks that first you have to let them work, wait for them to arrive and work because we have very clear examples. Scaloni without going too far, who arrived in Argentina without much success, of course he has a number of important players, we also have them, it is important that they pay attention to what the coach really wants. People have to be allowed to work’.
He reviewed the career of Néstor Lorenzo with the Colombian National Team alongside Pékerman in six years of glory and Colombian enthusiasm, ‘we know Lorenzo, Néstor Pékerman’s technical assistant, a man who was also the one who looked at the players to see what chance they had of coming to the Colombian National Team and get to know our idiosyncrasies. I see it well, we have to let it work and then we’ll see. The first thing is that he arrives and that he works, then we will know with results and with behavior how he is doing’.
Regarding the renewal that will come, he maintained, ‘I believe that the renewal has to be denoted at once. There are already players who gave us a lot and we owe them a lot, we love them, we love them, but like everything in life has cycles, there are players who have completed a cycle and others are coming who will begin to complete a cycle in the National Team. It is logical, and we simply hope that they know how to choose and that the work is, not in the short term, but in the long term and that we have enough patience to endure that long and medium term. If we do the process as it should be done, then obviously we will have great results’.
During the event, Javier Fernández described himself as in love with women’s football, the journalist commented that there is a lot of hope in the Copa América that is about to start in Colombian territory, ‘we have a team to get results and win the cup and be champions , I hope so. I love it because women’s football begins, it is born to be an important time. We have spectacular players and there are processes that we must respect and that are important. I hope our National Team has important results and we can be champions’.
Lastly, he was asked how the country is prepared for this sporting event, a historic event as it is the first time that Colombia officiates the Copa América, ‘well, the venues are spectacular, we have good stadiums. And the most important thing, we have fans and we have shown it. We demonstrated it in the final between América and Deportivo Cali. And surely, one of the great potentials that we are going to have is the attendance of the public at the matches, and I like it very much’.
