He was a great promise for River, he overcame the impact of relegation with therapy, he participated in the return to First Division and today he dreams of hitting Boca

When Facundo Affranchino step on the grass of the Centenario de Chaco stadium with the shirt of Olympus to face the Boca Juniors by Argentine Cup, memories will inevitably possess it. The debut with the shirt of River Plate against Huracán, back in 2007, with Daniel Passarella as coach. The 2008 Clausura celebration, when he was part of the squad, although he did not play. His peak moments, in 2010, with Leonardo Astrada or Ángel Cappa as guides. The relegation blow, the rebirth of the return to First Division. And, of course, all the confrontations with the Xeneize that he has on his record.

“I think I have a positive balance. In Inferior we won several, in Reserve we lost one. In the First Division I lost one 2-0 in 2010 and after the one in which we won with a goal from Joni Maidana with a header I went to the bank ”, he calculates. Consequently, his name will receive special attention in the clash for the round of 32 of the tournament, which will face the last champion of the Professional League, who is going through a moment of irregularity and has DT Hugo Ibarra under the microscope, and the cast that is the protagonist at Federal A.

“They played me many classics. In Inferior, Summer Tournaments. Official I played only one, on the Boca court. We had to lose and I had to go on for 20 minutes, playing the first clásico was something very nice. It was in 2010, Astada was a coach and it had rained a lot that weekend, we were going to play on a Sunday. It is suspended 10 minutes into the first half, it ends up playing on a Wednesday or Thursday, and they had said during the week that the 11 that had entered had to continue, but they could change the bank. I had to wait for the summons again and I was afraid of being left out. But I was in the bank. We entered with Tucu (Roberto). That game helped me, because I went in well and I won the title ”, the midfielder evokes in more detail.

His name is linked to River because he played 39 games there and scored two goals, with the ups and downs throughout hectic years at the club, in which he sought to earn his permanent place in the team. But he also walked his dynamic through San Martín de San Juan, Belgrano de Córdoba, Ferro, Unión, Instituto, Villa Dálmine and Mexican soccer. “I arrived at Olympus in 2020. The project is tempting to recontract. We hope to fulfill the objective of returning the club to the B Nacional first and then try to take it to the First Division”, says who has already become a benchmark for the Bahía cast and can become an executioner for Boca remembering old times, although today the events prevail on his agenda. needs of the Aurinegro.

“We are looking forward to it, the fact that we are playing the Argentine Cup for the second consecutive year is a very good motivation, we take it very seriously. How Boca comes does not change us, that is their issue, we face a great team, with a great squad. We prepare for it; they are going to go out to play, to want to catch the ball, to be aggressive. We know everything and we work hard, ”he explains. “Logically I see it as a special game, I really want to play it, to face Boca again, but I represent Olimpo, it is my responsibility, we have a commitment to the club. The idea is that this motivation is a plus, it is nothing personal ”he values ​​the crossing.

-You emerged in River as one of the highest promises of that litter, why didn’t you manage to settle down?

-Astrada gave me ownership, he left, Cappa arrived, he went to the bank. I gained ownership with Cappa, another came… To the bank. I had a lot of people in the position, I wanted to win ownership, get continuity, and at the same time clubs called me, like San Martín de San Juan, and in the end I left. Going out and coming back meant that when I returned they told me that I was running behind or that they were not going to take me into account. Sure also because there were technicians for whom it was not to their liking, they were within their rights. When I started going out on loan I lost ground. I felt that I could play in River.

-How much did the turbulent times affect in terms of pressures and results?

-As I did Inferior and Reserve, I played the preliminaries in the Monumental, I had been sucking the demand, what people ask for, etc.; beyond the logical nerves. He didn’t feel alien. Yes, it was difficult to earn continuity, in River there are always good players, reinforcements from the hierarchy, and you had to wait a long time. It was a prize to go to the bank; be the owner, no way. In another stage of River capable it would have been easier to play, with less pressure or more tolerance. Respecting player processes more is key. It does not mean that in this way he would have had a different type of career, but I remember the case of Julián Álvarez. They start to pick him up, in 2018 he even entered the final of the Libertadores, and it took time until he won the title. He needed that process, and at the same time he didn’t fall, he didn’t go looking for continuity elsewhere. I don’t compare myself with him, much less with a player with his career, I only compare the processes. Something similar happened with Exequiel Palacios.

-Which coaches did you reach your best level?

-On an individual level, with Astrada and Cappa it was my best stage at River. I scored my first goal in Primera with San Lorenzo, I came on from the bench, there were twenty-some minutes left, Matías Almeyda came out, Leo put me 5 ahead. We won 1-0. That time was the best stretch. The worst comes with JJ López, I almost never played, I went to the bank a couple of times, in others they didn’t even call me and I had to be in the last game, the Promotion game with Belgrano.

Did you feel it unfair then?

-At that time I was young, I wanted to play, I wanted to be there, to do something for the club, for myself, for everyone, for my teammates; I didn’t measure it. I wanted to play.

How did the descent impact you? He knew how to say that you went to therapy to get over it.

-When we returned to training, we were already arranging the preseason for the B Nacional, there was never any more talk of relegation, we looked forward. And at that moment I didn’t need to speak, I thought it wasn’t going to impact me. At the time, a year later, I needed help from a professional, I felt that I was affected, in some games, by the context. Or that it generated me the odd fear for a similar situation. Today I can handle it if it happens to me again.

-Today, in general, the support of psychoanalysis or coaching in high-performance sport is something natural; not so long ago it was still somewhat taboo. why do you think that was so?

-He is naturalized, I don’t know if these things happened to the players before, or they resolved it however they could. Today there is no elite player who does not have the help of therapy to be able to improve or perform better. It’s fundamental. It helps you grow, frees you from many things, which you may think are minimal and affect your performance and affect you.

So, did you recommend it to a colleague?

-I always recommend it. Sometimes, because you don’t get too involved or not be invasive, you don’t say anything. I recommend it 100%. To those who think that nothing affects them, I would tell them to try the same.

-What caused you to return River to Primera?

-The promotion was a sensation of relief, there were many good pressures involved, but pressures at the end. It was a satisfaction. I heard Leo Ponzio’s note when he finished the last game and we returned to the First Division, and he said that it was “the satisfaction of the work done.” How not to get excited about that? When you start the preseason you set goals and that was the only goal. We were able to do it. And we feel that relief, that emotion.

-Did the decline in your career affect you in any way, when it came to getting a club?

-I don’t think it affected me, and if it influenced any decision made by a manager or a club, I didn’t find out.

-What lessons did that blow teach you? And the return to the elite with so much pressure on you?

-From what happened with Belgrano, I learned that beyond the serious or very serious things that can happen, everything comes out. And good things also happen, huh? In bad times, you have to get out quickly, in any way you can. Accept them first and get out fast. And the good ones, make the most of them, because there aren’t many. I have had to suffer more from football than I enjoyed in terms of results. From frustrations you have to get up, continue. And when it comes, do what you can to sustain success over time.

-That rise of River meant the beginning of a golden era, which reached its peak with Gallardo as coach. You had him as a partner, did he already have the head of DT in his last stage as a footballer?

-I was very young, I did not have many deep conversations with Gallardo, but I can say that he ordered you, spoke to you, told you what to do in the field. He was very disciplined in every way, if something wasn’t done right, he didn’t like it at all. Conceptually it was very good, I had great teammates who led by example, as was the case with him, Burrito Ortega, Cavenaghi, Trezeguet, Chori Domínguez… Consecrated, who came from playing everywhere and had these different things. You saw them and wanted to imitate them.

-Outside of River Plate, what do you consider to be the peaks of performance in your career?

-In San Martín de San Juan I had two non-consecutive semesters in which I felt very good. At Ferro there were moments, at Instituto also at times… Today in Olimpo I feel good. I missed holding it in time. In other clubs I did not find the level, like in Unión, or in Mexico, where I was never able to adapt.

-At 33 years old, do you already think about what you are going to do when your career as a footballer ends? Do you see yourself coach?

-At one point I said that it was not going to be DT; I didn’t do the course, nothing, but lately I look at it with different eyes. Yes he prepared me for the post from another place.

Why didn’t you look like a technician? And from where have you been preparing?

-I saw him far away because I didn’t like him. Today I see it closer because I like it more, especially the fact of continuing to be linked to football. I like the tactical part, of teaching, when you see that they tell you something about what is going to happen on the field and you see the fundamentals. Because I did not want to? If a footballer goes to a club and signs a one-year contract, the coach can last two or three games. Going from one place to the other, that the family has to accompany you, I don’t like that. As for how I prepare for the future, I think about what things I can do or invest in. So that my life after football doesn’t go from 100 to 0.

-Which coaches left you the most things in your career?

-You try to take something from everyone, learn, beyond the fact that some things you may like or not. From the human point of view, I remember Fernando Kuyumchoglu and Alejandro Montenegro, who in Inferiores knew how to take 14 or 15-year-old kids, who were far from their family, and fulfilled the role of family member at that moment, of someone who accompanies you. I’m sure I forgot someone, but I learned things from Leo Astrada, Ángel Cappa, Cholo Simeone, even though he didn’t play a game for me, but I took a lot from training, what he achieved shows what he is and even more so In day to day. From Dario Franco, from Dario Forestello, from Dani Garnero, from Ruso Zielinski, from everyone. From Carlos Mayor, whom I had last year; from Cacho Sialle, from which I am now learning.

-Have you already had calls from friends of River or former teammates asking you to hit Boca?

-I also have friends from Boca, but they know me and they know they can’t tell me anything. They have written to me to talk about the party. Those of River yes, they ask me to beat them. I told them that we are going to do everything in our power to continue in the Cup, we are going to try to play a good game. The commitment is actually with Olympus and its people, and we will try to pass the phase.

Keep reading: