Just a moment before the initial whistle of the Colombian referee Jhon Ospina gave way to the dizzying 90 minutes that ended with a 3-3 tie between Argentina y Uruguay by the last date of group B of soccer pre-olympic that is being disputed in Venezuela, two old acquaintances merged in a warm hug that sealed a long-awaited reunion: Javier Mascherano y Marcelo Bielsa.
Although the bond between the two has not been extremely fluid, according to Mascherano after the meeting at the Misael Delgado stadium in Valencia, the mutual affection was evident in that gesture that united them just before their first confrontation as coaches.
“I had spoken to him from time to time, but I hadn’t seen him in a long time. Being able to face him as a coach, after having once had to face him as a player, is a source of pride and joy. “He is the coach who gave me the opportunity to play for the Argentine National Team.”Mascherano said.
The coach of the Argentine Under-23 team, which starting Monday will compete in the final phase of the Pre-Olympic in search of one of the two tickets for Paris 2024, revealed the content of the brief dialogue he had with the driver of the Celestewhich was eliminated from the contest.
“He wished me the best. Marcelo is someone who is very fond of me, as he is of many of the players he has had, and he is a person who often shows you that affection.”said the former midfielder.
Marcelo Bielsa was the coach who made Javier Mascherano debut in the Argentine senior team. Photo: Argentine Football Association Press.
Bielsa was the coach who made Mascherano debut in the senior team when the River player had not yet played even a match in his team’s Primera: it was on July 16, 2003 in a 2-2 draw against Uruguay in the inauguration of the Unique City of La Plata Stadium. At that time, the footballer who would later play another 146 games with the Albiceleste shirt was barely 19 years old.
Mascherano was not the only member of the Argentine delegation who had an affectionate meeting with Bielsa on the night in Valencia. The front Francisco Gonzalezwho played his first minutes in the Pre-Olympic on Friday, had a very outstanding job and scored the third Argentine goal, also took away a pleasant memory of the day.
Marcelo Bielsa and Francisco González, smiling after the match between Argentina and Uruguay for the Venezuelan Olympic Qualifiers. Photo: Instagram @francisco_gonzalez44.
“I met him today, I am very happy. (I feel) a very great admiration, I told him that it was an honor to play against his team, to meet him and hug him.”shared, very excited, the footballer from Newell’s, the club where Bielsa was champion of the 1990/91 tournament and the 1992 Clausura. In addition, the forward said that the coach had asked him for his shirt and that he had given it to him.
2024-02-03 18:09:02
#source #pride #joy
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