Juan Giménez (Moncofar, Castellón, November 13, 1990) is leading a successful first stage at UD Ibiza at the head of the recently created Professional Football department of the light blue club. In coordination with Guillermo Fernández Romo, the man from Castellón has made us forget the gray period of Miguel Ángel Gómez by putting together a homogeneous and seasoned squad that is offering spectacular performance in the First RFEF. Giménez worked the last two seasons as deputy of the technical secretariat of Deportivo de La Coruña, after previously spending four years in the sports management of UE Cornellà where he coincided with Fernández Romo.
How do you assess the winter transfer market and to what extent does the squad gain competitiveness with the additions of Arturo and Eric?
Being cautious because the second part of the championship is still missing, we are satisfied with the performance of our players. So in the winter market we were not going to make a significant number of additions either. What we wanted was people who would help us on this path that we have planned since the summer and who would contribute within who we are. People who could have immediate and proven entry and performance; In those parameters we have moved. Arturo Molina is a footballer who has already shown what he is capable of, both in the category and in the Second Division. We know him perfectly, he brings the incentive of having worked with this coaching staff. And Eric Mojonell was part of Girona’s first team. They were also having injuries and we couldn’t get them to give it to us and that’s why it arrived a little later. Iñaki (Olaortua) around the 22nd his injury was confirmed, we hope he will be back with us soon (in just over two months), but we understood that it was important to incorporate one more center back who can also play in any of the four positions the defense. We are satisfied.
In what percentage have you achieved the squad you wanted for this season?
We are very close to what we wanted to be, we are finding the results, we are at a scoring level of around 80% of the points in dispute we have achieved, we have 50 points out of 63, that makes the level of satisfaction with the footballers and with their performance is very great. In the summer we had a vision, we tried to translate it, we didn’t know if that vision was going to be enough on the way to winning games, and with the work that Guillermo and the rest of the staff are doing, we are getting closer to those numbers.
Sports planning has changed drastically compared to the previous stage. Have you found many facilities at an economic level and autonomy to work?
Yes, not only through the tools they give us, but also through the behaviors of the people at the club, the president. There is no doubt that we have the facilities to achieve our objectives: the peace of mind to achieve it, the autonomy and the support at the same time. We are satisfied with our work environment. Obviously that does not guarantee anything, then you have to have a good day-to-day life, performance, good footballers to be able to achieve it, but we are very satisfied with the working conditions we have at all levels, and that is important.
To sign footballers, coaches or leaders like you, is UD Ibiza ‘selling’ a project that has the short or medium-term objective of reaching the First Division?
The financial muscle that the entity has is also present in other teams in our category. The First Federation has become very elitist, we see many projects that have a large economic level and that perhaps for one reason or another do not manage to have a level of success or score like the one that we, with maximum caution, are showing for now. Another thing is the vision of the future that the president has for the club, that level of ambition and determination clearly makes the place more attractive. But I think that the two things must be combined, that level of ambitious vision and the prudence that a defeat comes around the corner and disrupts your plans.
How do you convince top-level footballers like Eugeni, Gallar or Soko to come?
[Risas] I think there is a point that the responsibility is not just mine, it is that communion with the coaching staff, with the coach, which makes the footballer feel that there is a common project, stability at work and that he will be able to be happy. in an orderly day to day life. We all have the aspiration to be happy in our daily lives, at work, and that’s where it all begins. We have brought players who came from the Second Division or very relevant clubs and they all come with the aim of improving but also of being happy by sharing a common goal. That is very noticeable on a day-to-day basis, that everyone, regardless of whether they play more or less, is clear about the club’s objective, is respecting it and is working towards it.
Has UD Ibiza taken the risk of losing any of these players in the winter market?
The truth is, not because no one wanted to leave. That is the best thing that can happen to you and it makes us very happy and tells us that people are happy with the development of the season, that is important for us and a reason for satisfaction.
Does it bother you that it can be said that UD Ibiza’s success is reduced to signing with a checkbook?
I would like the League salaries to be published as happens in other countries and people would be quite surprised by that. We have economic tools that allow us to dream of playing for promotion or making good squads, but the League is full of big budgets. Last year Málaga, Ponferradina and Lugo were relegated from Second Division in addition to us. The League contained teams like Murcia, Córdoba or Deportivo de la Coruña that have very important economic capabilities, and then you have to see the level of success you have when it comes to going out and looking for footballers. And then what benefit is the coaching staff and in this case Guillermo capable of getting out of the footballers. So, it doesn’t bother me and I don’t pay attention to it, but it’s not true.
Are you surprised by the individual and collective performance of the team? What is the secret to managing a locker room of such high level and with so many egos?
In that, the person who has the ability to optimize all those resources is the coach. He has a track record that supports him and that answers any question and it makes no sense for me to talk about him. But for me it is a great peace of mind to have a coach that you have so much in mind, that he will always do things with common sense, with maximum coherence, without egos, without eccentricities. For me it is gold. This is greatly reflected in individual and collective performance. And I agree that the level that all the footballers are having during this first phase of the championship is exceptional, those who are playing more and those who are playing less.
Do you want to see the team in first position now? Do you think you are earning enough merit to be a leader?
The team is doing well to win the games. In the general calculation of the games we are doing merits to win, and by winning and having 50 of 63 points and having suffered only one defeat in the entire championship we could be creditors of being leaders, but the reality today is that there is another team that He has done 52 and more merits to occupy that first position. But it really is not an obsessive situation, we are starting February and we have to worry about the next game. Everything else is far away, we depend on ourselves, including Castellón, and behind us come teams with the same potential and economic muscle as us. Now we look at Castellón. but maybe at the end of the League there are other teams that match up with us.
Will February and March be decisive months to clear up this fight for the League title?
I don’t know, but if we look at what has been happening so far, it doesn’t seem like that will be the case. So far everything has been very even and regular, the teams have remained stable and within short distances. We have two games in a row at home that we are very excited about, but away we have also gone with the maximum demand to win. We have to go with all five senses to the games we have in front of our noses.
You come from a club like Deportivo, with another dimension at the level of social mass, stadium… Do you work better without that pressure of such a demanding environment or do you miss that large mass of fans?
We carry it naturally. The club has a few years of history, it is a young club, it is its eighth year. Great work is being done to retain the loyalty of an increasingly important social mass. I feel super loved, I feel that we have a very high level of support. The conditions are in place to develop our work in the best way and my 7-8 months here are full of good things, a good atmosphere. We are very happy with the atmosphere we live in Can Misses, that outside the home with very difficult travel there are always people from Ibiza, and I don’t feel less pressure than in Coruña. Not even in Cornellà. The pressure is intrinsic to the level of self-demand we have, which is very high. This is how the objectives are achieved, we are very clear about it. The coaching staff and the squad are very responsible with the objective and that neither removes nor puts pressure.
Does UD Ibiza have much room for growth?
Yes, I believe there is a president who has a vision that includes aspects such as the stadium, facilities…And a high level of determination to get things done. It is a matter of time before the club grows, but it is already attractive to footballers, many of them come from the Second Division. The project is attractive, it has a lot of credibility; Apart from the short term, it is a solid project, highly respected in Spanish football and that clearly speaks of the evolution and line that the club is following.
2024-02-03 17:19:44
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