Almeyda’s Football: Style Over Brands

Was there little patience in Seville with Pablo Machín?

Yes, well, in the end all coaches tend to come out the same way. Probably, the same ones who sign us seem to lose a little confidence later and are also the ones who finalize the contracts, but all this is part of football, regardless of whether it is considered more fair or less. To be honest, I have very good memories of Seville; I still maintain relationships with the people I made friends with there and the truth is that I have very fond memories of the fans, because from the first moment they welcomed me very well. I felt like a very respected coach. Even knowing the city, there was another aspect that caught my attention, not only because of the Sevilla fans, but also on the street, where the Betis people I passed were quite pleasant, so I have good memories, although the circumstances of my dismissal were a bit curious.

For what reasons?

They fired me having spent 90% of the matches in the Champions League and after a small bad streak that led us to Europa League positions, which I think, well, in perspective was a position that could already be considered acceptable for that Sevilla.

In football in general, the vertigo that exists with coaches never ceases to draw attention. They took away your confidence in Sánchez-Pizjuán, winning 26 games of the 50 that you coached against Sevilla, more than half.

These are moments, circumstances, dynamics… I don’t know if it has happened many times, but our Sevilla FC was the sole leader on matchday 13, ahead of Barcelona. We had beaten Real Madrid with authority there at the Sánchez-Pizjuán. But, well, sometimes the fact of doing very well, perhaps above real possibilities, can generate false expectations and then other types of circumstances come together around the club, which they have been suffering for many years, and all of this together creates a breeding ground in which in the end, almost always, the coach has to assume responsibilities that do not all correspond to him.

Did it happen to you at Sevilla?

It happens many times in general and in clubs like Sevilla, too. In this case, I was the one affected, but when you look at it with perspective, I am really very satisfied with the work we were able to do with the circumstances we had, with the staff we had. I think it was a good job, I am clear about it and I have good memories of that squad, of those games and those moments that are part of many of my best memories as a professional.

The experience would fall short, right?

Yes, of course, because I think, as I say, that we did a very good job. It was a turbulent year in terms of changes. It was the year in which Joaquín Caparrós, who had always been a coach, had to be the sports director. I worked with Paco (Gallardo) and with Marchena in sports management, which, of course, was not what Sevilla was used to, but I think we got quite good performance or very good performance from the squad we had. We suffered significant injuries to key players that year. The signings were not what the club expected, but I still think the results were good. He really enjoyed the fans at first. I remember that 3-0 match against Real Madrid, with all the people when the match ended singing the Centennial Anthem going down the stairs. Sometimes, small details like that last goal in stoppage time against Slavia Prague trigger a series of things that come together with circumstances not only sporting and the decision to dismiss is made, which is another experience in a coach’s career.

Since you left, except for Lopetegui’s time with Monchi and the miracle that Mendilibar achieved in 2023 with the Europa League, Sevilla FC has been a crusher of coaches. He has not found stability on the bench.

It is a situation that must be analyzed more from within. I left a long time ago and I have the utmost respect for all the professionals who have passed and who are still here. Sevilla, in recent times, is a team that is looking down much more than up. That oasis in the desert that was the Europa League that Mendi miraculously achieved was the result of a good job he did, also the result of his wisdom over many years in clubs that were not called to compete for great things, but that were competitive and achieved their objectives many times. He brought that recipe to a club that was used to or that thought it was going to be fighting for privileged positions and that the reality of football meant that it had to save that category. There it was a great success to hire a coach who knew LaLiga and had experience, and then surely also, with that bit of fortune that is always needed, the Europa League was won.

But Mendilibar was also fired and things have not improved. Quite the opposite.

Yes, from then on, it is true that the club has been looking more downwards than upwards, but you have to analyze all those types of things. I am quite far away and, as I repeat, I have a lot of respect for all the people who are in the world of football, because it is an enormously complex world and everything that is achieved has a lot of merit. In this case, coaches always have to assume many responsibilities that sometimes do not correspond to us.

How are you seeing Sevilla de Almeyda?

He already had experience as a player, although the football he experienced as a player has little to do with today. Almeyda is implementing his ideas, he is being faithful, he is surely trying to get the most out of the squad he has. I understand that all the signings they have made, the club thought they had a high level and that they can still give more, but the reality of football, match after match, no matter how dynamic they are, a result can change the thinking, especially that of the fans, I think it is necessary to have a clear line of work, to believe in this case in the coach, in the squad that has been put together. The grades are posted at the end of the season. I think Almeyda has a particular style. Yes, it is true that man-to-man brands are not popular or are not so fashionable in football here, but it is the way he plays and it is surely the best that he believes to get the team to perform and achieve victories.

I also have to ask him about Girona, his great club, the one that launched him to fame, to the front line and to sign for Sevilla. How do you currently see Girona as an entity and as a team after a difficult start to the season?

What can qualify Girona as a club is stability. This stability makes it an exceptional club in today’s football, not only for now, but because they have been in that line for many years. The year after I left I was relegated, but the same line of work continued. Promotion was not achieved after making a great effort with the relegation aid money, and it continued exactly the same until promotion was achieved with Míchel, being a club that has a much more professional structure than years ago. He has grown until he was able to play in the Champions League, which was unthinkable.

They put up with the coach and now they are going up again.

That stability and confidence they have in the project means that, even though they had a bad start this season, no one will doubt that they were on the right path, that they trusted a coach like Míchel who has given a lot to the club. In recent days I see a team more similar to what the coach and the fans want, being more dominant, reaching the area much more, being a more balanced team. What happens is that not every year you have the possibility or the success of having decisive players up front and now they are having a hard time scoring goals, but it is a balanced team that shows the confidence that they did not have in the first rounds to be more competitive.

How do you see Sevilla – Girona tomorrow?

They are in very little difference in points. Maybe Girona seems like they can have a little more confidence, but in football necessity is super important and often decisive, and I think Sevilla needs to get the victory after a bad result away from home in Mallorca. He will have the help of his fans as always, and I am very clear that he is that number 12 player who, no matter how bad the results are or there is institutional tension, the fans always help the team. Perhaps the match could also be conditioned by inclement weather, which I don’t know if it will prevent Girona from being able to play the combinative football they normally do. This can also be used due to the aggressiveness that Sevilla usually has and the intensity, especially when it comes to applying good pressure and playing those counterattacks in which they are very dangerous. But football is often unpredictable, so we’ll see what the game gives us. I hope it’s good and we can enjoy it.