Uruguayan stars collectively lost to the national team? Bielsa has his own "abacus"
In preparation for friendly matches with Nicaragua and Cuba in June, Argentina coach Bielsa announced his first training list after coaching the Uruguay national team. As a result, Bielsa not only did not recruit Suarez and Edinson Cavani, but also Valverde and Araujo, two young talents who played for Real Madrid and Barca, did not appear on this list.
"Maniacs" who advocate offense
Bielsa, known as the "madman coach", became famous early, coaching the Argentine national team from 1998 to 2002, creating the famous 3-3-1-3 attacking formation. But in the 2002 World Cup, star-studded Argentina failed to qualify from the group, and Bielsa's football philosophy suffered a setback.
While Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola was playing at Barcelona, Bielsa briefly managed Barca's city rivals Espanyol. Guardiola has always admired Bielsa's attacking football style, and once traveled thousands of miles to Bielsa's home in Argentina to seek teaching, so he is a named disciple of the "attacking master".
Over the years, Bielsa has insisted on his offensive football style, but he is too classical and idealistic, and gradually begins to disconnect from the times. Bielsa's named disciple Guardiola has long improved his tactics to achieve an offensive and defensive balance.
In the 2021 master-apprentice matchup in the Premier League, Guardiola was unceremonious, leading Manchester City to a 7-0 home victory over Bielsa's Leeds United, which was also the beginning of Bielsa's tragedy that season, and the boss finally left class.
On May 15 this year, the Uruguayan Football Association officially announced Bielsa as the head coach of the Uruguayan team. Bielsa's coaching staff consists of 6 people, and in addition to himself, he brings two assistant coaches, two performance analysts and a physical therapist. According to Uruguayan sports newspaper Applause, Bielsa and his coaching staff are paid $4 million a year. Bielsa's contract with the Uruguayan Football Federation runs for more than two years, ending at the end of the South American qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup. If Uruguay qualifies for the 2026 World Cup, the contract will automatically be extended until the end of the 2026 World Cup.
Bielsa
The first training camp to visit newcomers
After the Uruguayan team's first training list was released, it caused controversy, because Bielsa not only did not recruit veterans Suarez and Edinson Cavani, but even young stalwarts who played for giants such as Valverde and Araujo were not called. On the contrary, Bielsa has called up many young players and players who play in the Brazilian and Mexican leagues.
Uruguay U20 advanced to the round of 16 as second in Group E at the Under-20 World Cup in Argentina, knocking out the Gambia U20 1-0 in the quarterfinals and the United States U20 in the quarterfinals. In Bielsa's 31-man roster, seven Uruguayan Under-20 players were selected. Why did Bielsa's first list recruit so many new people?
Uruguayan media unraveled the mystery. Bielsa said: "In these months I tried to make a roster of three or four players in each position. At the first call-up, of these 33 to 44 people, I would pick the ones I knew the least. To finally get to know a player, you need to get up close and personal during the training cycle. I would use the nine days in June to get acquainted with the players I knew the least. ”
In the two friendly matches in June, the opponents were too weak, and Bielsa took advantage of the opportunity to scout the newcomers. On the contrary, stars such as Suarez, Edinson Cavani, Valverde and Araujo have a high exposure, and Bielsa is naturally no stranger to them, so they can not be called up for the time being. When the World Qualifiers start in September, veterans such as Suarez and young stalwarts such as Valverde will still return to Uruguay.
Proofreading by Tao Shangong