“We have to focus on football”

There is a common point between Javier Mascherano y Thierry Henrythe coaches of the national teams Argentina y France: They never won a title as coach. Despite their enlightened career as footballers, since they crossed the line they have still not been able to make their teams perform at their best. Therefore, the duel of the quarterfinals of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games It represents a huge opportunity for both, although only one will pass.

And the morbidity that has been generated since the crossing was confirmed on Tuesday does not seem to impact ‘Jefecito’ and ‘Titi’. “The message is that people will be in favor of themas happened with Morocco, with Iraq, but I always say the same thing about focus on what we can control, which is playing football. The rest does not depend on us and we do not have to waste energy on that. We must minimize the margin of error so that it allows us to always be in the game, be focused and try to get a ticket to the semifinals,” Mascherano explained, speaking to TyC Sports.

“There is a game to prepare personally as a coach. I won’t talk about that. Is there a desire not to make things worse? Not at all, there is a desire to just talk about the game. It’s important,” said Henry, 46, who Unlike when he was a player, he threw it outside.

Masche, a double Olympic gold medalist in 2004 and 2008 as a player, and the world champion with France in 1998 did not share a squad at Barcelona for a very short time. When Joseph Guardiola decided to hire the Argentine, the forward was leaving the culé team.

“The game is going to involve us controlling the game, if we enter into the blow-by-blow dynamic we are going to suffer. Handle the ball, have control from possession and from there attack together, if we want to attack quickly in three or four passes, the game is going to turn into a round trip that does not suit us,” analyzed Mascherano, 40 years old and great leader of the National Team.

He accumulated blows in his time as coach of the U-20, being left out of the World Cup that was going to be played in Indonesia, which caused his resignation. Lionel Messi and Lionel Scaloni, among others, supported him to continue and direct the maximum event that was ultimately held in our country, by decision of FIFA. He was knocked out in the round of 16 against Nigeria.

The road to Paris was the next step, also winding, but with a second place that was an oxygen bomb.

Now he has a major challenge ahead of him, due to the impact and the support that it would mean to maintain the triumphant trail. “They have two forwards who are older and (Michael) Olise as a midfielder, it is a team that does not need too much of the construction of the game to do damage,” he anticipated.

Henry, who debuted as coach of Monaco in 2018 – when Mascherano retired from the National Team – has garnered more criticism than praise. “Argentina is world champion, winner of the Copa América very recently. There is youth and experience on all fronts. It is going to be a very complicated match and with a good coach (Mascherano). This match depends on us,” he concluded. Press conference.

Thiago Almada y Geronimo Rulli They are two of the four world champions (along with Julián Álvarez and Nicolás Otamendi) that the Argentina Under 23 National Team has. Therefore, the reminiscence of a clash with France is automatic and takes them to the Lusail stadium on December 18, 2022.

“For us it is one more game, it is one more rival, we have to go out and win it just like the game.“We are going to prepare it to try to win,” stated, politically correct, the one who wears the number ’10’ and scored two goals for the Albiceleste team, key in the classification as second in group B.

“It’s going to be special because it’s going to be the first after the World Cup final, with everything that happened in recent months and because at the end of the day we are the world champions, two-time champions of America and today we are representing the country,” the goalkeeper was sincere.

Rulli did respond to what these weeks were like in France, with the scandal against Morocco in Saint Étienne and the hostile climate against Iran included, something that will be repeated this Friday in Bordeaux, venue of the meeting.

“We see it in small situations, of administration of certain points, for us everything is more detailed,” he explained, to illustrate that they feel a different treatment for wearing the light blue and white colors in soccer, because except for Los Pumas when in the same instance They lost to France in rugby sevens, there was no similar situation.

“Later when we went out to play on the field when they whistled the Anthem, like what happened to Los Pumas. At the end of the day I think it is for this reason, for the World Cup, and tomorrow will be a beautiful game but there is something that differentiates us It’s how we live football,” he concluded.