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It appears logical to presuppose that this is Marcelo Bielsa…
Chile ‘s 4-0 win over Bolivia in their World Cup qualifier on Wednesday has left them on a brink for only their second World Cup appearance since 1982.
Their progress through the tortuous South American qualifying campaign – which has included a memorable home win over Argentina — has been almost exclusively credited to the work one of the world’s most reclusive and enigmatic coaches Marcelo Bielsa.
While the Chilean media were in a frenzy after Wednesday’s win, Bielsa walked into the media conference with his usual tortured, glazed expression and launched into a style of rhetoric which was a world apart from the usual clichés.
Here are a few highlights:
– “Football is so full of the unexpected that it is never convenient to pre-announce something which has not yet happened.”
– “The reality is that numerically we have not obtained a sufficient number of points to decide our qualification. So, what appears to be just a posture on our part, is simply a case of coming to terms with reality and a reading of what football historically offers in terms of unexpected situations, something which makes one more prudent.”
–”This is a cycle where things have resulted favourably and, around the triumphs, we can consolidate aspects related to collective maturity. It seems that in this sense, the team is progressing.”
Brian Homewod has the capacity to cut through the hype and hypocrisy of so much in football and give us gems like this — very much so.
Brian is the man who put Ricardo La Volpe’s ties very much in the shop window and the attire of South American football managers has never been the same since.
We must all pray for Chile to reach the World Cup finals. We need men like Bielsa to tell it like it is, or very much not as the case may be.