URUGUAY
Let’s face it, if Uruguay advance past the group stages of the FIFA World Cup, there are bound to be more people frowning in surprise than not.
The bookmakers’ odds will tell you that. Like it or not, they are a nation trying to live up to the exploits of previous generations.
I had the great fortune to speak to Uruguay coach, Oscar Tabarez, in December last year, and throughout our conversation there was a general premise and indeed mindset that his side had a responsibility to Uruguay’s rich football heritage.
Yes, Uruguay was the last team to qualify for the impending FIFA World Cup, but they were also the inaugural winners of the showpiece event. And regardless of their perceived standing in the world game today, there is no doubt that a rich football ethos still exists in the South American country.
They have won the World Cup twice, claimed two Olympic football gold medals and finished in the top two in Copa America on 20 occasions, claiming 14 continental titles in the process.
Unfortunately, they have not won anything since their 1995 Copa America victory – only their third win in the past 43 years, while their first 43 years yielded nine continental titles – their last World Cup title came 60 years ago and the second of their Olympic successes came in 1928.
To say that Uruguay’s glory days are behind them would be to indulge in gross understatement. The Uruguay Football Association however, believes the man capable of taking La Celeste back to their zenith is Tabarez. But is he the man to do that?
Having taken a jaded Uruguay squad through to the last 16 of Italia ‘90, Tabarez certainly now has more going for him. In the 2 decades since then, he has matured as a coach, he has an eye for new players and perhaps most importantly, he has the respect of his players.
But while held in high regard, there are many that question whether he can inspire his players, and therein lies the principal concern.
While at times looking superb in South American qualifying, Uruguay still had to book their FIFA World Cup place via a play-off. Uruguay was often tactically superior to their opponents, but they seldom outshone them. While they scored more goals than all, apart from Brazil and Chile, they were repeatedly left rueing missed chances and defensive lapses frequently saw them chasing the game.
But Tabarez has stuck by his ideals and has continued to adapt his starting XI to negate and dominate his opponents. The criticism arose mainly after he brought in a few young players, but also a few in their mid-twenties, who he believes have the ability to succeed.
It is the same method he employed over 20 years ago when he won the Copa Libertadores with Peñarol. It is the same approach that he used to win the Argentine Premier Division.
For sentimentality sake, let me take you back. When Tabarez joined Boca Juniors in 1990, the Argentinean giants had not won a championship in over a decade. But spotting the talent of an unused squad member, he not only secured the title, but gave the footballing world Gabriel Batistuta.
Once a discarded squad member, Batistuta finished the season as the league’s leading scorer and within a year was playing for Argentina. What Tabarez brings to players is a belief in their ability, something that some have never experienced. Now it is up to the players to repay the confidence he has shown in them.
The most recent example is striker, Luis Suarez. The Ajax Amsterdam striker has a remarkable record this season, scoring 12 goals in 9 matches, including 6 in one match, against a hapless WHC Wezep in the KNVB Cup in December.
Bear in mind, he started the season with a 4 goal haul in the UEFA Europa League against Slovan Bratislava in August last year. Unfortunately, the form for his country has been less inspired with only 5 goals in the 17 qualifiers he played in. But he has the coach’s backing and in time, should reward Tabarez with his performances.
But ultimately, Uruguay’s chances must rest on the shoulders of Diego Forlan, leading goal scorer in the qualifiers with 7 goals in 13 games.
The former Manchester United and Villareal star has a maturity about him that has led to significant goal hauls in recent times, having scored 32 goals in 32 starts in La Liga last season, but his supply at international level is often lacking.
He does however, have years of international experience as is one of only a couple of squad members remaining from Korea/ Japan in 2002.
While I fear inconsistency will be the blight of Uruguay and suspect they will not progress past the group phase at this tournament, if Suarez and Forlan find form, Uruguay will not only advance past the group stages, but they will turn some heads doing so.
The bookmakers’ odds will tell you that. Like it or not, they are a nation trying to live up to the exploits of previous generations.
I had the great fortune to speak to Uruguay coach, Oscar Tabarez, in December last year, and throughout our conversation there was a general premise and indeed mindset that his side had a responsibility to Uruguay’s rich football heritage.
Yes, Uruguay was the last team to qualify for the impending FIFA World Cup, but they were also the inaugural winners of the showpiece event. And regardless of their perceived standing in the world game today, there is no doubt that a rich football ethos still exists in the South American country.
They have won the World Cup twice, claimed two Olympic football gold medals and finished in the top two in Copa America on 20 occasions, claiming 14 continental titles in the process.
Unfortunately, they have not won anything since their 1995 Copa America victory – only their third win in the past 43 years, while their first 43 years yielded nine continental titles – their last World Cup title came 60 years ago and the second of their Olympic successes came in 1928.
To say that Uruguay’s glory days are behind them would be to indulge in gross understatement. The Uruguay Football Association however, believes the man capable of taking La Celeste back to their zenith is Tabarez. But is he the man to do that?
Having taken a jaded Uruguay squad through to the last 16 of Italia ‘90, Tabarez certainly now has more going for him. In the 2 decades since then, he has matured as a coach, he has an eye for new players and perhaps most importantly, he has the respect of his players.
But while held in high regard, there are many that question whether he can inspire his players, and therein lies the principal concern.
While at times looking superb in South American qualifying, Uruguay still had to book their FIFA World Cup place via a play-off. Uruguay was often tactically superior to their opponents, but they seldom outshone them. While they scored more goals than all, apart from Brazil and Chile, they were repeatedly left rueing missed chances and defensive lapses frequently saw them chasing the game.
But Tabarez has stuck by his ideals and has continued to adapt his starting XI to negate and dominate his opponents. The criticism arose mainly after he brought in a few young players, but also a few in their mid-twenties, who he believes have the ability to succeed.
It is the same method he employed over 20 years ago when he won the Copa Libertadores with Peñarol. It is the same approach that he used to win the Argentine Premier Division.
For sentimentality sake, let me take you back. When Tabarez joined Boca Juniors in 1990, the Argentinean giants had not won a championship in over a decade. But spotting the talent of an unused squad member, he not only secured the title, but gave the footballing world Gabriel Batistuta.
Once a discarded squad member, Batistuta finished the season as the league’s leading scorer and within a year was playing for Argentina. What Tabarez brings to players is a belief in their ability, something that some have never experienced. Now it is up to the players to repay the confidence he has shown in them.
The most recent example is striker, Luis Suarez. The Ajax Amsterdam striker has a remarkable record this season, scoring 12 goals in 9 matches, including 6 in one match, against a hapless WHC Wezep in the KNVB Cup in December.
Bear in mind, he started the season with a 4 goal haul in the UEFA Europa League against Slovan Bratislava in August last year. Unfortunately, the form for his country has been less inspired with only 5 goals in the 17 qualifiers he played in. But he has the coach’s backing and in time, should reward Tabarez with his performances.
But ultimately, Uruguay’s chances must rest on the shoulders of Diego Forlan, leading goal scorer in the qualifiers with 7 goals in 13 games.
The former Manchester United and Villareal star has a maturity about him that has led to significant goal hauls in recent times, having scored 32 goals in 32 starts in La Liga last season, but his supply at international level is often lacking.
He does however, have years of international experience as is one of only a couple of squad members remaining from Korea/ Japan in 2002.
While I fear inconsistency will be the blight of Uruguay and suspect they will not progress past the group phase at this tournament, if Suarez and Forlan find form, Uruguay will not only advance past the group stages, but they will turn some heads doing so.
