DavidPablo
28 Apr 2003, 11:43 PM
Gustavo Poyet is a Uruguayan midfielder who plays for Tottenham in the EPL. He also played for Chelsea. He was interviewed by the Argentine magazine El Grafico. I thought his comments on English football, Uruguayan football and especially on diving and cheating are very interesting. Here are some highlights:
(translation to English is mine. I apologize for any inconsistencies.)
Comments on thethe EPL:
El Grafico: Did the English Premier league change in the years since you've been there?
Poyet: Yes, and even before I came. The Chelsea helped the league to evolve. First it brought Gullit, then Vialli, Zola and DeMateo. They proposed not to play the clasic English style and they generated a change in what was a very closed league. Afterwards, other teams began bringing foreigners and it brought a revolution. Today some people complain about the number of foreigners and from their perspective they may be right. I am not sure to what extent the quantity of foreigners has translated into quality.
El Grafico: So the British style was lost?
Poyet: For the most part. Only three or four teams keep the clasic style, which is to play as directly as possible. I would not say 'long ball' because I don't think it is strictly accurate. But they think that the faster the ball gets to the oponent's penalty area, the more chance they have to score a goal. So they constantly play it behind the lateral defenders to then center it. The other thing they do is to put it into the penalty area from a free kick anywhere in the pitch. In South America we think different, but it works for them, because they practice it so well. If they don't beat you with the header, they beat you after the bounce, or to the rebound.
El Grafico: In your team they play like that?
Poyet: In Tottenham we try to mantain the idea of the European style. (Note: I think he means continental European style) But it always depends on the number of English players on the field and their style. I won't lie, sometimes they cannot help themselves. And if you play in the middle you start watching the ball come and go in the air.
(translation to English is mine. I apologize for any inconsistencies.)
Comments on thethe EPL:
El Grafico: Did the English Premier league change in the years since you've been there?
Poyet: Yes, and even before I came. The Chelsea helped the league to evolve. First it brought Gullit, then Vialli, Zola and DeMateo. They proposed not to play the clasic English style and they generated a change in what was a very closed league. Afterwards, other teams began bringing foreigners and it brought a revolution. Today some people complain about the number of foreigners and from their perspective they may be right. I am not sure to what extent the quantity of foreigners has translated into quality.
El Grafico: So the British style was lost?
Poyet: For the most part. Only three or four teams keep the clasic style, which is to play as directly as possible. I would not say 'long ball' because I don't think it is strictly accurate. But they think that the faster the ball gets to the oponent's penalty area, the more chance they have to score a goal. So they constantly play it behind the lateral defenders to then center it. The other thing they do is to put it into the penalty area from a free kick anywhere in the pitch. In South America we think different, but it works for them, because they practice it so well. If they don't beat you with the header, they beat you after the bounce, or to the rebound.
El Grafico: In your team they play like that?
Poyet: In Tottenham we try to mantain the idea of the European style. (Note: I think he means continental European style) But it always depends on the number of English players on the field and their style. I won't lie, sometimes they cannot help themselves. And if you play in the middle you start watching the ball come and go in the air.