The FEF has large overhead to cover for 4 years- plus what I imagine is serviced debt from past administrations. They also don't get funds paid out immediately when they return to the country. Disbursals go through a long process of passing through agencies and banks which can take weeks and maybe even months with all the security clearance- Arab countries in particular are notorious for rarely paying on time...especially if it's not for contract work. Players have rarely if ever been paid salaries for NT participation- it's exposure and prestige. Any prizes are ultimately paid out when cash hits the FEF account and pay cycles kick in- 30 or up to 90 days.
MAR just signed or will be signing with Sporting Gijon. https://killerasturias.com/noticias...iguel-angel-ramirez-para-entrenar-al-sporting The biggest business/strategy mistakes committed by the FEF - in almost all instances - are attributable to time wasting or sitting-by idly. By giving Alfaro his "time" to think about his future, we let six weeks pass by since being eliminated from the WC, and now we've lost one of our key contenders for the NT, and also one who was going to be on the lower-rung of the salary spread. Either we're too nice and polite (cultural), or we just don't understand the bigger picture (there's always someone else to snatch up what you were waiting for). It's purely mindset. Where the heck is the go-getter mentality? Same case with the call-ups to the WC. We made our selections 1-week after even the Brazilians did. It brought the Byron Castillo omission into the discussion all the way into the first 2 games. Had we made the call-ups earlier, the news cycle would have recycled out that story and our fans would have been talking about other things because our minds are fickle. We waited to the last minute and people had time to talk about eeeeeverythingggggg. Man, this one is frustrating. He was very open to the FEF gig, too. The only reason why we lost MAR is because we took over 1 month to talk to Alfaro before we knew we were going to pass on him. The whole world keeps on turning, though.
Just got our tickets. Last time I kept screaming at Alfaro to come over to my section to take a pic and he did. lol This is probably 2017 and I was just getting to work one morning when I saw their bus drive by. If I hadn’t been too far I would have stopped that bus.
When was the Alfaro pic? lmao What a year that was for us Barcelona fans too. Just won the league with record points and had that deep run in the Libertadores. If it wasn't for that ref in the Santos game, we would have won the Libertadores that year.
The Alfaro pic was that game against fluminense in Florida cup. Btw, game has been canceled. So annoyed right now, now that I have to deal with figuring out how to get a refund.
Probably not a popular comment but Angel Mena would have had a better WC than Plata. Plata has been playing terrible in recent games if anyone has been watching. Dude gets pushed around like a rag doll by every defense I’ve seen. WTH happened to him?! Injuries?
Very frustrating indeed. We never get our first options. Especially not coaches who get a huge acceptance from fans. Our two main options now are Sebastián Beccacece and Gareca. Beccacece is very similar to MAR. Very appealing football, very offensive and they take both have a process for implementing their style of play which will take time. Like MAR he didnt have the best run outside of the team he was successful in. I always wanted him to come back to Ecuador. I would have loved to seen him take over Emelec. Right now he is with out club and I think he could be a very good and cheap option.
Unsurprising to be honest...the big issue is strength/size. I'd actually extend that same criticism for Mena, too. Both are pretty lean and not very tall. In particular, Plata is SKINNY af, but Mena is generally tougher/more durable. If I was Valladolid, I'd get Plata on a high protein diet and have him bulk up. Part of his recurring issues is his inability to take a hit. His muscles don't absorb blows, and when he falls to the ground, there's another collision/impact point. He's been a constant magnet for fouls and always drops to the floor. Rarely do I see him feigning the blows (unlike Neymar), BUT he can't get hit like that for much longer before we start seeing him start picking up some highly recurrent injuries. In every year since he's been called up to the NT, he has been injured. At Valladolid, he's also been injured- same during his tenure at Sporting. It's a problem. I do agree that Mena would have been better (in retrospect). Plata himself admitted he didn't have the best WC performances. That, IMO, is a massive criticism and indictment of the overall mindset he entered the tournament with- he couldn't activate his best form, and was unfocused. Sadly, he squandered the best opportunity to showcase his talents on a stressful/accountable stage. Mena never got a chance.
Look at that. Maybe we will see it one day en las mayores. ☀️ Buenos días, vigentes campeones sudamericanos🔥 ¡Vamos por #LaReconquista🇪🇨! 📸 @CONMEBOL pic.twitter.com/LuBzIRggIv— La Tri 🇪🇨 (@LaTri) January 19, 2023
Yeah idk how to feel about Gareca. I just hope he focuses on adding to the base and not building a new one.
He impressed me in the sense that Peru players individually arent that good but the team collectively would play very well. Alfaro with Ecuador was the exact opposite of that. Our players individually would do well. Our guys had great stats when looking at pass completion, ball recovery, interceptions, tackles. But over the team as a whole wouldnt play well alot of the time. I dont think Gareca would build a new base. His second cycle was where he really had his work cut out for him. He needed to replace alot of players and there really wasnt alot of players coming up to do so. He still manage to add some youth into the squad. If he were to come to Ecuador I think he would just build on top of this base. We have alot of youth coming up so I see him calling up a large amount of different players but still keeping the core of the team. He isnt exactly my favorite option either. I cant imagine how much he would want to earn if he were to come. I dont think we can land him for anything less than 3m tbh. I dont see this option really becoming official unless its something that he really wants and is willing to negotiate.