Imanol does not understand stoppages. Neither league, nor anything. He shows it in every training session, and especially when there is no match. It is not that the Real Sociedad coach prepares especially demanding sessions when there is no game on the weekend. It's not about that. Your plan doesn't change it. But neither is his way of approaching each work session. For the Oriotarra coach there is something that is non-negotiable in training: it is the intensity and the tension when facing each activity that the coaching staff proposes to the players. And when you don't see it, when you see that your players aren't taking their work seriously, then you react and let them know. In a figurative sense it is as if he took out the whip.
That's what happened in the open-door training in Zubieta. In an exercise of completions with opposition, to test the precision in the passes and the completions, one of the weak points the latter of the leader of First, who must sharpen his aim, Imanol Alguacil did not hesitate to stop the session and abroncar his players in front of the world. The footballers of the Real they barely defended and the forwards did not score a single goal, making vaseline and other frivolities. Until Imanol got tired and gave several disapproving cries to his squad. “We have chances to score, shit ….”the Oriotarra technician yelled first. And later, more angry because he did not see the players well in that exercise, He threw a plastic bottle of water on the ground very vehemently and very pissed off he added. “Fuck my b … mother”. At that moment, awkward silence with several players looking down, not wanting to look up.
The coach of the Real He explained how to do it in a less disruptive way. “We're not doing one thing or the other. We can't miss passes, we hit the ball, we go on and finish the play, we're done! We're back, come on”. And interestingly, from there, the level of the exercise improved exponentially. The players began to score goals, the passes were more precise and the defenders were more attentive. There is nothing better than a fight in time so that everything returns to normal, even if it is rare like the current one. Of course, during the rest of the training he kept screaming, being faithful to his training style; but they were of encouragement and punctual corrections.
In that training in Zubieta The players who are with their national teams did not participate (Mikel Merino, Mikel Oyarzabal, Ander Barrenetxea, Roberto López and Martin Zubimendi), the injured in recent weeks, such as Illarramendi and Alex Sola; and three lame players with different problems who have stopped this week as a precaution. It is a recovery week and it is intended that there is no setback of any kind. Aritz Elustondo has been in that position, with ankle problems for several days; Miguel Angel Moya, with some overload; Y Joseba Zaldua, who returned to play for the first time this season and to avoid relapses.
Imanol: “Someone is gaining kilos”
Imanol Sheriff He also had time to joke with journalists who were able to attend the first open training in Zubieta for several weeks (among them was the AS newspaper). The coach of the Real society He approached where the cameras and editors were and in a jocular tone he snapped at them. “Someone cheats with the Zoom, someone is gaining kilos,” he said laughing. The journalists congratulated him on being elected La Liga coach of the month of October, but Imanol once again showed his humility. “Thank you very much, but no, the credit goes to those,” he said, pointing in the direction of where the players were doing warm-up exercises.