With a luxury squad, what will be a luxury championship has been presented. “A tournament of illusion from which great players emerge, such as Jaime Mata or Morientes”so defined Guille Uzquiano, presenter of the gala of the Livall Cup 2022, a junior tournament that will face more than 30 teams, including Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atlético, Villarreal, Sevilla, Rayo Vallecano or Betis. It will be held on September 23-24-25 at the Tres Cantos CDF facilities. Today four faces of sport met at the Adolfo Suárez Cultural Center: Fernando Morientes, Vicente del Bosque, Jaime Mata (born in Tres Cantos) and Enrique Ortega.
The mayor of Tres Cantos, Jesús Moreno, appears before the auditorium. To his right, leaning against the wall, is Guille Uzquiano. And to his left, from closer to farther, Fernando Morientes, Vicente del Bosque, Enrique Ortego and Jaime Mata.
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“In my time there was not so much luck to play this type of tournaments. The ones that were organized were in the surrounding towns and your parents had to take you. I played them without the real goal of being a footballer, I just wanted to have fun. There was one that I especially remember, in Sant Cugat del Vallès, because we stayed at the Sant Cugat players’ house, precisely,” he said. Morientes.
“I spent 17 years in the lower categories of Real Madrid and I wanted to be a training coach, attract talent. That was the most enriching stage of the four I’ve had in my life (academy player/professional player/academy coordinator/coach). Transmitting the values of Madrid to young people like Morientes was something extraordinary. They turned off the lights in the sports city and we continued talking about football. We were a bit romantic about this. Very few of those who will play this tournament will become professionals, but I would tell everyone that they must understand that football will make them better and happier. Not becoming a professional should not be a frustration, because it is very difficult. The goal should always be to form yourself as a person,” he added. Forest.
children’s questions
Half a dozen schools were present at the Cultural Center, each choosing a child to ask a question. “What do you think of the latest comebacks”threw one to Morientes. “I’m delighted! It’s a historic thing, a mystique has been created around the Bernabéu that will overcome this year… It will be very complicated. There have been three qualifiers in which it was thought that Madrid was going to be out and nothing. I have had the opportunity to live some and they are very special moments. League matches are very nice, but these in Champions… They are something else“, answered.
When asked about What is the coach that has marked you the most in your career?said: “For giving me the opportunity to play in the First Division, Benedict Floro. He called me when I was 17 years old and told me that my conditions were for the first team, not for the youth. I appreciate him enormously for giving me that first little push that makes you prove your worth. A Forest I had him for four years at Madrid, we won many titles… I would also say to Deschamps, with whom I had a very good personal relationship, an enormous special bond. It’s rare to have him with a coach, because everyone usually marks his space, but with him it wasn’t like that.”
The most requested was Marquiswho, when asked which First Division coach he currently likes the most, pointed to Ancelotti: “Madrid can boast of having an excellent coach, despite the fact that this position is always highly criticized. It has taken them to a Champions League final and made them League champions”. A boy wanted to ask him if there was any chance that he would train the Three songs, because he was excited that his local team would win a Champions League. The question unleashed an affectionate laugh in Del Bosque, who replied: “Absolutely ruled out, not for nothing, but I’m old enough now and I’ve done my job. You have to make way for others.”
He was also asked about 2010 World Cup and 2012 European Championshipto which he replied: “We had an excellent squad, things had been done well before and there was a great atmosphere. I simply contributed what I considered convenient. In those years there were also defeats, but the best game was surely played against Italy in kyiv”. On the management of calls, he said: “Every list was a mess! We have always thought about bringing the best, no matter where they were born or what jersey they wore. The difficult thing about a coach is choosing eleven players every Sunday, because you have to leave many without playing.”
Dirty Mbappe
One of the children asked the four if they believed that Mbappé will sign this summer for Madridto which the AS journalist decided to answer, Enrique Ortega: “I think so. If, after all that has been written and said, it does not arrive, it would be a huge disappointment for everyone. Hopefully.” He himself also told a nice anecdote about Juanito: “When Atleti signed him for Juvenil A, he took him to the Buen Consejo school, where I studied. I trained, lived and traveled with him. He was ‘the kid who came from Fuengirola’, with a face full of pimples… And look where he got to. Watching him grow up was something unique.”
Lastly, he spoke Jaime Matacurrent Getafe player, who signaled the call The Red as the most beautiful moment of his entire sports career: “It’s something you can’t even imagine could happen, I finished training, they put the radio in the doctor’s car and when she got to the forwards, I thought it was impossible. I already had the pre-selection letter framed at home! I enjoyed it very much”. He also pointed out that his current favorite player is Benzema: “He is at a spectacular level, he has gone through all the phases, from being criticized to being praised. His physical and mental capacity is impressive.”
Talk with Morientes
The former Real Madrid and Liverpool striker, after the act, went through the microphones of the media present there, among which was AS to answer various questions. He did not hesitate to hide that despite having a past in the two teams that will play the final on May 28, his heart is white. He threw a dart at Haaland by pointing out that Manchester City is just “a bridge” and that an arrival in Madrid in a few years should not be ruled out. And about Mbappesaid that his feeling is that it is done.
Q: How do you see the Champions League final? Who is favorite?
A: It’s a cliché, but the finals don’t have favourites. They are games that are worked on from before the initial whistle. Nowadays Liverpool and Madrid are two of the best teams in the world and I think any detail could decide the match. Madrid is having a magnificent season, champion of the League and with several comebacks. But Liverpool is a great team.
Is it better to arrive with a load of games like Liverpool, but with rhythm; or rested like Madrid, but maybe a little off?
It seems incredible, but what is happening to Madrid could be counterproductive. From my experience, and I’ve played five finals, in which I’ve had so much time in between… It hasn’t been the best mentally. I usually prefer to play fast, without time to think much. But hey, it also gives you the option of alleviating tiredness and discomfort, arriving with the entire squad without problems. Liverpool will have to be more careful with injuries. As a football lover, I want both of them to arrive with all their players.
Who are you going with?
I am very fond of Liverpool, I have won a Champions League there, but when the heart is white, it is white.
What do you think about the possible arrival of Mbappé?
At the moment it has already arrived in Madrid, it is getting closer! I don’t know if it will be done or not, it seems like a matter of time, it gives me the feeling that it’s done. If it is done, it will be great news for our League and for the sport. It would make this competition much more powerful. That the players choose to come to Spain is a point in favor.
Haaland, during a match with Borussia Dortmund.
Joosep Martinson (Getty Images)
But, finally, Haaland has not chosen Spain…
It seems that he has it done with City, yes. Well, it will be a bridge, in a few years he will want to come to Spain. England is a very attractive football for all professionals, I wanted to try it myself, but the Spanish is still the most attractive and the one that every great player should know. Here we have probably had the two best players in history, Messi and Cristiano, and if Mbappé arrives, Haaland in the future… If something has been shown in the last decade, it is that of all the great competitions, in the end Spanish teams are always in the finals.