Record number of Argentine coaches at World Cup
Argentine football is mostly known for producing outstandingly skillful players like Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi, but the country is a talent factory for coaches as well.
“If you want to learn about football, you have to travel to Argentina,” Pep Guardiola said before his tactics at Barcelona, Bayern Munich and now Manchester City helped revolutionise the game. Guardiola’s words were uttered after a meeting with two coaching greats of the South American nation, César Luis Menotti and Marcelo Bielsa.
No country will supply as many coaches in next month’s FIFA World Cup. Five Argentine managers will be present in Russia — Jorge Sampaoli (Argentina), José Pékerman (Colombia), Ricardo Gareca (Peru), Héctor Cúper (Egypt) and Juan Antonio Pizzi (Saudi Arabia). “Argentine coaches are highly valued,” 1978 World Cup winner Mario Kempes told The Associated Press. “They have a strong character and personality to do a good job,” said the former Argentina striker, whose goals helped his country triumph at the World Cup eight years before Maradona led the team to glory in Mexico. There are other qualities that make the coaches wanted around the world. “They have very versatile profiles, allowing them to adapt to new contexts, especially uncertainty,” said Gustavo Aguilera, an executive for the Argentina office of the ManpowerGroup, a provider of workforce services. “They also generate solutions in an efficient way.”