We profile Juan Antonio Pizzi, who comes with a very good pedigree
In his previous job Pizzi also demonstrated the capacity to handle a notoriously difficult dressing room. Relations in the Chile camp have often been strained. Pizzi kept them focused with leadership that was strong but low profile, with a refreshing lack of ego. There was never a feeling that he was competing with Sampaoli’s legacy.
He is a man entitled to a bit of swagger in his stride. As a player Pizzi was good enough to become the top goalscorer in the Spanish league while playing for Tenerife. He was sufficiently accomplished to spend two seasons at Barcelona. And, realizing that he was not going to get a game ahead of Gabriel Batistuta, he gave up dreams of playing for Argentina and instead naturalized as a Spaniard, representing his adopted country in both the 1996 European Championships and the 1998 World Cup.
As a coach, his CV includes domestic titles in both Chile and Argentina, as well as spells in Mexico and in Spain with Valencia, where the decision to replace him taken by the incoming Singaporean tycoon Peter Lim does not in retrospect appear to have been a wise choice.
So where did it go wrong for Pizzi’s Chile? On the field, the team picked up enough points to finish fifth and make the play-off against New Zealand. But Bolivia were penalized for fielding an ineligible player — and the extra points and goals awarded to Peru were sufficient to take them above Chile on goal difference.
It is undeniable, though, that the goals dried up for Chile. In their last six competitive games they could only score twice. The explanation is simple enough — the side grew old together, and lost some of the zip that was essential for their success. It was surely a mistake to take the full-strength squad to Russia for the Confederations Cup in the middle of the year — a fourth consecutive summer tournament for an aging group of players who would have been better served with a rest. But it does mean that Juan Antonio Pizzi has gained first-hand knowledge of the conditions that will apply in next year’s World Cup — and if Chile are no longer able to put that to good use, perhaps Saudi Arabia can.