Ricardo Gareca believes Lionel Scaloni has all the tools to succeed at club level once his tenure with Argentina ends — but says his next move will be crucial.
Whenever given the chance, Ricardo Gareca has praised Lionel Scaloni’s abilities as a coach — the World Cup and two-time Copa America winner with Argentina, whom he has faced at the international level while managing both Peru and Chile.
However, “El Tigre” found it difficult to predict what the future might hold for the coach once he decides to end his tenure with Argentina, especially considering the possibility that he may also want to gain experience at the club level.
In an interview with Los Edul, Gareca was asked how he would see Scaloni handling the day-to-day of a European club team, and he offered a particularly thoughtful reflection. “Scaloni’s ability is indisputable. The thing is, he’s so young… and all he’s ever done is be successful. He started and never stopped. And all at the national team level,” he began.
“His career is just beginning. What’s his track record as a coach? Argentina. So you can’t know how he’ll respond. One would assume he won’t have problems. The key for a coach is decision-making—knowing where to go and where not to go. For him, it will be about choosing well where he’s going to land,” he added.
Gareca illustrated this decision-making process with the example of Pep Guardiola, who, after achieving excellence at Barcelona, could not afford to work at a club that didn’t allow him to approach that same level. Just as Guardiola has many strong supporters, he also has critics eager to see his philosophy fail.
“For Scaloni, whether it’s now or in the future, the choices he makes will be vital for sustaining himself. How? By having great players, being with teams that give him the chance to compete for and win championships, and by implementing his ideas. That will be very important,” he concluded.
The best Argentine coaches, according to Gareca
Setting Scaloni aside, Ricardo Gareca highlighted who he believes are the top Argentine managers today. “(Marcelo) Gallardo (River Plate coach) and (Miguel) Russo (Boca Juniors coach) are very important coaches. (Diego) Simeone has been at Atletico de Madrid for 20 years and is one of the highest-paid managers in the world,” he noted.
He went on: “I think Argentina has outstanding coaches. You’d run out of room trying to choose with the number of them who get results. Look at the case of (Gustavo) Alfaro, who arrived in Paraguay and revolutionized everything”.
From: bolavip.com