Ecuador has once again become the center of attention in South America, and even in Europe, due to the triumphant streak achieved by the national team in the Qatar 2022 pre-World Cup. On October 13 of last year, the Tricolor defeated Uruguay 4-2 in Quito, already with a team made up of young players who were eager for glory from the golden generation of the U20 team in 2019, champions of the South American Championship in Chile and bronze medalists in the U20 World Cup in Poland.
It would later continue to impress with a 2-3 victory in Bolivia and a resounding 6-1 win over Colombia, closing out 2020 successfully. Third in the table (9 points), behind Argentina (10) and Brazil (12), much of the credit for the resurgence of the Tri is attributed to Argentine coach Gustavo Alfaro and his staff, who were hired at the last minute for the start of the qualifying campaign.
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"He arrived here with a lot of hope, with a lot of optimism. And President Francisco Egas mentioned it the other day at the FEF Congress: he (Alfaro) managed to unify the football community, the provincial associations, the Federation. And the truth is that the sporting work he has been doing is fantastic, fabulous," says the Secretary General of the Ecuadorian Football Federation, Gustavo Silikovich, in an interview with EL UNIVERSO.
The official, who effusively praises his compatriot, states categorically that Coach Alfaro has not received any offers from other national teams or clubs. Rather, he is "calm", based in Quito and not in his home country. And he is "absolutely sure" that he will coach Ecuador until the Qatar World Cup, if the Tri qualifies for their fourth FIFA World Cup for the senior team.
The Secretary General of the FEF since December 2019, says he is "very optimistic" about the current process led by Alfaro, and even claims to have felt enthusiasm when the coach was Dutchman Jordi Cruyff— who did not lead any practices or matches— and the sporting director was Spaniard Antonio Cordón. Silikovich says he has had information about Alfaro as a coach for 15 years. "Every year that Alfaro spent as a coach, he would improve the clubs he managed. He would arrive at a club and make it better," he describes.
The group, 'envied'
But the fact that Alfaro has managed to deeply resonate, probably perfectly, with his initial messages to the players he invites, and of course achieve stability based on successes, is primarily due, according to Silikovich, to the "group of talented players that Ecuador has. Today (the players available to the coach) are envied throughout the rest of the Americas". The executive is referring to the golden generation of the U20 team that emerged in 2019 and currently contributes at least five players to the senior team.
"If you combine the players from the U20 team from two years ago, with those who are already starting to play in important leagues, physically impressive players, with a conductor and leader like Gustavo Alfaro, the chances of good things happening are higher," says the former River Plate manager.
The next two tests for Alfaro's Tri will be in the fifth and sixth matches of the qualifying campaign, against Venezuela and Chile (March 25, in Caracas, and March 30 in Quito). Silikovich believes that in 2021, Ecuador will play a significant part in their qualification for Qatar 2022, as 30 points will be at stake that year. (D)