The former coach of Chivas points out that the Mexican soccer player lives very well in his country and has great contracts, but needs European-level or Copa Libertadores competition
The Mexican soccer player has many comforts in his country, which is why many times he does not take the leap in quality or does not feel pressured to go to Europe, according to John Van't Schip, former coach of Chivas in 2012. In exclusive for ESPN, the Dutchman also stated that the Copa Libertadores is essential for Mexico and its soccer.
"There are professional players, others less so. This has to do with competition in general, not the Mexican league, which is good, but with those outside, such as Concacaf. In Europe there is a lot of competition outside your country and it makes you grow as a team and player. It would be good if Mexico were in the Libertadores because this would give them an extra level," he revealed.
"But you can say that Mexican players are in a comfort zone because they have a good life, a beautiful country, good contracts, but they do not have that level of Copa Libertadores or European football, that could be why they are not taking the next step. As a country, they are there in the World Cup, they do well at the youth level, but there is a gap that does not continue to the highest levels," Van't Schip concluded.
Van't Schip said that while players focus on their careers, there are many distractions around soccer "and that's why many do not grow," he also cited examples of what happened to Edson Álvarez and Jorge Sánchez, players of Ajax, as well as Santiago Giménez, a member of Feyenoord.
"I don't think they are unprofessional, they need to have challenges in a different type of competition and that is why I say that competing in the Libertadores would help the players. Now you have to go to Europe to mature and Álvarez is a good example, he came to Ajax and at first it was not easy. Sánchez is gradually getting into the game and adapting. The same with Giménez. What I have seen is that he is there when the ball is in the area, he has a nose for goal and gives a good impression. He is finding the connection with other players. They take a step by going to another country and they have to be able to show themselves at the highest level. In Mexico, there are many distractions around soccer and that's why many do not grow," Van't Schip explained.
Finally, he recalled that training sessions in Mexico are not as intense as in Europe and that makes a difference when it comes to matches.
"I remember that when I arrived at Chivas, they said that we had to go to the beach in preseason to spend three weeks without a ball and run. We said this is old-fashioned, you lose three weeks because you do stupid conditioning."
"From the first training session, we worked with the ball and everyone wanted to go to the gym because they felt like they didn't train enough. Soccer comes first, then you do the gym, not the other way around, where you do little soccer. That is a big difference, the players here see that the training does not last that long, they are 75 very intense minutes," John Van't Schip concluded.