COLOMBIA

Mundial, pero luego dio el paso al
fútbol profesional, fue campeón
en Colombia, en Centroamérica y
cumplía esas condiciones. Y para
colaborar con él le agregamos como
asistente un técnico del fútbol
aficionado, que es el hombre con
más títulos nacionales ganados en
esa área, Carlos Paniagua. Juntos
visitaron cada región del país mirando
jugadores, campeonatos,
yendo al exterior y conformando
un equipo que seguramente tendrá
cosas que corregir para el Mundial,
pero han hecho una dupla excelente.
-Este año tienen la gran
chance de volver a la Copa
Mundial de mayores, ya clasificaron
al de Turquía y ahora
viene el Sub-17.
-Hay mucha confianza en el
equipo Sub-17. Es más, debo confesar
que ésa era la generación
que se tenía por muy buena, que
ha trabajado casi 4 años desde que
estuvo en el Sudamericano Sub-15
en Uruguay. Esta del Sub-20 nos
ha dado una agradable sorpresa.
De modo que si el Sub-17 consigue
la clasificación, este puede ser
un año histórico para el fútbol colombiano:
conseguir el cupo mundialista
en las tres categorías.
He accompanied the
Colombian National
Team during the whole
tournament and the following
day to the conquest, he took a
plane to Miami to be with the
Senior National Team that
defeated 4-1 Guatemala. He was
always with his characteristic seal
of sobriety and a very low profile.
He is the President of a football in
a state of grace, at both senior
and juvenile levels, with great
stars winning triumphs all over
the world, like Falcao García,
James Rodríguez, Jackson
Quiñónez and many others.
What does this U-20
conquest mean for Colombian
football?
Winning is always a reason
for joy, a reason to be proud of. It
30●CSF
is very important for Colombian
football to be able to show such
titles. The truth is that you always
work to have national teams in
the first places and qualified to
the World Cups. This championship
is indeed very special since
an international title was
obtained outside our country
and thus it has an extra merit.
Beyond that merit, a
strong emphasis is put in
Colombia upon whatever
has to do with juveniles.
Yes, the truth is that the
country understood that they had
to work well in the bases, and
the clubs, and the Federation
itself has realized the truth of this
belief and there are always
policies and championships in this
connection. In the senior national
teams, you measure the
immediate result as if it were a
photograph: it qualified or not to
the World Cup. I believe that the
analysis you make has to go
further back, since when there is
no development nor such a
capacity and the possibility that
the boys may get all of them very
strong, you will not attain any
titles. This Colombian U-20 come
from previous processes of
national teams, of the U-15 and
U-17. That continuity, that
permanence and stability are
what led to this result. We used
to speak abut this with the boys,
since now we have Turkey’s
World Cup and the U-20 is over
for them, to have a much greater
responsibility which is that of
passing to the Senior National
team and be the basis of the
national teams of the coming
years. You have to prepare
the players in that sense and
somehow brainwash them, since
they will continue to develop a
process instead of thinking that it
has come to an end.
It’s very good to win titles
at a juvenile level, though the
ideal solution would be to
have 3 or 4 players from the
juvenile squad ready to pass
to the Senior National team.
Certainly, we need them to
be strong from their early years
so that the senior sides may
welcome them when they
appear. That is why I mention the
previous processes. Now we have
a U-15 National Team that this
year went to Bolivia’s Small World
Cup and were first. That must be
the U-17 within two years’ time.
The present U-17 that is a very
good squad and mat play a great
South American, after having
worked fiercely during 4 years,
even before being a U-15.That is
what we want. That permanence
in the national team is something
they must achieve with their
qualifications.
At what age do you
realize you have a future
good player?
We have a very special
organization with a branch
devoted to senior football
(DIMAYOR) and another big one
concerned with amateur football
(DIFUTBOL). The latter controls
the regional championships in
different departments, with
national teams and we have
been working there for the last
11 o12 years.
Detecting the children
who can be the future U-15
players, for example.
Yes, for we have categories
of 11 and 13 years of age, when
the competition processes begin.
The Federation works directly
with the U-15, though two years
before in the selective process.
There starts the following process
through national championships.
The Federation begins to work in
the regions. We have decided for
some time that it must be the
same Federation that prepares
the national championships,
selecting the best clubs in the
country to organize U-15, U-17
and U-20 tournaments.
That is to say, that there
is no 13 or 14 years old child
with great conditions that
has not been seen.
It’s quite difficult…, since we
also have 34 departments and
each of them has its local and
regional tournaments. The
national competitions are of
100, 120 or 140 clubs and the
coaches of the national teams are
permanently going over those
championships. It’s very difficult
for them not to discover a real
talent, though there is always
one that has had a better
development.
You were 30 days in
Mendoza standing by the
national team, sharing with
the technical staff and the
boys, though you did not
want to lodge with them.
I did not want them to think
that you are watching to see how
they work. I learnt to accompany
each delegation from Luis
Chiriboga, my colleague of the
Ecuadorian Federation. He is one
of the presidents that always
follow the different processes to
know which will the future of his
senior national team may be.
Besides, you have the possibility
of sharing the experiences that
you yourself have lived with other
national teams, as regards what
they must really feel, search and
how they must behave, because
it is not at all easy. Moreover,
there was a relatively new coach
and you had to endorse him.
Thus the player would
feel the Federation’s moral
support.
Of course. First, there is an
unrestricted support around the
coach. When we hire a coach it is
to give him our total support and
assistance. The same happens
with the group of players. It is not
a question of vigilance but of
sharing experiences, to help them
and learn how they are working,
considering the championship’s
possibilities.
The opening of an U-15
South American anticipates the
processes by two years. You have
to start searching in advance and
those who are really figures begin