Alfredo Grelak on ADN: ‘I’d rather avoid Colón, history matters’ | OneFootball

On the eve of the crucial Matchday 32 clash in the Primera Nacional, AlfredoGrelak, head coach of Estudiantes de Buenos Aires, spoke in depth with the program ADN on Radio Gol 96.7. The coach analyzed his team’s current form, looked ahead to this Saturday’s match at 3:00 p.m. at the Brigadier López Stadium, and delivered some very important remarks about the pressure surrounding Sabalero and his own work methodology.

In addition, Grelak used the microphones to deny an old transfer-market rumor, clarifying that when he was close to taking over at Colón in the past, he never demanded a list of names, nor did talks collapse over rigid contract issues, putting to rest the myths surrounding those old negotiations. “We never even got to talking about names, that wasn’t the case,” the coach clarified in the radio interview.

His analysis of Colón: “It’s a roller coaster”

When asked about the marked inconsistency Colón has shown throughout the season, the coach of the Caseros side acknowledged how difficult it is to analyze the Santa Fe club, although he did not hold back in praising the squad’s individual quality.

“It’s true that in recent matches they’ve changed the names a lot, but you know the quality they have and the possibilities Colón has if they control the game,” Grelak said as he assessed the current state of Saturday’s opponent. The head coach stressed that the Santa Fe club “has players of a quality that no one is just discovering now,” and highlighted the presence of experienced men such as Lértora, Rasmussen and Pier Barrios, who in his view “have the quality and stature to command a defense.” With that in mind, he warned that his team has the clear obligation to “try to cut all that out” on the field.

Regarding the situation the Santa Fe institution is going through, Grelak reflected on the pressure suffocating Sabalero in the final stretch of the tournament. “All teams go through different stages early on, and that’s where those players start to show up when there’s a run of bad results, especially at a team where the demands are as high as they are at Colón, and they have to take responsibility,” the coach analyzed. He also pointed to the footballing slumps caused by the environment: “Sometimes they struggle to complete passes; you say they can’t have forgotten how to play, but clearly the pressure weighs on them, there’s a burden there.”

Along those lines, the coach was blunt when choosing who he would rather avoid in the playoff stage. “If you ask me which teams you’d rather not face—even though they don’t make the knockout rounds all the time—well, I’d rather avoid Chacarita, Quilmes... they’re teams with history, and when history puts itself on the table, they’re not easy to face,” he said flatly.

The importance of mental health and the psychologist’s role

One of the high points of the interview came when the recent addition of a sports psychologist to Colón’s coaching staff was discussed. Grelak was categorical on the matter and stated that in Barrio Centenario “they took too long to bring in a psychologist.”

The head coach revealed that, for him, it is a non-negotiable area within his regular staff. “The presence of a psychologist within a coaching staff’s professional setup is very important because I’ve had one since I started, and the truth is we work on the tactical, strategic, and physical sides alongside the mental side,” the coach explained on Radio Gol. In that sense, he recalled his professional path: “I worked for years with Darío, who is a very well-known sports psychologist, from when I started at Quilmes, and then when I got to Chicago I met Alejandro Pagano, and from that point on I’ve taken him everywhere with me as part of the coaching staff.”

For Grelak, psychological support is urgent in contemporary football because of the environment surrounding younger players. “Today, kids need this tool all the time because of the world we live in and players’ needs, but also because of the demands institutions place on them and the reality young people are living through... today, young people are having a very hard time and don’t know how to get out of it,” the tactician said. For that reason, he concluded that having a psychologist is “almost as important as the physical side in terms of having a support tool” that is truly effective.

Living with the “chaos” of promotion football and refereeing

Recalling his very tough previous spell in charge of San Telmo—where he suffered a points deduction, the inability to play with fans, and the closure of his stadium—Grelak explained how he works with his players to shield them from the controversial refereeing in the division. “I got a master’s degree from that year at San Telmo; it was very tough,” he remembered about those episodes.

The tactician places great importance on the issue of refereeing decisions, but with the aim of ensuring that players do not enter matches thinking about those external situations. As proof of how well that approach has worked at his current club, he highlighted: “This year we haven’t had a single sending-off for insulting the referee.” In his view, the key lies in “doing really intense work so the player doesn’t get caught up in this with refereeing; what he has to do is dedicate himself to playing, and only to playing, and not be focused on a mistake.”

Even so, the coach admitted to the strain coaching staffs suffer from blatant errors. “Sometimes they’re human mistakes and that’s fine, and you understand them, and sometimes you don’t understand them. What referees sometimes don’t understand from the coaches’ side is that we can lose our jobs, there’s a lot at stake... so not reacting to that is difficult, very difficult,” he confessed openly.

Along the same lines, the coach made a firm proposal to raise the standard of the promotion tournament by questioning organizational priorities: “You’re also competing in a second division that is professional, in a footballing nation with 3 stars, that has played 3 other finals... so, man, how much can it cost to implement VAR in a second-tier promotion division?”

For him, technology would be a necessary first step because, while it would not guarantee infallibility, “it would reduce the margin for some mistakes, because there are plays in the box where, no matter which team it is, it looks more like Titanes en el Ring than football.”

Estudiantes de Caseros’ present and the Ian Vera case

Finally, the coach described the orderly institutional reality he has found at the Caseros club. “I found a very well-run club; it’s a club that has no excesses, but the player doesn’t lack anything either. The club is up to date on salaries, and with everything we ask for, it tries to help us,” Grelak said appreciatively. He also highlighted that the institution has a very good training ground, which he considered “peace of mind for everyone, because all we have to think about is playing.” From there, he made the squad’s ambitions clear: “The hope, the desire, and the intention are always to be in the mix (the Reducido), and once you’re in the mix, to be competitive and compete in the best possible way to earn promotion.”

He also made special mention of youngster Ian Vera, a forward whose registration belongs to San Lorenzo and who was involved in public controversy at one point for playing in amateur football tournaments such as the Copa Potrero. Grelak acknowledged the extra role he has to take on with this type of player: “A lot of times you have to be more of a father than a coach.”

Fortunately, the player got back on track thanks to the Pincha dressing room. “Luckily there came a point where he was well supported by the squad, by the older guys, and he started to understand that, well, the way he approached his professional life would give him the chance to keep growing,” the coach explained. Satisfied with the process, Grelak concluded that after being left out at San Lorenzo and arriving on loan in Caseros,

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.