Diego Osella: “When I left, you could see Colón’s current situation coming” | OneFootball

The former coach of Colón spoke with ADN Gol about Colón's current situation and why the club has reached this point.

First, with much sadness, because the greatness of the institution is immense. It is crowned with that famous star, with that great work of Eduardo, hand in hand with its leaders.

Then came a debacle similar to the one we faced in 2014, but with a big difference. In 2014, when we took over, we were very clear that something needed to change, but Lalo was clear about it, and he set that direction for everyone, and we executed it. Sometimes very well, sometimes well, other times not so much, but it was executed.

And that team restored the fans' hope. It was a protagonist, fought in its own way, supported by many young players on the field. When the process ended in Rosario, and the team was relegated, the first thing we talked about with Lalo after my obligation to offer my resignation because we hadn't stayed at the door, was to understand that the only way for the club to resurface was by being smart.

Because it's a lie that you need a huge wallet to build a team. You need to have the ability and know the division to do it. We knew we were going to have a drain of players, Meli, Graciani, Luque, Gerardo Alcoba who was leaving, Montoya who was leaving, Videla who was leaving, but we held on.

We held onto Chinito Landa, we went looking, all with ingenuity, without money, we went to get Fatura Brown, who was in Antofagasta, Chile with little play. I insisted on Cristian Pavón, which was a saga in the middle of bringing him, and we formed an attacking duo Pavón-Alario. And we brought in hardworking players to work for the real reality of Colón.

It doesn't mean that Colón can't achieve it now, but there was something important, we understood that people would be impatient because they would want to rise the next day, as it happened now. We managed the anxiety, and I was very clear that when things got tough, we had to support the squad and that everything had to fall on the coach. It fell on the coach when it got tough, we eased the pressure, many disagreed, Mostaza came with experience, another good choice by Lalo Vega gave the tranquility needed, the squad was trained physically, football-wise, and ended up achieving promotion in five months to where it belonged.

But there was planning, there was a study, and players were sought according to the situation, I repeat, not to be misunderstood, I'm not talking about this squad now. And the Garnier came, players who took the division on their shoulders and achieved a goal at a time when the wallet was overflowing because everyone saw possibilities of rising in a tournament where five people were promoted. Colón didn't have it, and Colón built it.

Lalo Vega has a lot to do with it, a lot, for the tranquility he transmitted, the tranquility we provided, and then Colón, what can I say, the stadium full every match, the support is always monstrous, and the goal was achieved. Now everything was done the other way around, Godano came looking for me, whom I love, esteem, consider an honest person, came looking for me for seven matches knowing that the situation came from Iván's departure, who had done a very good job, nothing happened like in the 2015 process, they got impatient, started changing coaches, and we arrived with seven matches left. I told him, the first thing to improve here is overtraining because it's trial, error, rehearsal, it keeps trying, and the team drags.

It changed, we managed to lower the injury level, the team lost very little, won very little too, but a team was made with an idea and solid. We reached the last match against All Boys, and there was the possibility that the process would end. I repeated the match seven, eight times, Colón was superior to All Boys without doing anything extraordinary, deserved to win, tied, was left out, and the restructuring had to be born, which we all talked about, including Moreno in those almost two months of work.

We started working the day after on the people who had to continue, the profile of players to bring, there was no agreement on many things with the manager until he communicated to us. He didn't communicate, he came, was in front, didn't open his mouth, was in front of Godano, Godano's explanation was very basic, very cold, and we ended the relationship. And from then on, I knew I was going to get into trouble, not for being smart, but because they weren't standing on the real, real reality of what a national B tournament is, what it means to go play on fields like Salta, Chaco, in Buenos Aires with big structures, and if one has to think that it's done only with a wallet, five teams compete, and in the national B there are 37.

It's impossible for something like that to work, it's impossible. Why would it work? Darío, explain to me why it would work. No, not because... A player is brought, brought by the leg with his idea, and then has to mutate to the coach's idea of Iliana, and then from Iliana, they confirm Minela, and then from Minela comes Medrán. Medrán has seven matches and is doing the great Diego Osella.

Yes, yes, it's the same amount. Well, but it's certain. What do they think? That he comes and changes everything in two days? And in this, you have to take out the player, you have to understand the player.

Who comes with one idea, changes to another, 10 meters forward, 10 meters back, leaves, and another comes, an interim comes in who is then confirmed, then removed, and Medrán comes who came to make a top tournament, and in five matches, it seems he knows nothing. And quite the opposite, he is a great coach, as is Yllana, as is the leg Pereyra, but faced with such nonsense, faced with such a need to believe that the one outside is better than the one inside, these things happen.

It's always something I ask, at least in my person, that I ask the manager or the manager of the moment, to attend the training sessions, to watch, to ask, because if they trusted one, they shouldn't be afraid to come, to be there, to meet, in weekly meetings.

In all the training sessions, Iván was there. He was in all the training sessions, was inside the locker room with us, had direct communication with us, and had the possibility, because he was always consulted, because I understand that this, beyond seeming vertical, the game must be opened for the good of the institution, what he saw, what he didn't see, what he thought was missing, what he thought was in excess.

Nothing, at least we have passed everything week by week what we did, we were working on a program where if it wasn't necessary for him to be there, he would find out, enter the program, and from the program see what the team did, not only written but in images, all the information from the medical staff was loaded, all the logistics information was loaded, and we always had a very large communication that was direct line with the managers. Then there was the presence of Negrete, of several who always had the locker room door open to consult or to talk or to clear up doubts about anything. The problem doesn't come from there, the problem doesn't come from there, Godano understood that with the manager's figure, they distanced themselves a bit, and Iván, after we were left out with All Boys in a small meeting with the coach, him and me, we set a preseason date, started talking about reinforcements, I saw that the reinforcements we passed didn't match much with what Iván wanted, there was no need to dismantle the whole squad because if not, the same thing always happens, 20 leave and 20 come, this in any other team can be disguised, in Colón no, because the pressure is very great, we had to hold onto players who had performed from the previous process and then bring footballers in very specific areas where they make a difference.

They saw it differently, time passed, and two weeks after that last match, they summoned me one day at two in the afternoon alone in the Technical Secretariat, and Moreno didn't speak, the bug spoke, a conversation that didn't last more than 3 or 4 minutes, I just thanked and left.

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