Has the defence improved? See how Luan Peres rates Vojvoda’s work at Santos | OneFootball

The work of coach Juan Pablo Vojvoda at the helm of Santos was publicly praised again last Friday. After Zé Rafael highlighted the team’s progress, it was Luan Peres’s turn to exalt the Argentine coach, who was hired by Peixe in August of this year.

Vojvoda is Santos’ third coach in 2025. Before him, the club had the Portuguese Pedro Caixinha and the debutant Cléber Xavier, who had his first experience as a head coach after building a career as an assistant. Luan Peres made a brief comparison between the managers and took the opportunity to praise the Argentine.

“Each coach has their own characteristics. Caixinha preferred a more intense, more aggressive game, pressing a bit more up front, which is somewhat similar to Vojvoda’s style—with a difference in training. [Vojvoda’s] training sessions are much more voluminous, with more intense and better drills. With Cléber, it was a more conservative style. The training sessions were also good, but the team’s identity changed. He had a more conservative style, with less pressing up front and waiting a bit more for the opponent,” he analyzed at a press conference at CT Rei Pelé.

“I think that’s the difference. With Vojvoda, we’re much more aggressive, we think much more about attacking the opponent, and that also automatically protects the defense, because we’ve improved defensively. We already start pressing from the front and defend from there. That’s very valuable. With Vojvoda, I think the system is working very well,” he continued.

With the arrival of the new manager, Peixe’s defense improved considerably. Despite conceding nine goals in eight games, the Santos team started to give away fewer clear chances to their opponents.

“Since his arrival [Vojvoda], our defensive side has improved a lot. We’ve been suffering less, there are fewer shots on our goal as well. We’re improving in that aspect. Our pressing already starts up front, with intensity, so our defense has improved,” evaluated the number 14.

Vojvoda’s role in the squad

Santos is in a delicate situation in the Brasileirão. Peixe occupies 16th place, with 31 points—the same as Vitória, who are just above the relegation zone. As manager, Vojvoda plays an important role in managing the squad during tough times, but Luan Peres made it clear that the coach doesn’t need to remind the squad about their complicated position in the standings.

“As I said, everyone knows about the moment we’re living and our position. There are 45 days left in the season and we need to get out of this situation. So he doesn’t need to always come and say this to us, because we had meetings this week, both with him and with the board, and everyone knows what’s going on. It’s not up to him to say it, because we already know, but he always tries to keep us calm,” commented Luan Peres.

Last Monday, Santos had the chance to move away from the relegation zone, but lost the direct clash against Vitória, who caught up with Peixe in the standings. The defender emphasized focus on the match against Botafogo and again mentioned the improvement under Vojvoda.

“The game against Vitória won’t come back. The focus is on Botafogo. We’ve been watching videos since the start of the week, seeing how Botafogo plays, training what we’re going to do. But since his arrival, I feel an improvement in our physical condition, our tactics, we play with much more intensity. It’s been very good for us. But as I said, we’ve had two wins, four draws, and two losses with him, especially the last one, which was a bucket of cold water. But he’s a great coach and we have to give our best on Sunday,” the defender concluded.

Upcoming Santos matches

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