Two bastions of Venezuela’s qualification for the U17 World Cup visit the newsroom Scoop To share the experience of registering the country for the second time in this event organized by FIFA to be held in late 2023.
Goalkeeper Jesús Lara and defender Zubert Bermudez, both Mineros de Guayana players, stood out in the South American tournament in Ecuador and will now have to prepare to face their biggest challenge yet.
Lara commented that he participated in two cycles of this team, first called by Damien Ayud, who soon resigned as DT and then with Ricardo Valino who was the coach in the South American tournament, “Both have always Thank god the technical body kept us in mind”.
He said that during the preparation he needed to “give everything, which they demand from all footballers, give everything on the field because we are not representing a team, we are representing a whole country, Honestly we would have given our all to keep it.” himself over there”.
He believes they all contributed to the team, “I gave them happiness, they always tried to keep us together, but when it comes to achieving the goal of qualifying for the World Cup, we are all important.” ”
For his part, Bermudez indicated that at that level he no longer plays for himself or those called, “but for all Venezuelans”, including those outside the national territory.
With his serious face, the defender said that everyone plays a role on the field. “Lara was always a leading, commanding man and we made sure to order everything from the back, solidified in defence,” he added.
Uncertainty in Cnar
Lara revealed that for weeks he had no idea about the coach who was going to guide him in the tournament, “We were only with Cristian Palandela, but we didn’t really pay much attention to him, as a team. More than working on form, physical condition and all that, we tried to be more united to live as a family, which helped us a lot in South American.
However, Bermudez highlighted that it was a difficult moment, with “a lot of intrigue, a lot of pressure, because we all wanted to know who was the new coach, and that same intrigue actually helped us to strengthen the group”. Working together helped and we’ve already become more involved”.
The goalkeeper admitted that Argentina’s Valino changed his mindset, “He always told us that we were Venezuelans and we had to respect ourselves, we didn’t have to wait to see what happened, or the teams to leave us behind. Given, because we are all the same and we can do so much of what Brazil, France and all those teams do.”
While the defender thinks that DT’s main contribution was to treat them as professionals, “He always treated us like men, even though we are kids and that gave us a lot of maturity.”
Explosion of joy
Lara described the experience in the dressing room after qualifying for the World Cup as “a lot of joy”, Bermudez emphasized the coach’s role, “He told us we would do it together, one man alone team do not make “.
He admitted that he has not yet been informed about the preparation plan for participating in the FIFA tournament. He told them to continue working on their teams and wait for new calls, “to give maximum and continue preparing for the World Cup,” Lara continued.
Regarding the reception he received upon his arrival in Puerto Ordaz, Bermúdez said that the best thing was the expression of affection from his families and the Mineros de Guayana, “We missed home a lot.”
Games Room: Main Distraction
Beyond the game, strategy and physical preparation, the players had few activities to distract themselves, in this case the Guyanese admitted that the game room was their main pastime, with “pool, ping pong, listening to music and Disguising itself, as The Bermudez said, the group is already very cohesive, no one walks apart.
He said that most of them knew each other from the tour of Bolivia, he contacted “foreigners” such as Juan Arango, Santiago Silva, Alejandro Cicero, “a few more players joined the last call and when we met them, but We saw a lot of dynamics when Velino arrived and it helped us to get into the group quickly”, it was on this that DT focused more “on and off the pitch”.
“Savior” Palandella
When they talk about the physical trainer they call him “Saviour”, “God”, laughing, “It’s unbelievable, Cristian didn’t leave us and was with us from the beginning, he never let us down.” Didn’t”, explained the guard.
Confined to the National High Performance Center in Margarita during those days, the coach guided him both physically and mentally, “because he made us talk a lot.”
They want the title
Regarding the goal set for the World Cup, both the goalkeeper and the defender were emphatic, “To be the champion and go down in history again.”
For Bermudez, this classification is only the beginning, “Venezuela is going to be on top by the favor of God.”
Regarding Mineros, the goalkeeper’s short-term goal is to make his debut with the professional squad, bring joy to the team and the fans.
Bermudez plans to contribute, “Work, improve, focus on my weaknesses and reinforce my strengths.” He believes that Mineros will soon come out of the result crisis, “I have always said that God gives his best soldiers the worst battles, I know that with work and effort we will move forward.”
The goalkeeper insisted that they had a very good group and a good captain, Richard Blanco, “I know we’re going to make it.”
Message for little ones
Lara asked the generation after him to continue working for their dreams, “Everyone can achieve them, all they need is work, persistence, always living a quiet life, training and living for football.” Soccer is a very beautiful sport, but you have to love it to be able to be a professional.”
On the subject, Bermudez advises not to give up because everyone has a chance, “As a coach I greatly appreciate, fight to the end,” says Calvin Salazar.
