The Colombian National Team's path to the Qatar World Cup has come to an end. The closest that the Colombians will get to the distant country will be through the matches of the James Rodríguez team, if it does not change territory by that time. The national team won the last six points in the South American Qualifier, after beating Bolivia in Barranquilla and Venezuela in Puerto Ordaz, but everything depended on the result between the Peruvian and Paraguayan teams to achieve the desired dream. The Incas won by 2-0 and won their place in the repechage in franca lid. Colombia did not have enough points to reach.
The poor results of the team during much of the final stretch of the qualifying tournament were those that, in the end, ended up sentencing the fate of the national team. Not going to the world cup is something we've been used to for 16 years. With Pékerman and his team things were different, but he is no longer there and we have to look for ways to rectify the path. Precisely, one of the main points of this bad campaign is, of course, coach Reinaldo Rueda, who grabbed a team that was divided in the dressing room and occupied the positions in the middle of the table. He never managed to completely smooth out the rough edges and could not establish a concrete idea of play. The team, under his command, achieved the greatest anti-record in the history of the national team by completing 6 games without scoring a single goal. And not to say that the defense game was good. Yes, many matches were tied, but several vital matches were also lost.
One would think that Rueda's departure is imminent. The renewal of his contract, as agreed, depended on the World Cup qualification. It was not achieved. He must leave office, unless the Colombian Football Federation, headed by Ramón Jesurún, rules otherwise. The fact is that for some months, and even more so during these days, some names of those who would be on the radar of managers to occupy the position of coach have been circulating.
At the time, there was talk of Hernán Crespo, but the reality of the coach, just arrived at his new team, is very far from the present of coffee growers. Ricardo Gareca was also on the radar, and it sounded a lot to take on after Carlos Queiroz left, but a concrete proposal never came, beyond the interest of the coach himself. Now, given the possibility that Peru will play the World Cup in Qatar, its name will surely be discarded, as the managers of the Peruvian team would like to renew it to continue its fruitful process. Rafael Dudamel, the current coach of Deportivo Cali, was considered for his good process with the Venezuelan national team, between 2016 and 2020, and the great campaign carried out with the sugar producers, but his name seems to be barely among the rumors. Another one who was hanging around is an old acquaintance of the national team, Jorge Luis Pinto, who had a brilliant performance with Costa Rica at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil and recently directed Millonarios.
There are three names that sound especially strongly. The strongest of them is Marcelo Bielsa, who before leaving Leeds from England, would be free. However, according to some sectors of the Colombian press, this signing would be exhausting, considering the fact that the DT has a high value and his conception of football would not match what the knockout tournament demands today. He is one of the most experienced among the potential candidates. The noise it has generated on networks is impressive. He has directed in Argentina, Mexico, Spain, France and England. In addition, he was in charge of the Argentine team between 1998 and 2004, and the Chilean national team, between 2007 and 2011.
The other name is that of Marcelo Gallardo, the current coach of River Plate. This is one of the impossible dreams that the FCF would have. The possibility of signing him is very complicated. Its high value would be the main drawback. The other thing would be to see if the Argentine DT would be really willing. With him, the choice is not clear, but it remains.
Juan Carlos Osorio, today at the helm of América de Cali, is the third most popular name, despite the fact that the option of signing him has been diluted in recent months, due to his current performance at the head of the scarlet club. His time at Atlético Nacional left very good impressions, not so much what he did with the Mexican national team, beyond the fact that he played with them in the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
The appointment of the new coach of the Colombia National Team could take up to six months, considering how the process took place after the departure of José Néstor Pékerman. The FCF would meet with Rueda in the coming days to determine its future and that of the team, in the meantime, there are many assumptions and desires. Many journalists and former players have given their opinion on the decision that managers should make. Everyone agrees that the current coach should not remain on the bench of the Tricolor.
When will it be resolved?
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