2023-10-25 04:00:23
He crossed the Mediterranean this summer to take the reins of Cypriot Anorthosis Famagusta, which has gone from fighting for relegation last season to living in the top four. David Gallego (Suria, Barcelona, 1972) gives LA NUEVA ESPAÑA his first interview after his departure from Sporting. He does it in the week in which Espanyol, the club where he was born as a coach, arrives at El Molinón. “This team looks very good,” he repeats, from Larnaca, about the red and white team. He talks about present, past and future in a sporting key.
– Will he see Sporting-Espanyol?
–I will see it, one hundred percent. I don’t miss that one. In all the cafes in Larnaca there is always a television with football and if you ask for the Spanish League, they will show it to you, but I will watch this one at home, in peace.
–Aim for a great game.
–By proposal of the two teams and the stadium, it is going to be an attractive match. More for that reason than for the qualifying position in which they both arrive. I see a beautiful game for the spectator and perhaps not so much for the coaches. I really want to see what proposal they will have, the tactical plan. You know, we coaches look at other things.
–What plans do you hope to find?
–I have followed the Spanish League less than I would like, because I am more focused now on Cypriot football, on the rivals, but I especially watch the Second. Luis García likes to take the initiative and has an Espanyol team with tremendous potential on his hands. It is a team that forces you to be attentive for the hundred minutes that the game lasts. And if you get lost, he sentences you. Espanyol is the number one candidate to be in direct promotion.
–And regarding Ramírez?
–I like to see from the outside that it offers different elevens and different ways to vary the structure. It speaks to the richness of the squad. That’s a lot. Sporting also offers a lot. It is one of the most attractive teams in the Second Division. Furthermore, El Molinón is quite tight. My hair stands on end talking about it. It will be a boiler against Espanyol.
–What do you like about Sporting?
–This Sporting tries to be the protagonist, it does not speculate, it goes after the rival. They are a rich team, they generate competition and that is uniting them with the stands. The moment they are going through and the communion with the fans makes them a fearsome team.
–Do you think you can be at the end fighting for the top six positions?
–I know that in Gijón there is always that objective, regardless of the moment or the squad you may have. I also know how complicated the Second Division is. From what you can see, from the squad and this communion with the fans, it is one of the teams that, without a doubt, must be taken into account for those six places. There’s more, mind you. Is it easy to get it? No. Should Sporting be taken into account? Yes.
–Campuzano, whom you know well, has scored two goals in the last two days.
–I have always said, and I maintain it, that if there is continuity, Djuka will form the best forward pairing in the Second Division.
–You have already had good beginnings in Gijón without the expected end.
–Being at the top at the end of the season will determine how you get out of the slump that always hits you. If that bad streak doesn’t last long, at the end of the year you will be in the top zone. But as it drags on…
–How do you value your time at Sporting?
–We had a spectacular first year, the shame was the pandemic and not being able to enjoy and take advantage of the fan factor. We fell out of promotion with two days left, but I think we did a great job and many players revalued themselves. I’m happy about the second year, but we didn’t win for a while and this is football. In any case, when they fired us we had a match against Zaragoza that, if we won, we would be four points away from the play-off. It made me angry because I thought we had already overcome the most critical situation of the season.
–What was missing?
–You never know. Things happen because they happen. In December we were talking about my renewal for two more years, however, it was my decision to wait until later to address it. I don’t know what would have happened if I had renewed then. The team deserved more and had no prize. I have nothing to reproach anyone for. To the players, zero. The players were to death with the objectives and with the coaching staff. Otherwise, they would not have competed as they did until our departure. So, when you give everything honestly, you can blame yourself for nothing. I am grateful to everyone.
–Do you maintain a relationship with Javier Martínez after that “incident” in the locker room tunnel?
–With Javier, people are confused. I have an exquisite relationship. He is a ten person. What happened in that locker room was that I made a comment because I understood, in a previous meeting, that if we didn’t win on Huesca day I was out. I told him in a cordial tone and he responded like “what are you saying.” Someone interpreted other things and got more involved with other people. My mistake was that at that moment he didn’t have to say anything to anyone, not even in that place. There are people who took advantage of that to hurt me. I will see Javier when I return to Gijón, which I hope will be soon.
–And with Javi Rico?
-The same. She trusted me. It’s work and you have to make decisions. The time came when he decided to dismiss me. You have to be consistent. I will always respect the work and decisions of others, as I would like them to do with me. In football we are valued by results. If you win, everything is fine, and if you lose, no matter how much you do things well… It happens to every team in the world.
–Why did you choose to go to Cyprus this summer?
–There was the possibility of a Second Division team that had not been finalized, so I considered it was time to have a new experience. I was very attracted to trying myself abroad, learning a new language and another culture. I wasn’t there to wait. I got it right. I felt better than I thought. We are fourth, tied on points with third place. Our city is excited about us again. We have a very passionate fan base and something similar to Gijón is being generated. Here the format is different. When the regular League ends, the top six compete for the title and the bottom eight compete to avoid relegation. The important thing now is to get to the top and be close to the first three, the places that give access to Europe.
–You have a very beloved former red and white player in El Molinón, Guerrero on your team.
–He is an example of a professional, a very decisive player for us. He has some brutal numbers, but he had a shoulder injury, he had surgery, and now he will be out for a couple of months. He is a differential player.
–What would you say to the Sporting fans at a time like this?
–I am a person who does not give advice to anyone. I will say what I would like to find if I were there. Let the fans understand that there will be difficult moments, bumps in results, and that they are even more important than the squad to move them forward. El Molinón does not add, it multiplies. At that moment you have to get the team forward as soon as possible and your help will be essential to achieve this and then reap the rewards at the end of the season. The team has to give, yes, but many times it gives and the results do not come. If it works, the fans have to add because Sporting is one of the few clubs that has that advantage. You have to take advantage of it.
–And who are you going with on Saturday?
–Don’t ask me that question! (laughs) I’m honest. My career has been longer and more intense at Espanyol. It was the club that gave me the opportunity to be a coach and to enter professional football, which is why I feel like another parakeet. I will tell him that I would like them both to achieve their goal and if Espanyol doesn’t win this time, it hurts me less.
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