Snak

The good, the bad and the ugly of the CONCACAF hexagonal schedule

So, what is better, a favorable schedule at the start of World Cup qualifying, a smooth ride in the middle or a home cooking finish at home?

Some of the six finalists in the CONCACAF hexagonal have more home games at the beginning, while a few teams are bottom heavy, while others seem to have an advantage in the middle.

Teams that have home games early on are under pressure to win because if you can’t win at home, you wind up behind the eight (soccer) ball in trying to reach the World Cup.

On the flip side, teams having many road matches could get out of the starting get slow when it comes to point accumulation, chasing the game, or at least the group, for the rest of the competition.

In the end, it will all come out in the wash, as each team has to play each other on a home-and-away basis.

As it turns out, each of the six hexagonal finalists find themselves with scheduling challenges.

Here is a quick look at what each team has to endure, whether it be at the beginning, in the middle or at the end of the of the fixture list:

United States

The Americans are stuck with the most difficult start. They kick off at Honduras on Wednesday, return home to host Costa Rica on March 22, but hit the road again to play at Mexico on March 26 and in Jamaica on June 7. The U.S. will play four of their final six games at home, including four out of five. That’s where the Americans should make up for some lost points, if they are lost. The “honeymoon” part of the schedule begins with back-to-back home encounters against Central American sides Panama (June 11) and Honduras (July 18). After a Sept. 6 trip to Costa Rica, the U.S. hosts Mexico on Sept. 10 and Jamaica on Oct. 11 before finishing up at Panama on Oct. 15.

Mexico

Originally, El Tri was quite fortunate, getting a perfect home-away configuration. However, then came the FIFA Confederations Cup and the Mexicans were forced to move one of their away matches from June 18 to June 4. Yet, most teams would love to have Mexico’s schedule. Mexico begins with Jamaica at Azteca Stadium on Wednesday, visits on Honduras on March 22 before returning to the Mexico City to tussle with archrival United States four days later. But then comes El Tri’s most difficult test — three games in eight days. They visit the Caribbean, taking on Jamaica on June 4. They fly to Central America to battle Panama on June 7. And they return home to their stadium in North America to meet Costa Rica on June 11 (then it’s on to Brazil for the Confederations Cup). If they can earn six points from those, they will be in excellent shape; nine, and they probably will be running away with the hexagonal. In case you’re wondering, the Mexicans finish up at home vs. Panama on Oct. 11 and at Costa Rica on Oct. 15.

Honduras

Nothing like a little pressure early in the game. Los Catrachos will be under the gun to win their opening two matches — at home — against the two giants of CONCACAF — the U.S. (Wednesday) and Mexico (March 22). If the Hondurans can accrue some points from both those fixtures — they will be in decent shape. If they don’t get anything, the Hondurans could be in for a long, long hexagonal. Honduras’ day of reckoning could come later on in the competition when the Central American side plays at Mexico (Sept. 6) and U.S. (Sept. 10). The Central Americans finish up at home vs. Costa Rica (Oct. 11) and at Jamaica (June 15).

Panama

If the U.S. has to play three of its first games on the road, there has to be a team that must begin the competition with three of four matches at home. The Panamanians welcome visiting Costa Rica on Wednesday, travel to The Office to face Jamaica on March 22, before returning home vs. Honduras on March 26 and Mexico on June 7. Then comes hell with four of five games away from the friendly confines of Estadio Rommel in Panama City. Los Canaleros will become road warriors, performing at the U.S. (June 11) and Costa Rica (June 18) and before hosting Jamaica (Sept. 6). Then they hit the road again for games at Honduras (Sept. 10) and Mexico (Oct. 11). Panama completes its hexagonal run at home vs. the U.S. on Oct. 15.

Jamaica

Until the Confederations Cup forced that schedule change, the Reggae Boyz had a perfect away, home, away home, etc. fixture list. They will face their greatest challenge within a four-day span at the beginning of June at The Office. The Jamaicans host Mexico on June 4 and then the U.S. three days later. The only Caribbean side in the competition opens at Mexico on Wednesday before hosting Panama on March 22 before visiting Costa Rica four days later. For their final two matches, the Reggae Boyz travel to the U.S. on Oct. 11 and will welcome Honduras four days later.

Costa Rica

For the first time, the Ticos will play World Cup qualifiers at Estadio Nacional in San Jose. Gone will be the intimidating presence of Saprissa Stadium, which is expected to make their road to Brazil more difficult. As it turns out, Costa Rica, which enjoyed the luxury of playing the entire Copa Centroamericana at home, will start their qualifying on the road. In fact, their schedule is almost a bookend as they will play two of their final three matches away. The Central American side play at Panama on Wednesday and at the U.S. on March 22. At the tail end of the season, Costa Rica visits Jamaica (Sept. 10) and Honduras (Sept. 11) before returning home to host Mexico on Oct. 15. Inbetween, Costa Rica will play four out of five at Estadio Nacional, where their World Cup fate will be ultimately decided. Those games include Jamaica (March 26), Honduras (June 7), Panama (June 18) and the U.S. (Sept. 6). The lone away encounter during that stretch is at Mexico (June 11).

Two memorable nights at Estadio Olimpico Metropolitano

by Michael Lewis

TropiGol.com Editor

I’ve covered games in Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico City, but rarely have I encountered an atmosphere as I had in two games at Estadio Olimpico Metropolitano in San Pedro Sula, Honduras.

My first visit came what it seems like decades ago on March 28, 2001. How far back was that? It was prior to 911.

In contrast to today’s warnings of how dangerous it is in San Pedro Sula, it was safe enough for American journalists to go out into the city and see some of the sights. I remember we sat down at an outside bar for a couple of beers. I looked across the street and noticed there was a man with a rifle standing in front of a jewelry store, obviously protecting it.

Welcome to Honduras, I thought.

We took a bus that had Honduran police/military to the stadium and climbed up to our “press box.”

When Brad Friedel led the U.S. team out onto the field, the crowd not only booed, but cursed at the team. At the time, there was a great competition between Kasey Keller and Friedel for the starting job. I turned to one of my colleagues and said, “I didn’t realize this crowd was pro-Keller.”

The American journalists were holed up in a couple of suites. I was in a booth that included Steve Goff of the Washington Post and Mike Mike Woitalla of Soccer America, among others. I kind of remember there were not enough chairs in our suite.

There was no food available, although there was a kid who sold chewing gum around the suites.

Prior to the match, I went to a mall located next to our hotel and bought an electrical strip so all of the journalists would have electricity in case there was only one socket in the press box (as it turned out, there was).

But there was a problem — the internet. These were the days prior to wireless and there was one modular plug for our computers. Worse, it did not work in the beginning. But we managed to clear out some gunk and sent our stories for at least the first edition. Then it was the walk down to the U.S. press conference with coach Bruce Arena (we were in such a rush I left the electrical strip as a present to the stadium).

The mixed zone was outside the U.S. bus with lots of noise and vehicle fumes to talk to Earnie Stewart — he captained the team on his birthday and scored a goal — and Clint Mathis, who tallied in the 85th minute to give the U.S. a 2-1 victory, the Americans’ first win in Central America in 11 1/2 years.

(I remember being at the San Pedro Sula airport the next day, noticing how many military personnel there were in Army fatigues with weapons. I told Grahame Jones of the Los Angeles Times that that was a sight you would never see in the United States. Some six or seven months later, that was a sight we did see at American airports, after 911).

My second San Pedro Sula experience was just as memorable, yet so different.

It was easy to tell a World Cup qualifier was being played in the business capital of Honduras on Oct. 10, 2009. You only had to listen to the horns honking outside my hotel room while cars, some draped in the blue and white Honduran flag roaming around the city. Street hawkers go up to car windows, trying to sell Honduran flags, hats and some other souvenirs. I could have sworn I saw someone trying to sell an American flag with the Honduran stuff.

I got to the stadium with several other American journalists about 90 minutes prior to the kickoff and the place was rocking. I was told by U.S. Soccer officials that the place was full of people — it’s supposed to hold 45K or so — four hours before the match. And it was rocking then.

Too bad this game wasn’t on American TV because it was a sight to behold.

The bus ride was pretty tame compared to the ones I had taken with the team in 2009 (in chronological order, it was Costa Rica, Mexico and Trinidad & Tobago). As we got closer to the stadium, more and more fans lined the road. Most of them were friendly, waving to the team bus (no bad gestures or curse words that we could determine) and probably trying to figure out who were in the two vans trailing the players.

Once we got to the stadium, it was another story altogether.

Getting in wasn’t a problem. Climbing — yes, climbing — through a sea of humanity (hmm, is that a bad metaphor — can you climb through a sea of humanity?) was the challenge.

With U.S. Soccer’s Neil Buethe leading the way, we went through the crowd very slowly. They were amiable, sometimes teasing us with their predictions of the final score being, “cuatro, cero” four-zero for the home team.

Sport Illustrated’s Grant Wahl said he had a couple of f-words thrown his way. I told him they were probably reacting to getting hit by my backpack as we walked up the stairs. Yeah, fans were sitting in the aisles, which is illegal in most American arenas and stadiums.

Well, this was Central America, and there is another way of life down here.

My greatest concern weaving through the humanity was losing my balance and falling on someone. I gave those strangers a lot of credit. They allowed me to use their shoulders to keep my balance. Of course, they probably figured they had a choice. Five seconds with a stranger’s hands on their shoulders rather than my 165 lbs. and heaven knows how many pounds in my backpack falling on them.

Prior to kickoff, while some sort of upbeat Central American song was blaring on the loudspeaker, many of the fans were dancing in their seats or in the aisles.

The game had sooooo many twists and turns. Honduras grabbed a 1-0 lead and the U.S. answered back with three unanswered goals, two by Conor Casey, the only two he has scored in his international career. Los Catrachos made it 3-2 late in the match. They could have equalized on a penalty kick that was missed late in the encounter.

What a game! What a finish!

When referee Roberto Moreno called it a match, the U.S. players celebrated clinching their sixth consecutive World Cup appearance. The partisan crowd gave their heroes — and the Americans — a standing ovation, realizing that they had seen a game in which both teams left it on the field. The crowd filed out without incident.

Former Middlesbrough star Juninho: Neymar must improve before Premier League move

Former Middlesbrough star Juninho believes Neymar will have to improve his game if he´s to be a hit in the Premier League.

The Santos youngster is one of the most sought after players in world football, with the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City, as well as Real Madrid and Barcelona, all interested in securing his services.

Juninho, who had three spells at Boro during his career, believes the Seleção forward will need to change his playing style if he is to be a success in England’s top-flight.

He told TalkSport: "Neymar has been brilliant in Brazil for the last two years. He hasn’t played very well, though, when he has gone overseas.

"He has to change his game a little bit when he plays away from Brazil. The game is different. In Brazil he gets the ball with a lot of time, but in Europe it won’t be like that. He’ll have to think first and then get the ball.

"He’s learning and getting better, and he also has great pace, which helps. People will see he is better than he was at the 2012 Olympic Games."

FC Porto striker Kleber in talks with Palmeiras


FC Porto striker Kleber is in talks with Palmeiras over a move back to Brazil after falling down the pecking order with the Portuguese giants.

Kleber, 22, started his career with Atlético Mineiro but rose to prominence after a successful two-year loan spell in Portugal with Marítimo, which prompted Porto to buy the striker for €2.3million in the summer of 2011.

Palmeiras have already held some talks with the player and it appears he will now fly to Brazil to conclude the negotiations.

“We have the interest and the negotiation is ongoing. He can get to Brazil tomorrow (on Wednesday) or later. We are expecting an official position from them soon,” executive director of Verdão, José Carlos Brunoro, told Lancenet!

He impressed with his early performances for Porto and earned a call up to the Brazil national team soon after the move and made his debut against Gabon in a friendly in November 2011.

However, a number of injuries have seen him lose him place in the first team and the striker has not hidden his desire to move on.

The deal to Palmeiras is likely to be a loan move, but the Verdão are said to face competition from Flamengo for his signature.

The week(end) that was - #2

Football itself ceded centre stage to Brazil´s stadiums this week, as the Arena do Grêmio and the Mineirão hogged the headlines for all the wrong reasons...

Stadium woes (part one)

"But can we still do the avalanche?" This was the first question asked by most Grêmio fans when plans for their new stadium were unveiled in late 2009. Their (in)famous goal celebration – which involves members of the Geral supporters´ group rushing to the front of the terrace as one – was deeply associated with the Estádio Olímpico, whose shallow stands lent themselves to the idea as well as any. To maintain the tradition, one terrace of the Arena do Grêmio – which opened this year – was designed with the ´avalanche´ specifically in mind – despite reservations voiced by the local military police corps over the safety of the celebration.

Those fears came flooding back last week. The safety barrier at the bottom of the stand dedicated to the ´avalanche´ gave way as fans celebrated Grêmio´s goal against LDU, leaving eight people requiring medical attention. Thankfully none were seriously injured, but in a state still in shock following the tragic events in Santa Maria, a hard truth seems to have hit home: tradition it may be, but a crowd of thousands piling down steps towards a barrier (sturdy or otherwise) is simply not safe. With local authorities and Conmebol investigating the incident, the addition of seats in the area is likely.

Miralles finds his feet at Santos

One of a number of Argentines to have come to prominence in Chilean football (see also: Darío Conca, Walter Montillo, Darío Bottinelli), Ezequiel Miralles made an inauspicious start to life in Brazil, making just nine Brasileirão starts for Grêmio before being shipped off to Santos in the deal that took Elano to Porto Alegre.

There are signs, however, that he could be ready to make a bigger impact in 2013. Miralles looked sharp in the seasiders´ 3-1 derby win against São Paulo, scoring twice and linking up well with both Neymar and fellow hermano Montillo. With his waspish movement, the 29-year-old certainly provides a more subtle threat than André, his main competitor for a starting role. Much will depend on whether he can be similarly ruthless in front of goal, but Sunday´s performance bodes well.

Stadium woes (part two)

After over a thousand days of restoration work, the Mineirão in Belo Horizonte was reopened by Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff in December. The new-look stadium was used for the first time this weekend, with the clássico between Cruzeiro and Atlético-MG expected to be a celebratory affair.

But the football itself was overshadowed by a host of problems reported by fans. The more serious allegations – a lack of drinking water (in water fountains and subsequently even from taps), understaffed bars which then closed due to overcrowding, no toilet paper in bathrooms – provide significant cause for concern. The distress evident on the face of one man caught on camera, desperate for water to give to his son, was particularly troubling.

"The idea that these are just little teething troubles doesn´t cut it," seethed Estadão´s Antero Greco. "Fans were treated with disrespect – like they were litter. And they have the cheek to put up banners that say things like ´Enjoy the party!´ It´s lamentable."

Home sweet... oh

Paulo Henrique Ganso played against Santos for the first time since his acrimonious departure last year. To celebrate the occasion, the Peixe fans printed fake bank notes with his name and face on them, threw coins and even made a Ganso ´Judas doll´ (don´t ask) to punch, scratch and curse. At least somebody was a little more forgiving.

Like a duck to water

It´s fair to say that Alexandre Pato knows how to make a good impression. (Insert Barbara Berlusconi joke here, if you´re so inclined.) It took the striker just three minutes – and three touches – to open his account for Corinthians after coming off the bench against Oeste. Incredibly, he has now scored on début for every team he had represented at senior level, having made similarly positive first impressions for Internacional, Milan and the seleção. Whether he can maintain the early momentum, of course, will depend largely on his fitness – as both he and the Timão medical department will well know.

Santos midfielder Adriano set to join Grêmio

Santos midfielder Adriano is set to join Grêmio after failing to reach an agreement over a new contract with the Peixe.

The 25-year-old has a contract with Santos until August but can sign a pre-contract agreement with a new club as of this month.

Adriano is expected to travel to Porto Alegre and sign a three-year deal with Grêmio in the coming days, where he will receive a reported R$ 150,000 (£50,000) per month.

Grêmio, who will be required to pay Santos compensation, are hoping to conclude the deal in time to register Adriano for the Copa Libertadores group stages before February 14.

Neither club have confirmed the deal as of yet, but Grêmio director Rui Costa has previously revealed negotiations are underway for the defensive midfielder.

He said: "We did some surveys, but trading has not closed. I know he does not want to stay with Santos any longer, but the conditions of the transfer are not yet established."

Adriano came through the club’s youth system and has gone on to make more than 180 appearances for the São Paulo based club and also spent some time on loan at São Caetano.

Lazio´s Hernanes could face Napoli despite being ruled out for a month - report

Lazio star Hernanes is said to be recovering quickly from a head injury and could face Napoli on Saturday, despite previously being ruled out for a month.

The Brazilian playmaker suffered head trauma and some retrograde amnesia when he clashed heads with Juventus’ Luca Marrone during last Tuesday’s Coppa Italia semi-final win.

Hernanes had initially been told he would probably not play for a month, but the Brazilian resumed light training today.

The 27-year-old had actually declared himself fit following the incident, despite not remembering it actually happening.

He said: "If it were up to me, I’d play the next game [away to Genoa].

"I started to regain consciousness in the ambulance, but I have no memory of the impact.

"When I arrived at the hospital, they told me we were in the final and the joy drowned out the pain. I want to thank the fans who supported me and the team as they always give us positive energy."

Hernanes, who had to be replaced by Fluminense’s Jean in Brazil’s squad, will have another MRI scan tomorrow and a good result could see him passed fit to play on Saturday for the visit of Napoli.

The Biancocelesti will be hoping to have the midfielder back as soon as possible, after losing Miroslav Klose for two months with a knee injury.

England-Brazil: Neymar excited to be facing England

Brazilian superstar Neymar has revealed his love for English football and says he is excited to be playing against them for the first time.

All eyes will be on Neymar, who turned 21 on Tuesday, at Wembley on Wednesday evening as England get their first look up close of the most exciting talent in world football.

“From a young age I have always kept up with the English fixtures, and players such as [David] Beckham, [Frank] Lampard, [Steven] Gerrard... the other one is [Wayne] Rooney,” the Santos forward told theFA.com.

“These are some of the great English players and I feel very privileged to be able to play against them for the first time.”

Neymar, who currently earns over £1million a year playing for Santos, has been linked with a move to a number of top European clubs over the past year but looks set to stay in Brazil until after next year’s World Cup.

England captain Steven Gerrard: Brazil are fantastic opposition

England captain Steven Gerrard believes Brazil will provide a great test in Wednesday night’s friendly at Wembley and that a positive result will give a timely confidence boost ahead of the March World Cup qualifiers against San Marino and Montenegro.

Gerrard, 32, will win his 101st cap against Luiz Felipe Scolari’s team and is excited about playing against some of the best players in the world.

"The FA have produced some fantastic fixtures for us this year and they are ones that whet the appetite as a player,” he told theFA.com.

"Brazil are fantastic opposition and it doesn´t matter that it is a friendly because we want to win and go into the qualifiers in March in fine form."

And England manager Roy Hodgson revealed he will use the game to find his best eleven for the upcoming qualifiers.

He said: "This is another step along the way and a great way to start 2013 and our 150th anniversary.

"We will do our very best to play well and get a result so that come March we know what our best team is and what players play best together.

"If we can beat Brazil in the opening game and again in the Maracana in June and qualify for the finals then life is good for us.

"The only way to do that is by producing performances on the field. I get more and more confident the more I see these players that they have the ability to produce."

The Vélez Factory: a rare model of consistency

Instability in domestic club football is about as Argentine as steak, tango and dodgy barnets. With the managerial merry-go-round constantly spinning at a frenetic pace and clubs hampered by economic limitations, it all makes for a difficult environment for any sort of continuity.

As with anything though, there are exceptions to the rule and Vélez Sársfield provide one of the best models of a well-run club in the entire country. Unsurprisingly they have also been one of the most consistently successful over the past four years.

The appointments of club legends Christian Bassedas and Ricardo Gareca as director of football and manager respectively at the tail end of 2008 marked the beginning of el Fortín’s most fruitful period since the mid-nineties when José Luis Chilavert & co lifted the Copa Libertadores in 1994. The impact was immediate: In their first season Gareca led Vélez to the Clausura title, edging a wonderful, free-scoring Huracán side in dramatic fashion. The two sides met in the final game of the season with Vélez claiming a 1-0 victory courtesy of a late Maxi Moralez strike to leapfrog el Globo and snatch the title.

Vélez were once again challenging for honours in the 2010 Apertura going head-to-head with Alejandro Sabella’s Estudiantes but eventually fell just short, finishing the season second and a staggering 11 points ahead of nearest rivals Arsenal in third. Quite achievement in just a 19-game short tournament! The side from Liniers then managed to go one better in the following Clausura when they lifted the title once again, doing it in style with the dynamic front three of Ricky Álvarez, Maxi Moralez and Santiago Silva terrorising defences up and down the country.

Consecutive 3rd place finishes in the 2011/12 Apertura and Clausura have contributed to a hugely impressive three year point average – 1.968 points per game at the time of writing – that sees them sit head and shoulders above the rest of the league in the promedios.

What makes those achievements even more impressive is the fact that they regularly had to deal with the not insignificant challenges of continental football. The huge distances between countries – Buenos Aires to Mexico City is the equivalent of London to Mumbai – as well as the massive shifts in altitude and temperature all take their toll and domestic form often suffers as a result. Indeed no Argentinian club has ever won the league and Libertadores in the same season – Boca coming very close last year but ultimately returning empty handed being a perfect illustration.

However, Gareca’s men have expertly juggled the difficulties of competing on two fronts, reaching the Sudamericana semi-finals in 2010 and 2011 and still finishing 2nd and 3rd in the league, while an away goals loss to Peñarol kept them out of the 2011 Libertadores final in the same season they won the Clausura. Last season’s third place finish was coupled with a run to the Libertadores quarter-final where they were unfortunate to go out to reigning champions Santos on penalties. Much credit must be given to Gareca’s ability to rotate the squad to keep them simultaneously challenging in both competitions.

With no continental distraction for the first time in two years, Vélez have been able to focus fully on the league this past season. Newell’s set the early pace, playing some attractive possession-based football under Gerardo Martino in their hunt for a first title for in 20 years, and looked to be running away with the league. A first minute Maxi Rodríguez goal gave Newell’s a narrow 1-0 win over Vélez when the sides clashed midway through the Inicial (as it is now known) but, rather than sink Vélez’s hopes, it served as a catalyst for an impressive 7 wins from the following 8 – a loss against Boca the only blip – whilst Newell’s conversely seemed run out of steam with only one win and a catalogue of costly draws. A late surge from Lanús provided the most significant challenge but Vélez kept their heads to win their ninth ever title with one game to spare.

Surely this triumph should have come as no surprise? Placed in the context of a raft of key departures before the season though, this latest league title represents perhaps the crowning achievement for Gareca at Vélez. Out went the creative flair of Juan Manuel Martínez in a $7million deal to Corinthians while first choice and consistently excellent goalkeeper Marcelo Barovero left for River and defensive stalwart Fernando Ortiz joined Racing. What’s more, they also lost midfielders Augusto Fernández (Celta Vigo), David Ramírez (Godoy Cruz), Víctor Zapata (Independiente), and Héctor Canteros (Villarreal on loan), leaving Vélez with a young and largely inexperienced side.

Though admittedly not a new phenomenom, the cold hard economic realities mean that the loss of top players is endemic of the Argentinian game as a whole. Nevertheless, Vélez have grown accustomed to these departures and proved adept at adapting quickly. In recent years the attacking trident of Moralez, Silva and Álvarez that spearheaded their 2011 Clausura win all packed their bags for Serie A shortly after, while the likes of Jonathan Cristaldo and Nicolás Otamendi were also snapped up following decent performances under Gareca.

Their ability to continue to perform at the highest level despite this unfortunate but necessary situation can be contributed to a number of factors. Firstly, a sizeable portion of the money made from transfers is reinvested back into the club and has been used wisely to make smart purchases. This year, for example, Vélez beat off fierce competition to land promising striker Facundo ‘Chucky’ Ferreyra from Banfield for $1.6mil and the move has proved to be a masterstroke. Ferreyra has chipped in with 13 goals and has formed a decent partnership with Lucas Pratto who was himself initially brought in on loan in February to fill the hole left by Silva and has now made the move back permanent. Should Vélez cash in on Chucky in the future they are likely to make a tidy profit on their investment.

Secondly, Vélez possess one of the finest youth systems in Argentina. Many of their first teamers have come through the youth ranks such as record appearance holder Fabián Cubero, midfielders Ariel Cabral and Iván Bella and promising young defenders Gino Peruzzi and Fernando Tobio. Other notable alumni from their academy include Jonás Gutiérrez, Mauro Zarate and Diego Simeone to name but a few. Teenagers Brian Ferreira, Agustín Allione and Lucas Romero are the latest players this season to come from the relentless production line, making the seamless transition to the first team and have not looked out of place at all.

Thirdly – and perhaps most importantly – is that Bassedas and Gareca have managed to forge a footballing identity at Vélez. As former players who understand the club, they have created a great team spirit and a distinctive style of play which in turn facilitates the incorporation of their well-prepared younger squad members into the first team. It also makes them an attractive destination for players who want to develop in a stable environment, as displayed by Ferreyra’s decision to turn down offers from bigger clubs. Though the current side has not hit the heights of the 2010/11 side that played such beautiful passing football, Gareca has cleverly tweaked the style of play to compliment the abilities of the squad he possesses, moulding them into a more solid efficient outfit. Nevertheless, examples of that flowing football still exist such as the magnificent 19-pass goal versus Arsenal de Sarandí.

On top of these factors, it’s certainly true that Vélez benefit from less pressure and media attention than the traditional grandes. Though often derided for their supposed lack of support, the absence of a vocal barra brava has no doubt contributed to Gareca long tenure which, by Argentinian standards, seems an eternity.

With their latest piece of silverware, Vélez continue to set the bench mark for the rest of the league. Other notable examples such as Lanús and more recently Newell’s – unsurprisingly the sides also challenging for the title – prove that the tide may be beginning to turn. But, with Gareca and Bassedas at the helm, Vélez’s consistent achievement must be applauded and their success shows no signs of abating any time soon.