From idol to villain: The sins that condemned Roberto Mosquera in Cristal

Roberto Mosquera’s history with Sporting Cristal today is dyed red and black after having lost in the second leg of the semifinals and not qualifying for the League 1 final to fight for this season’s national title against Alianza Lima. The Peruvian coach and his team performed well in 2022, but they were very close to obtaining another star. And that, in a big club like Rimense, weighs a lot.

Idol for many, but today seen as a villain. Mosquera gave joy to the sky-blue fans in 2012 and 2020, becoming Peruvian soccer champion. This year they hoped to repeat that story, but the course was different. Being the target of criticism and making controversial decisions, we will review the sins that condemned the national strategist this 2022 at Sporting Cristal.

The failed hiring of John Jairo Mosquera

For this season Cristal urgently needed a ‘9’ to lead the attack and John Jairo Mosquera was chosen by the coach for this important task. The Colombian striker arrived amidst much criticism from the sky-blue fans who questioned the coach’s decision to bring him to the team. But Mosquera, who had John Jairo in Bolivia’s Always Ready, turned a deaf ear and stuck to his decision.

Five months in the Rimense team were enough to prove that the fans were right. The footballer never got to adapt with the team. He played only 185 minutes in six games, where in one he started and scored no goals. He left the club with seven games to go before the Apertura ends. Joffre Escobar arrived as his replacement for the Clausura, directly from San Martín. He was a signing that he did not like either and that he felt forced to cover that position. The Ecuadorian has managed to score four goals with Cristal so far.

Losing at home to Atlético Grau

Sporting Cristal came with an excellent streak of 25 games without losing and the match against Atlético Grau on date 17 of the Clausura should have been just one more game. From locals at home, the Celestes left confident in their good luck and did not expect to find a team that ended up surprising them.

The Piurans came out with everything to assault the Alberto Gallardo before a Cristal who did not know how to respond to that ferocity. Roberto Mosquera’s team could not react in time against the goals of Ray Sandoval and Joel López Pissano and ended up losing the game 2-1. That day the Rimense club not only said goodbye to the unbeaten but also to the Clausura title that days later he would raise Alianza Lima.

Diego Buonanotte and Yoshimar Yotún were never 100%

Perhaps they have been the two biggest disappointments of the Mosquera 2022 team. Buonanotte and Yotún’s arrivals at the celestial club euphorically excited the fans for their long careers and sports careers. The idea that they help and lead the team was more than clear.

However, with the passage of time neither in the Apertura nor in the Clausura these footballers were able to stand out within the team. Injuries and muscular ailments haunted both players throughout the season and ended up being more of a drag for the team than a help in itself in the most critical moments.

Play with five defenders in Arequipa

Before the opening whistle of the first semi-final match between Melgar and Sporting Cristal, the Rimense club was already talking about Mosquera’s decision to play with five defenders. A controversial strategy by the national coach that he had never used before throughout the season.

Despite his attempt to keep the goal clean, Cristal was widely outmatched by a great Melgar who asserted his place at the UNSA Monumental Stadium. You could see a bewildered sky-blue team on the field that never felt comfortable in this new system and that ended up taking its toll on them, falling 2-0. That result would ultimately bring them problems since in Lima they did not know how to turn the situation they were out of the final and far from the title of national champion.