“In my generation we were eighth in the world, but now I notice that the results are valued more”

Is it strange for you not to see Peru in the World Cup?

But it is a reality, you have to live from the realities, you have to work to return, because if you qualified for a World Cup, they will demand more of you, it has happened to me, it is not that I invented it. We have to continue growing, especially the roots of Peruvian football, which are the minors. So, we have to invest in training because it is not an expense. It is not only about playing in the local environment, but from a young age taking him to compete abroad. I’ve been saying it for a long time. Here the talent is not like in my time, now there is an area of ​​psychological support, human development, physical department, nutrition, but many of the teams do not worry about that. There are only three or four teams in Peru that care about this aspect, we have to continue evolving. That is our job. We have the mission of training players who surpass us.

—Did you like the new calls of Professor Juan Reynoso in the Peruvian team, like Bryan Reyna?

Everyone can give their opinion, the opinion is free, but the best information is provided by the technician and his work team. All the people around you. I trust the ability of Juan Reynoso, because they have chosen him.

—From what you have seen of the friendlies, what do you think of Juan Reynoso’s strategy in charge of the Peruvian team?

Friendlies are for that, see and test players, analyze situations. We are beginning a process, there is a long way to go. I trust the ability as head of Juan Reynoso. We still can’t confirm anything, because that has to be reflected in the game. There is a lot of talk about what it is like in football, the game model, the intensity, all of that, they are hours of work and these games are to give opportunities and see how they respond, because not everyone can wear the national team’s shirt. So that’s called running, he’s still testing players.

—But the fact that you summon new talents serves to strengthen the selection?

It’s that you always have to do that, encourage young people, that’s called promotion. Here many people confuse Bag of Minutes, even that term is not good. If they hadn’t promoted me, I wouldn’t have played at the age of 17 in the First Division. If you don’t promote new talent, there is no future, but the ideas of the technicians are respected, they are the ones who decide.

Let’s talk about the World Cup. Has Qatar 2022 left you any surprises?

It is still very premature. The World Championship is a very short tournament. To qualify for a World Cup, you have to be two or three years old at a high level. Suddenly the peak drops in some players, but for the first time in history that it is played in November, it was always played in June, there are a host of situations… that as human beings we do not resist the same, the players are not a machine. Some experience greater physical and mental strength, but now the issue of competition has been reduced, a team that works physically and tactically well can play against you and beat you. For example, I congratulate Ecuador, who had a great performance, but did not qualify. So, at the end, the position table in which Ecuador was ranked is evaluated. In my generation we have been eighth in the world. But now I notice that the results are valued more. I’m not deferring, but I’m sorry.

—Do you have any candidate to win the World Cup?

Candidate, no, the powers are always the ones with the greatest chances, the world powers that we already know what they are.

—Uruguay got complicated, but still has a chance to qualify for the round of 16, beating Ghana. Or do you find it difficult?

You have to play the game, football is so unpredictable. In this World Cup there is a parity in the physical and tactical part. That’s why there are many surprises.

—Alianza Lima, how is the training issue going?

I am glad that a club as emblematic as ours has obtained an achievement, such as the two-time championship. Football is like life, there are few good times, of course as a fan of the club, I’m glad it won. Now it remains to analyze what your strengths and weaknesses are. Not only that has to be Alianza, but the Peruvian teams when they have strong international competition. Regarding the minors of Alianza Lima, this has been one of the best years of my life, we are champions with four dates remaining in five of seven categories. The Reserve project began in 2014 with the 2004 and 2005 category, this is a continuity of the previous process. We got the Reserve Tournament that gave the first team two points, you have to worry about what comes behind. Let’s hope that on Saturday we get the sixth title or all, because 2005 has a chance.

—Can the Alianza fan rest assured that they are working well in minors?

The results can give you an answer, but you have to support it and I feel that the club has to give us more weapons to prepare the boys. In Peru there is a lot of talent, but talent is not enough, if you are not prepared. We influence training and promotion.