“Peru will not be a visitor in La Paz and this is their moment to get three points” | INTERVIEW

His intimidating alias: Diablo. And his influence, football and emotional, strengthened a Bolivia that with him, for the first time, achieved Bolivia’s qualification for the 1994 World Cup in the United States, and the runners-up position in the 1997 Copa América. His name is Marco Antonio Etcheverry and for those who dream 40 years old, it was a nightmare: Peru was a disaster in the early 90s, basically, because the Altiplano team sent it to the pit. Today, Diablo Etcheverry is critical of his team, and although he lives in the United States, he knows every detail of his team. His last game with the Green was on November 15, against Argentina on River’s field, for the 2006 Germany Qualifiers, but when he plays for his country, he accepts some interviews. This time, he spoke with DT about what could happen in this match against Juan Reynoso’s team.

– Bolivia always had favorable results against Peru in La Paz, do you see any favorites?

The Peruvian coach is thinking about how to approach it, since we are in the last position and Peru has a team already designed, which comes assembled and has had to dance with the ugliest, as they say in soccer, since it faced champion teams like Argentina, World Champion, and Brazil, something similar to what happened to Bolivia. So, both teams need the points to not continue down in the standings, so it seems like a complicated and difficult match for both of them.

– Bolivia did well to remove Gustavo Costas as its coach and sign Antonio Carlos Zago. Was it the right moment or should it have waited like Peru, which keeps Reynoso in charge?

They interviewed me before Costa left and I said that I didn’t know who was coming, but for me it was ideal for him to stay two more games, because he only played four games. Now, there is Zago and we must support him. We hope it goes well, we need points and we are last in the table and we have lost many points at home and in the end, that does not help, since the hopes of being able to reach the World Cup are over.

-But, Bolivia has always been strong at home, why can it no longer take advantage of its height?

It seems to me that since technology advanced, the medical and physiological part has made the teams that come to La Paz work in a great way and it is becoming less and less complicated for them. It is no longer prohibited or dangerous to play in La Paz, but to be well prepared, convinced, the mental issue of the player is important and I think it goes there. We must value the professional work of the technicians to worry about food, physical issues and competing in La Paz.

-Can Peru carry out the coup in La Paz?

I believe that Peru already has an established structure and I see that it affected them to play against World Cup teams, like the world champion. The fixture that both teams have faced is not easy. We face Brazil, which is always a tough rival in the Qualifiers, Argentina, world champion, and Chile, which are formed teams and are always present in each World Cup, therefore, they have a better level, more competition and structure from the organization. For me it has been a surprise that Peru is not there, fighting at the top, but I think that the coach and the players’ thinking is to be able to recover three points outside of Lima and in this case in La Paz to achieve it. Statistics only persist until they are broken and the moment will come when they win, I tied with Peru in La Paz and now that they are second to last, Peru is thinking that it is time to get the three points. For me, Peru is not such a visitor in La Paz.

– There is a lot of criticism in Peru about Juan Reynoso’s tactical approach, that he doesn’t know how to take advantage of the players he has, do you think the same?

I would answer you with another question, is it very easy to play against Brazil or Argentina? Peru lost against the best team and the player in the world, I think it is not easy to face those teams. It seems to me that Reynoso had the bad luck of facing two World Cup powers at the start and that is why he could not obtain good results.

– Should Bolivia make a personal mark for Guerrero or Lapadula?

I wouldn’t usually do it locally, even though I have great admiration for him. [Guerrero], but I think the concern should be for Peru, since they are going to play as a visitor, at altitude and it has to see how they are going to defend. In this case, if I were a coach I wouldn’t do it, otherwise I would look for a strategy that will lead me to win a game. I don’t think Bolivia will come out to defend itself or be worried about a star, because if their team is not doing well, there is no point in scoring against them because someone else can score the goal.

– Bolivia had a golden generation with you that qualified for the 1994 World Cup USA, but then you did not compete again, despite having a great player like Marcelo Martins, what happened?

It was a unique and special moment for Bolivian football, it is clear that things were not done well afterwards, because it has gone through very complicated, difficult moments and the truth is that it is sad for one as a Bolivian to see your team last and what happens for bad times. The only thing left to do is make up for that lost time, since it is the past. For us it is a great happiness that they continue to recognize us, it is very nice, but we need to get out of that hole before Bolivian football falls.

– Edison Flores has returned to the national team, you work and are a legend of DC United, a club where ‘El Orejas’ did not do well, what do you think happened?

In DC United it was not that Edison Flores did poorly, but rather the entire team did poorly, since it is in that negative moment that is reflected in the MLS. I think DC has been participating for many years and does not qualify for the Play Offs to be able to reach a final. It’s not just Flores’ fault. If the team does not perform, it is difficult for a single player to perform well.

-But from what you saw, did Edison Flores leave a good image at DC United?

I liked it a lot, it was sad that he left, since one always wants to have a figure or a South American player who can represent us. It’s sad that in recent years they haven’t qualified for the Play Offs.

– Marcelo Martins, idol in Bolivia, what could you tell us about him?

I have always shown a lot of respect for him, the things they do, the attitude he has for the national team, he has always been valuable, I have a great friendship with him and I wish him the best.

-Can Bolivia still fight for the World Cup?

It was a beautiful opportunity to start better, unfortunately it did not happen, we have to continue improving, we have no other choice because you can imagine beating Peru and fighting for a point against Uruguay and we are there. The good thing is that the coach knows the environment, I like that, we have hope that he can do well.

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