Troublesome Copa America Champs Chile May Be Hard for Pizzi to Inspire Again
"Chi-Chi-Chi! Le-Le-Le! Viva Chile, Chile!" was the catchy refrain that rang out across stadiums and streets last summer—although it was winter there—up and down the long, thin South American country.
A place that starts with hot desert and ends with snow-capped mountains, a country of contrasts but united in backing their team to triumph in the Copa America.
Everybody was convinced, from the fans that wielded a gigantic Chile flag at every game—which took several people to carry it into the stadium—to the taxi drivers who spoke about “when” La Roja would lift the trophy, not if.
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Even the smog that sat over Santiago and grew thicker and heavier the further south you went wasn’t enough to upset people. The capital was on “environmental alert” on various occasions during the tournament, with cars without specific catalytic converters banned from entering certain zones, but the football carried on, and so did Chile.
They sailed through the group, overcoming Uruguay and Peru in the knockout rounds and then beating Argentina on penalties in the final. “After 99 years, it came down to 12 yards,” wrote Jonathan Wilson in The Blizzard magazine, referring to Chile’s first tournament win since the competition’s inception.
It felt natural, like the end of a cycle, and it proved to be. The next day rain fell in Santiago for the first time in several months, helping to clear the smog. It was meant to be. Of course, everything had been in their favour from the start.
Argentina and Brazil—not that the Selecao were much good—were in the other half of the draw, it was on home soil, there was some dubious refereeing and several red card decisions went their way, none of the Copa’s other traditional powers were at their strongest.
That said, though, they were also the best team and deserved to end their cup drought. Jorge Sampaoli managed them superbly, his side playing with increasing maturity as the tournament progressed. He went on to be named one of the top three managers of the year by FIFA, before his relationship with Chile’s football federation (ANFP) ruptured.
Sampaoli said he was upset after his contract details were exposed in the press and ended up buying his way out of his deal in January after several weeks of arguing and negotiations, per the Press Association (h/t Daily Mail).
The Chilean football governing body released a statement, as reported by Reuters, reading:
"As part of the deal, Jorge Sampaoli's severance pay will be paid, including vacation days, salary for the month of January, and the awards owed to him for the last qualifying matches.
For his part, the ex-coach signed an IOU and agreed to pay a fee to the ANFP... and agreed to renounce the totality of his bonuses for the 2015 Copa America tournament.
"
However, despite Sampaoli’s claim, there is a decent argument to think that the coach merely wanted a way out after taking the “golden generation” to its natural peak. Repeating Copa America success at the Centenario tournament in the United States would be extremely hard.
Without the hordes of fans roaring the team on, without the buzz and emotion of the home tournament, not to mention a squad that had encountered glory that would not taste as sweet the second time, managing Chile at this summer’s tournament was not a hugely attractive option.
Less attractive still would be taking them to Russia for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The key players would be hitting 30 or past it, and La Roja would arrive with a level of expectation that it will not be able to sate. Particularly playing under Sampaoli, a disciple of Marcelo Bielsa, who demands a helter-skelter, high-energy pressing strategy from his team.
Despite it being a difficult job to take—Sampaoli’s team’s exploits will live long in the memory for Chileans, from their fiery World Cup displays in 2014 to Copa America glory—Juan Antonio Pizzi stepped forward. Another Argentinian.
According to World Soccer's Tim Vickery, several managers had turned down the job beforehand. A poisoned chalice.
Pizzi’s first game was against the country of his birth—although it should be noted he actually played for Spain in the 1990s—but he could not repeat Sampaoli’s feat at the same stadium, Estadio Nacional, eight months on.
His team did deliver a thrilling game, however, which the Copa America final was not. Felipe Gutierrez’s opener made for a perfect start for Pizzi, but goals from Angel Di Maria and Gabriel Mercado saw Argentina emerge 2-1 winners.
Unfortunately for the coach, Argentina’s equaliser came when defensive midfield shield Marcelo Diaz was off injured. However, Chile started flowing in the next game, a 4-1 win away against Venezuela, with Arturo Vidal and Mauricio Pinilla both netting twice.
Chile will face Argentina again in the group stage of this tournament, along with Bolivia, whom they beat in the first phase last year, and Panama.
The Copa America Centenario was always going to lead to a tough decision for Pizzi. Blood youngsters, including some who helped Chile reach the quarter-finals of the 2013 U20 World Cup, or stick with the first team? To compete at Russia 2018, some of the "kids" need to be brought through.
Three made the final squad in Erick Pulgar (22), Enzo Roco (23) and Nicolas Castillo (23), and the latter may get the chance to shine up front if anything should befall Pinilla.
Roco, who played at Espanyol in La Liga this season, is the tallest player in the squad at 1.92m, which could earn him a spot in defence—Sampaoli’s favoured pairing of Gary Medel and Gonzalo Jara didn’t boast much height.
For the most part, though, it’s the tried and trusted troops, with one boost being the return of Charles Aranguiz, who was exceptional last year but spent most of the season injured at Bayer Leverkusen.
Controversially, Jorge Valdivia was left out. The creative midfield is a unique player, albeit one who has proved troublesome in the past.
Known as "el mago," or "the magician," Valdivia is an extremely popular character both in the Chile camp and out of it. If Chile lack inspiration at times this summer, expect fingers to be pointed at Pizzi for failing to bring the 32-year-old to the States.
Valdivia’s mother has already started. "If this pig-headed Argentinian didn't call him up, it's because he didn't want to win the Copa America," she wrote on her Facebook page, according to Goal's Chilean website. "He didn't want to cause more pain to Argentina again."
According to the same source, Vidal and Medel, among others, were upset he was not included—the only player who started the final in 2015 not to make the squad.
Valdivia wrote on his Twitter account: “I will miss the national team. Thanks for your messages of love. I will support from outside, and I wish my team-mates success.
“I will keep preparing myself for when they call me, to be better than ever. Success and lots of strength to my friends and team-mates in La Roja. And the coach, too.”
At the last Copa America, there were also a couple of troublesome incidents, with Vidal crashing his Ferrari after drink-driving, per the Daily Mail, and Jara exploring Edinson Cavani’s behind a little too closely.
Pizzi may have his work cut out trying to control this group of players, particularly given neither Vidal nor Alexis Sanchez have been at their very best this season.
Alexis took six days off after a disappointing season with Arsenal before linking up with the Chile squad. Scoring 17 goals in 41 games is not bad, but injury in December hampered the forward’s season, and he went on a few long runs without finding the net.
It was Alexis’ penalty that won Chile the tournament on home soil, after captain Claudio Bravo had saved Ever Banega’s spot-kick. The Barcelona goalkeeper will feature in his fifth Copa America this summer, more than any other player in the squad.
With the team bookended by Alexis and Bravo, with Vidal in the middle and backed up by Diaz, Aranguiz, Medel and Co., ruling Chile out of contention isn’t an option. But for Pizzi, shipwreck is just as possible as success. On one hand it's a chance to apply his own methods, on the other, should anything go wrong, negative comparisons with Sampaoli won't be slow to arrive.
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