Spain coach Vicente Del Bosque, in London to savor the rich history of Spanish Football, on the key ingredients to tournament success and why it takes more than just a good Chorizo Stew (fabada) to decorate the table with silverware.
Despite popping champagne corks in Madrid, Paris and Cape Town, Vicente Del Bosque, manager of the no.1 ranked team in international football, is no cosmopolite. One of only two men to have won the top prizes in both club and international football (both with teams from the peninsula), the caricature Spaniard is speaking to the media through an interpreter as a swell of activity envelops him. All the while Del Bosque seems impervious to, if not a little bemused by, the apparent interest.
Del Bosque is in London at the invitation of the Instituto Cervantes to attend a screening of ‘El Alma de La Roja’, Santiago Zannou’s documentary homage to the current World and European Champions and it doesn’t take long for the Salamancan to display two of his trademark qualities; serenity and sincerity. “We’re happy to be here” he says, but adds “we have an objective, we’re here to see a film and we hope to give a good impression of what Spanish football is over its one hundred year history.” And what role has Del Bosque played in guiding Spain to its first ever world cup (in South Africa in 2010) and the irrefutable highlight of these one hundred years? “Well, we had the path practically laid out for us (after the European championship triumph in Austria in 2008)” he states unambiguously. And his modesty is genuine.
In a managerial career spanning 25 years, Del Bosque has only ever coached outside of Spain for a period of eight months. In June 2004 he took charge of Turkish side Besiktas only to have his contract terminated in early 2005 following a string of poor results. It seems curious that the story of a man, as stereotypically Spanish in poise and appearance as one would imagine a character from Don Quixote, should include such an undistinguished episode. More so that it should unfold in the land of one of Spanish literature’s most historic Others.
But Don Vicente (recently ennobled with the title First Marquis of Del Bosque by the King of Spain) is mildly dismissive of the negative cultural impact on footballers plying their trade in foreign lands. On being asked how he viewed the situation of Manchester City’s recalcitrant Argentinian forward Carlos Tevez he stated somewhat objectively that “it seems a shame that a player of his talent isn’t playing every weekend” and taking a broader view of the suggestion that this was attributable to Tevez’s distaste for British culture and cuisine adding “it’s not so different anywhere in the world”. Although the sentiment is well intended, the sense that Del Bosque’s place in the world is Spain is palpable.
Nice boys
At Besiktas, Del Bosque signed Spanish international left-back Juan Francisco Garcia Garcia (Juanfran), one of only two signings he made whilst in charge there. In a recent interview in El Pais, Juanfran suggested that a footballer who doesn’t consider themselves privileged is a bad guy (mala persona). Does Del Bosque, in the context of austerity and endemic unemployment (especially youth unemployment) in Spain, share the sentiments of his compatriot and former player?
“I’d like everyone to be a good person but sportsmen in general are good guys”. But what duty do Spanish footballers have in such circumstances? Should they necessarily appear modest? Elaborating on the relationship between football and the broader socioeconomic realties from which it is often isolated Del Bosque emphatically agrees. “Yes, yes. They’re aware of what the country is experiencing. They understand the situation. They know they’re lucky but if we have to have faith in the way they conduct themselves on the pitch, well we do. They’re nice guys. Young men who behave in the right way.”
A functional family
This modesty appears key to Spain’s likeableness as a team and seems only to have been reaffirmed as the supreme virtue espoused by Del Bosque’s regime. Chelsea’s Juan Mata, handed his senior debut for the national side during this time (2009), also emphasizing this in a recent interview. Such pervasive modesty exists in sharp contrast to the attitude the English national team is accused of having. Why does there seem to be so little solidarity among the English players? Tactfully but revealingly Del Bosque offers that “in every family there’s always something…” evidently the present Spanish squad is a relatively happy and cohesive family, the English, not least without a father figure, is a dysfunctional one.
That’s not to say that Spain doesn’t have its problem children. The goal scoring form of Fernando ‘El Nino’ Torres is of particular concern to most observers of elite football. Focus on Spain’s frontline has inevitably sharpened even more so following the broken leg sustained by Euro 2008 golden boot winner David Villa (of whom Del Bosque once said, irrespective of nationality, he would prefer over Cristiano Ronaldo).
Torres scored a memorable winning goal in the final against Germany and Del Bosque is cognizant of the contribution that players like Torres have made to the national side. But would this determine whether or not his name appears on the final squad list for Euro 2012? “We can’t say without doubt that we have to take such players because they’ve played well in the past. We’ll need to look at the current situation of each one.” He continues “but it’s going to be tough to tell some of them that they aren’t coming. We’ll be thinking about the past, certainly, but we have to also consider the day to day”. The implicitness is a little uncomfortable. Thankfully the awkwardness soon dissipates as he gives a concrete but less prescient example; “for instance, it was a very difficult decision not to take Marcos Senna to the World Cup (inn 2010) when he was undoubtedly one of the best players in the whole of the European championships (in 2008)”.
Without Villa or Torres would Del Bosque consider turning to one of Spain’s abundant attacking midfielders to play further forward? “We’ll try to use all our best players even if they are midfielders” he says. Could Cesc Fabregas fill in? “It’s an option, yes. We did the same with Guti at Real Madrid (Del Bosque’s most successful spell occurring between 1999-2003, during which time he one winning two Champions League and two Spanish league titles) and it worked very well”.
The Victory of Simplicity
So the staple footballers of the Spain squad are adaptable, humble and numerous in technical quality. If these are the key ingredients then there must be an invisible binding agent, something to cut through the acerbic rivalries between teams like Madrid and Barcelona, something which makes them even more than the sum of their choice parts. What does it boil down to? Little more than stewed chorizo and white kidney beans really. The affable Del Bosque responds in jest to his own earlier proclamation that to guarantee a good team spirit you only have to give the constituent members the best food possible.
In Del Bosque’s world, a world where international footballers sit and eat regularly together, enjoy eclectic training sessions and “don’t flaunt their own vanity” the best food is somewhat predictably fabada, a traditional rich and fatty dish originating from Asturias in northern Spain.
Del Bosque has been erroneously quoted as saying that he will retire after the European cup this summer. He has, however, stated that being in charge of the Spain team will constitute the last stage in his career, however many forthcoming tournaments that may include. It is fitting of a man who served up the world cup to a parched Spanish populace with such humility that he should apparently care little for his own legacy. Presumably the next Spain manager should pursue a policy of continuity after him? “That will be for whoever takes over to decide.” He placidly replies.
Del Bosque encapulates how simplicity and humility can serve you well. In a world of football, where wealth and vanity lurk in abundance to distract and divide, keeping things simple is not such simple task. As the English know only too well.
