Johnny Herrera, former goalkeeper, symbol of the ‘U’ and World Cup player in Brazil 2014, assured that Gary Medel should no longer be used as a take-off midfielder, due to the difference in physical expenditure compared to the work of central defender, and highlighted the debut of Eduardo Berizzo despite the defeat with South Korea.
Eduardo Berizzo made his debut on the bench of the Chilean team on Monday, in the 2-0 friendly defeat against South Korea, and surprised with new names and some position changes.
One of those modifications was to place the reference and experienced Gary Medel as holding midfieldera position he initially held at Universidad Católica.
Precisely in the ‘Equipo de Todos’ and under the command of Jorge Sampaoli, the ‘Pitbull’ began to play straight from central defender and it would not move any more from that position, until yesterday. The Italian Bologna player was always a guarantee as a last man, with his speed and good sense of location.
However, ‘Toto’ placed Gary as a defensive midfielder against the South Koreans, using Benjamín Kuscevic and Paulo Díaz as central defenders, and that caused some noise in the football environment.
Johnny Herrera, former goalkeeper, symbol of the ‘U’ and World Cup player in Brazil 2014, raised his voice asking that Medel not play more than 6. “For me, Medel should not play contention anymore. It asks you for a much greater physical wear. The holding midfielders are the ones who run the most in these schemes, ”he said in his role as a commentator for TNT Sports.
Johnny Herrera and @LaRoja: “A team with dynamics was seen”#TSTxTNTSports ???? pic.twitter.com/gJWGqC0wdL
— TNT Sports Chile (@TNTSportsCL) June 6, 2022
“You fall apart with the difference in energy expenditure from power plant to flywheel. And if you already have your traversal, you may end up breaking players. There I think Medel is being harmed, he has to play central and choose. And if there are central defenders like Díaz and Kuscevic, he will have to choose (Eduardo Berizzo)”, he added.
On the other hand, the ‘Samurai’ put his thumb up when referring to Eduardo Berizzo’s debut as technical director of the national team.
“I liked the position of the team, the imprint when entering the field, looking for the game, reducing spaces, Berizzo’s approach in a very short time, he arrived last week and it was not known if he even traveled. But we saw a team with dynamics, risk and that gives peace of mind. It is going to show a football line, which is what I have gotten bored of asking, taking risks, pressing, ”he pointed out.
“It is the first time that this scheme is played and Chile’s defense was not good, but they are things that can be corrected, such as not going out in the middle as much or skipping the first line and looking for a longer ball instead of always wanting to go out with the steering wheel. The coach will do it. I have high expectations of this new process, if nothing strange happens on the way to the next World Cup, Chile should be there. I only wish him success,” Herrera said.