Alberto Escassi is characterized by showing his face in the good and bad moments of Mlaga CF. The 21-22 season has been a real Annus horribilis for the club of martyrs. Now, one of the blue and white captains interrupts his vacation to take stock of the bad and the less bad of the course.
We haven’t lived up to the club and the city
Off-sport issues, talks between captains, Guede’s arrival and hopes for next season. The paleo reviews each and every one of the topics and gets involved in several issues: “I will go for Febas by car to Lleida if necessary”.
Something calmer after the end-of-course statements?
I’m calmer, not as hot as just after the match against Burgos. It’s been more than a week and I’m already thinking about the future. The past is past, and I don’t want us to beat ourselves up because it’s not going anywhere. You have to clear your mind and look forward. You have to be self-critical.
What self-criticism do you do individually and collectively?
At the individual level, regularity. I have not had it, I have had ups and downs and it has come together with the theme of the cards. They have been 3 red and 11 or 12 yellow. I definitely have to improve. We have not measured up and we have not lived up to the club and the city. It is simple to summarize: it has been a disaster. It’s time to think about the future and do self-criticism.
Many people think that there are players who have laughed at the shield…
It is true that for several moments there have been problems outside the sport. We have closed with some players and talking to some of them to tell them that it could not be repeated. No matter how much we talk, when everyone goes home it is very difficult to control that. I don’t know if that youth and that immaturity has been able to take its toll on us. The atmosphere has been good, there have never been any fights, but there have been slaps. What each one of us does outside has an impact on all of us. If they catch two or three going out, the ‘drunks and mercenaries’ thing is sung to us all. They didn’t carry any kind of evil, and with that youth they still don’t realize what they represent. The atmosphere was healthy and we were united, although many people did not believe it.
During the year we have closed with some players to correct them
One of those extra-sports issues has been the ‘Anton case’…
Anton is a kid who is very sorry for Malaga, and it hurts me a lot. People doubt him and he has no head. He recognized that he was wrong and that he did it unconsciously. We were in a moment and a situation in which all the details had to be kept. When Ibiza scored 0-5, he was the only player I saw crying. When he has been left out, he has always cheered. He too has suffered a lot. Many judge what they see, and it is true that he was unlucky, but he admits it.
Do I have to do a clean?
It is normal. When things go wrong you have to look for solutions, and in all the templates there is usually a good clean and a change. This year the squad hasn’t been up to the task and it hasn’t been good, it’s normal for there to be changes.
Malaga had three coaches… Which exit hurt the most?
They all hurt me. You put a family out of work. It’s the first thing I think of. When he is fired, he is a coach who remains unemployed. Due to the situation of the club and the team, it is simpler and easier to fire them than to fire the players. Those of Natxo and José Alberto, when they left, they made a small talk and got emotional. You feel responsible for those outings. These are fucked up moments in football. It happens in all the teams in the world. Coaches pay and I’ve always said: we are responsible for this.
Natxo gave the sensation of not falling on his feet…
With Natxo I think that football has been unfair. I don’t count the Mirands match because it arrives two days before. There are 9 games in which he was in which we played very good games. At home with Cartagena, away with Girona… We started badly on the day of Ponferradina, but we were good in the second half. As a coach he had and has very good things. The level of preparation was very good. In the end, the results are what rule. I like his philosophy and his way of seeing football.
Now with Guede it seems that there may be continuity…
Pablo is a coach who transmits a lot of character. From the first day he saw that the locker room was not very strong and he wanted to instill that discipline and strong hand. He is a guy whose way of seeing football and managing, his passion, is a piece of coach. He came against the clock, with a situation similar to that of Natxo. He hasn’t given him much time to work, and with all the enthusiasm in each training session he has saved the day. He has told us that on the 4th of July we prepare that he is going to kill us
You have talked to him a lot, haven’t you?
He is super direct and tells you everything to your face. He told me that he had to stop playing like a Malaga fan and he opened my eyes. I watched the games and made mistakes because of that overexcitement. It hurt a lot and I was too excited. Now I play more with my head than with my heart. He came out calmer, despite being a very hot player. I was trying to manage my emotions better.
And how does one change that at their age?
I think that my way of being is what has given me to be in professional football for better or for worse. I try to calm that intensity. The master says a phrase that I like: ‘if you control your inner fire it is very powerful’. Making a metaphor, but controlling myself a little. He knows it’s my way of being, I don’t understand football in any other way than leaving my soul. He makes me make mistakes and be late.
Guede does not stop talking to his team…
When the League ended, he called us individually for the future. With me it was clear. He knows that I can play central or defensive pivot. Telling me that I have to control those mistakes and not play with my heart so much. He has realized that even when I was he I have made some. You have to put a strong hand from minute one, that certain situations that have occurred are not let go. It puts a lot of emphasis on discipline and it’s very important. We captains have the role we have to have. A coach, when he is not there, we are. This year we have to do it from minute one. When we see something related to immaturity, cut it.
It seems that there will be many more veteran signings and exits?
Of that I have no idea. I can’t talk to you. I have no idea what template Manolo is going to make. From the way I see it, I think making a mix is what works. There has to be everything. That veteran and experience, but above all hungry players. In this category it is that: the most important word is compete. I don’t know if they are going to bring players who compete or with more quality, but above all that mix.
Although the quarry will continue to be present…
Throughout the year they have been with us. Kevin and Roberto all year, and then the case of Loren, Andrs, Dani Lorenzo, Vctor Olmo… They are footballers who have shown that they are the future of Malaga. Vctor had a great game against Oviedo, Andrs is a very good footballer, very young… It’s to celebrate.
The first signing… Manolo Reina.
I think it’s great. Manolo is a footballer with impressive tables, who comes from the First Division and who will come with that ability to put order and be a leader. Surely in the locker room he will be a very important figure.
What would Escassi change for 22/23?
Let the players who come know what Mlaga represents. I have spoken with Luis Muoz and we have had self-criticism. Whoever comes here has to come to die for the club and the badge. To have commitment, be responsible and we cannot allow what has happened this year to happen.
Who would be the MVP of the course for you?
I will give it to Febas. I really like Febas. I am a clear person. Dani Martín has also finished at an impressive level. We have spoken in private and I have congratulated him. I brought Febas to me as if I had to drive to Lleida and bring him to me. I have no hand with Manolo, and I respect the work of each one a lot. I don’t like to get into things that don’t belong to me. But if it depended on me, I would sign him.
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