The Colombian coach's career began in 2006 and after many achievements today is in the forefront thanks to the triumph of Mexico over Germany

Native of Risaralda, Colombia, and with 57 years, the Colombian trainer Juan Carlos Osorio today demonstrates why experts and soccer specialists have called him the new Marcelo Bielsa or the Pep Guardiola of Latin America. Although his achievements are not few, recently his name 'rumbles' in the world.

Mexico is a country that gave him the opportunity to direct his first national team, although it has criticized him harshly for his style of directing with constant rotations of players. However, the first triumph of the 'Tri' against Germany, the champion of the 2014 World Cup, is a great joy for the Mexican people, which at least for a few days makes them forget their position against Osorio, says the Infobae portal.

Leer en español: ¿Del odio al amor? Juan Carlos Osorio, el nuevo ídolo de México

It is not an apparition

However, Osorio has been knocking doors for years. Fan of Bielsa and Guardiola, the Colombian is a diligent scholar and a lover of basketball training, a sport that takes movements for their trainings.

"He is an obsessive of training. His great teachers have had links with other collective sports in small spaces: volleyball, basketball, handball. He is a teacher because he likes to teach, he does not tell the player 'you have to do this', he tells you what to do and why. He has a great ability to convince," revealed journalist Jorge Andrés Bermúdez, with whom Osorio wrote his book "La Libreta de Osorio" in 2015.

The publication explains the game philosophy of the 'risaraldense', which is nothing more than the repetition of exercises and situations to make the player react to the stimuli of the game subconsciously, according to Infobae. "He is passionate about being on a daily basis, seeing a player suddenly developing a bad movement in the field and generating an exercise to help him improve," said Bermúdez.

These ideas have been reflected in the teams he has directed and with which he won titles. His famous notebook is not a myth, it is a reality. For each match and play, Osorio uses a blue pencil to mark hits and another red to write down the errors in the notebook, even during the development of the match. This is an indication of his constant work.

A path linked to success

His first team was Millonarios in 2006, one of the most traditional sets of Colombian soccer. Although he did not obtain titles, the Colombian was already beginning to show signs of his way of playing offensively. In 2008 he was crowned the Eastern Conference monarch with the New York Red Bulls of Major League Soccer, then returned to his country to lead the Once Caldas, with whom he won the 2010 Torneo Finalización.

He then reached six titles between 2012 and 2014 as coach of the Atlético Nacional, which included the Superliga and the Copa Colombia in 2012, the Torneo Apertura, the Copa Colombia and the Torneo Finalización in 2013 and the Torneo Apertura in 2014.

He later took his stamp to Sao Paulo Brazil in 2015, but the experience lasted only five months because an offer from the Mexican Football Federation (Femexfut, by its acronym in English) appeared on the road.

Despite multiple criticisms for the rotation of players, with the 'Tri' Osorio classified undefeated in the knockout of Concacaf. However, the Colombian had the 'misfortune' of receiving two heavy defeats: one against Chile in the Copa America Centenario 2016 (7-0) and another against Germany in the Confederations Cup 2017 (4-1), which put him even more in the 'eye of the hurricane'.

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True to his idea

According to Infobae, Osorio explained the reason for his policy of not having fixed headlines. For the Colombian, the strategy generates confusion in the opponents and raises the tactical possibilities of their targets. "The structures of the set vary according to the needs and circumstances of the turn, the rival," he said.

The constant training and the selection of the group are the two key factors with which Osorio moves. "Just as in life we ​​cannot choose our children, in football many times we cannot choose the players," explained the risaraldense in his book.

The six-month plan

An article in the newspaper El Espectador details the minutes after the Mexico-Germany match in which Osorio somehow lectured his detractors: the Colombian strategist entered the field and celebrated with each of his players. This was done first with the legendary Rafa Marquez, then with Hugo Ayala, and so on with each one until the goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa.

"We were able to carry out the plan we designed six months ago. We had many casualties at this time, but the goal was achieved. I'm happy for the players and for the fans. However, the World Cup is just beginning, and we must continue working. This is for those who believed. And for those who do not, I want to tell you that we will continue giving our best to convince them," said the Colombian in a press conference after the game.

Although it seems a fact that Osorio will leave the Aztec national team just to finish this World Cup, this historic triumph can mark a before and after. The objective now is to maintain the solidity shown against Germany, advance in Group F and try to reach the long-awaited quarter-finals that have been held since 1986. We do not know what will happen, but it will be the fans and the specialized press who will decide if the 17 June 2018 was the moment that marked a better relationship with the new Marcelo Bielsa or the Pep Guardiola Latin American, as El Espectador well reported.

Latin American Post | Onofre Zambrano

Translated from " ¿Del odio al amor? Juan Carlos Osorio, el nuevo ídolo de México"