His style is to use group meetings, and then one-on-one time with each player, in an effort to draw out his individual needs. “His process consists of transformative conversations,” Palencia said in a telephone interview from his home in Barcelona, Spain. “It encourages people to become the best version of themselves.”
But the team’s record since Ibarrondo’s hiring is mixed. In Mexico’s first match after he took an official role, it broke a long losing streak against the United States by winning a World Cup qualifier in Columbus, Ohio. But the next summer, Mexico settled for a tie in the return match in Mexico City, then crashed out of the Confederations Cup in Russia weeks later with a humbling 4-1 loss to Germany.
Critics of the team, and of Osorio, pointed to the defeat as merely the latest example of a Mexican team crumbling in the late stages of a competition. Even as Mexican officials have put their faith in Ibarrondo, Osorio acknowledged the difficulty of seeking a magic formula.
The “players will acquire their mental strength by competing,” he said in May, when announcing his preliminary roster for the World Cup. But given Mexico’s recent history in the tournament — a run of disappointments that earned Mexico the nickname “el equipo del ya merito,” or “the just almost team” — a new approach seemed worth a try.
In 1994, Mexico lost to Bulgaria on penalty kicks in the second round. In 1998, it was eliminated at the same stage when it lost a late lead against Germany. And in 2002, the United States dashed El Tri’s hopes — and wounded the nation’s pride — by beating Mexico, 2-0, in Jeonju, South Korea.
Four years later, the Argentine coach Ricardo La Volpe, taking charge of Mexico’s team, was the first to acknowledge what seemed obvious to others: that no matter how much Mexico denied it, the team had an existential problem, a lack of confidence that was holding the players back.
Source : NYtimes
