Independiente begins the Stillitano era: “To lead the First Division you have to be prepared and I prepared for this”

A new cycle has begun at Independiente. Leandro Stillitano He was introduced as the new manager of the club and held a press conference at the Libertadores de América stadium. His arrival at the institute is one of the first strong decisions of the board of directors composed of Fabian Doman, Nestor Grindetti and Juan Marconi. The objective is clear: to recover the historical identity of the club and play football according to the tastes of the fan.

Stillitano is an almost unknown name in local football. Admittedly, the 39-year-old coach will have his first experience as group leader of a first division side, having worked in promotion, been in charge of the red reserve and been part of assistant referee to Ariel Holan and Gustavo Quinteros. “I have been working in a team for 14 years. I was in Primera D, Primera C, worked with Ariel Holan, with Gustavo Quinteros. To command the First Division you must be prepared. And I’m ready for it“He expressed himself to dispel doubts about his preparation.

Furthermore, he revealed that he has a connection that goes beyond his professional one and that has to do with his personal life. Her father was a reserve player for the club, his brother worked for the club’s futsal team and his children are students at the Independiente-owned school. “My father played in the lower ranks, in reserve. He was a central midfielder. He told me what Independiente was, what Bochini, Pastoriza and Negro Galván were. My brother worked in the futsal club. And my children go to El Rojo school, just like my niece, who was robbed today and is here.”, he counted.

His intimate knowledge of the establishment means he knows exactly what the fans want and what idiosyncrasy needs to be worked through to return to the historical foundations and beliefs that have made Avellaneda’s team so great.

“Independiente must also win friendlies. This is what marks our history. The first thing we have to do is make the fan feel identified with the team. This is the first step in building the foundation. The whole club must become aware of the situation, but rest assured that we will do everything to take the club as high as possible.”was his message full of conviction.

There were many names on the table to replace Julio Cesar Falcioni, who was not liked by the management. Ricardo Gareca, Gustavo Quinteros, Mauricio Pellegrino, among others, were the options mentioned. For one reason or another none could be specified and the surname of Stillitano appeared, which generated acclaim and was liked by his modern and industrious profile. “When Pablo Cavallero and Daniel Seoane – sports secretary – called me, I didn’t hesitate. That Independiente calls me is like a family member or friend does. I’m convinced I’m here and doing a complete project, from the First Division to the Calcio dei Ragazzi. I was lucky enough to work with two winning coaches. I have the tools to put Independiente in the place it deserves“, he has declared.

As always, the beginning of the cycles gathers enthusiasm and renewed energy. However, Independiente’s financial situation is not good, in fact, it is plagued by debts and fearful of the inhibitions that could fall. Embeddings are probably few and far between, you can’t go wrong with the players being ported.

“We are working day by day with Fabián Doman and Pablo Cavallero to put the group together. We know that Independiente have a very small margin of error and we aim to strengthen the squad. There will be additions that are aligned with this“, commented Stillitano. For this reason, he has placed particular emphasis on what he wants for his team and on how he thinks the way to face this moment will be”.I want the team to be the protagonist of the match, interpreting the four phases of the game: when they attack and when they defend. The idea is to have the ball. And when you can’t, you have to know how to play without the ball. We aim for this and we believe we can achieve it“.

Doman and his sentence after the appointment of Stillitano

The new president of Independiente highlighted Stillitano’s courage in accepting the challenge of leading the club in a difficult moment like the one we are experiencing. “To be in this moment of Independiente you have to have balls“, he expressed.

Furthermore, he recalled the importance and value of having in-depth knowledge of the club’s junior and youth teams. Of course, in a time of so much debt, young people will be very important, they will have many recoveries and it will be essential that they are brought in the right way to be able to exploit their full potential. “We have brought the person who knows the most to the upper and lower divisions of Independiente. You don’t have to explain who each player is“

Pablo Cavallero, the club’s sporting director, said that despite the complications they are moving on the market to quickly add new recruits and that the coach has the players at his disposal who will have to outline the squad. “We are moving day by day so that we can have the team we are looking to have as quickly as possible. The idea is to have two players per position”.