Ruben Darío Insua’s step by step to restore peace to San Lorenzo

Three months. At that time, Saint Lawrence We have gone from an unbearable climate and a totally disoriented team that has swallowed manager after manager to a sustained calm in a team that once again believed in itself, that understood the clear messages of their manager and that for the first time for a long time manages to infect the fan from the engagement.

Not everything is resolved in the Cyclone, At all. There will be early elections on December 17th for a reason. However, the arrival of Ruben Darío Insua has been the great sporting success of recent years. With specific guidelines, a simple script, and careful steps to go step by step without skipping any, Gallego became the peace restorer for the Boedo club.

San Lorenzo no To fly on the grass. It doesn’t give away 90 minutes of flashy football. Nor is it a winning machine, far from it. Just this weekend he managed to put together two consecutive victories (Platense and Racing) after more than a year. However, he has stopped losing, has regained his self-esteem and is gradually being encouraged to take the limelight for longer and longer periods of time. And that, for a team that burnt ball and who was already looking with awe at the media table for next year, is a huge advance in just over 90 days since Insua took office.

The first good decision was the leadership, after experimenting with different names of different styles of technicians who have failed one after another (malaria dates back to the time of Jorge Almirón, the second cycle of Juan Antonio Pizzi, Diego Monarriz, Mariano Soso, Diego Dabove, Paolo Montero, Pedro Troglio, with internships of the extinct Technical Secretariat in the middle). After Marcelo Tinelli was removed from the presidency, they chose to take a detour and hire someone from the house.

Previously they had appointed Matías Caruzzo as the coordinator of professional football. And the former defender was also important to choose the DT and in turn play a very close role with the squad. It is true that they didn’t have many more options why either the names that most seduced (Alexander Medina, Luis Zubeldia, Hernan Crespo) they were either over budget or had already written off interest quickly.

But in the first interview with the managers, Gallego was surprised by his knowledge of the squad and Argentine football, despite he hadn’t directed the country for nearly 15 years. Insua put on the table what she had to do to restore the identity of the San Lorenzo. And she ended up convincing them.

His greatest virtue so far in this cycle of amassing five wins, eight draws and only two losses is having done exactly what he said he would do. He hasn’t skipped any steps and has yet to put some bricks into the construction of the San Lorenzo that he intends, given that his idea of ​​him is that in 2023 he could be optimal to fight for a title again.

How did you manage to get the Ciclón out of the pit in three months and go from worrying about staying to the illusion of qualifying for an international cup?

The first thing he focused on was the formation of the squad. He analyzed the group of players he had, the many young players, and on the basis of this he raised and insisted on the needs to be strengthened. Due to financial problems, he quickly realized that he could not have the reinforcements he wanted.

Thus, he honed his wits alongside Caruzzo. He warned that to carry to carry he would stay with the quarry boys. And he evaluated every name offered. So he praised footballers like the unknown striker Andrés Vombergar and midfielder Juan Ignacio Méndez (free of Talleres), for example.

Once the market was done, he tightened the internal screws on a day-to-day basis so that his kids could grasp his concepts. He made strong decisions by lowering the line when he noticed that someone was relaxing or not focused, as happened at the time with Nicolás Fernández Mercau and Agustín Martegani.

He motivated the boys by charging those who excelled in the Reserve so that they know that the doors of the First Division are open to whoever wins it. And he raised players who had discarded material, such as Nahuel Barrios, or who did not perform, such as Adam Bareiro (now the team’s top scorer with 7 goals) and Jalil Elías.

“With Insua those who don’t run don’t play”, repeat the Barça players. Which, after all, translates into the field. The characteristic of this San Lorenzo is undoubtedly the delivery. By placing a lot of emphasis on the sense of belonging, the Galician made it clear that discipline and sacrifice are vital and non-negotiable.

In his inner circle he highlights the intention to achieve a mix between courage and play. Being a cerebral and passionate team at the same time. He likes to compare the idiosyncrasies of the Estudiantes de La Plata (he played there between 1986 and 1988) and the San Lorenzo to illustrate it and argue that by combining both you can achieve perfect balance.

From behind, supported by a 5-2-3, he increased the confidence of his team. There is a visible evolution in the blue-red game, although it still lacks fluidity. He started worrying about cutting losses and becoming strong on defense. Today San Lorenzo is an annoying team, for which it is not so easy to generate situations inside the area. He feels comfortable betting on the break, but is gradually being encouraged to take risks.

Thus, with a clear north, Insua is collecting a San Lorenzo that wants to resurface. The confirmation of the election date helped to decompress the tense atmosphere that reigned in the New Gasometer, where even the Cyclone won again thanks to Ruben Darío. Apart from the political crisis, the improvement of football and the contagion from the pitch to the stands have brought relief and calm after too many storms.