on the lawn of Eden Park of Aucklandin New Zealanda few moments after Spain beat Sweden and got into the final of a worldan image happened that summarizes the last months lived by the national selector Jorge Vilda. Luis Rubialespresident of the federationwhich leads in Oceania Since a few days before the start of the tournament, who has breakfast, lunch and dinner with the entire expedition every day to “make a group” and avoid further problems, he went behind his back and forced him to raise his arms in victory. As the coach who jumps into the ring to raise the victorious boxer’s fist, Rubiales staged his bet. Without him, Vilda would not have endured on the bench of a broken team, which has now become the history of Spanish sports.
A schism similar to the one that caused Vilda’s arrival at the absolute rocked her position last summer. Yes, in 2015 the Madrid coach, who began to train in the Federation by following in his father’s footsteps Ángelreached the national bench after the resignation of the eternal Beloved after the protests of the players for the failure in the Canada World Cupin September 2022 the so-called “best female generation in the history of Spanish football” cried out against the management and fitness of the coaching staff, extending the whip to a Federation that did not hesitate to start a media war.
The publication by the RFEF of the resignation of 15 players because “the situation affects his emotional state” led to a crossroads statements and leaks that turned the rozas in a powder magazine, with that double press conference, first by Vilda and then by the captains, as the central axis. They asked «change» in the methods and admitted «a general malaise» with group management.
In 2015, Quereda resigned after 27 years in charge of the national team and after accusations of degrading treatment. In 2022, Vilda refused to step aside.endured the downpour and embraced the Rubiales confidencewhom he voted for president instead of Larrea in the 2018 elections. «Without Rubiales, I would not be here.», acknowledged the coach recently. The Federation’s warning was clear from the beginning: “The players who have resigned They will only come back if they accept their mistake and ask for forgiveness.».
From there began months of conversationsof messagesof attempts to reconciliationof boredom between the soccer players and media tension, with Vilda always in the eye of the hurricane. The friendlies, many with victory, strengthened her position and the work behind the scenes, together with the desire of several soccer players to play in a World Cup that seemed to be historic, did the rest.