Interview
Enzo Francescoli

Considered a true footballing legend, Enzo Francescoli will always be adored by fans of Club Atlético River Plate.

His legacy, however, extends well beyond the club based in the Belgrano district of Buenos Aires, with the former Uruguay international, nicknamed El Príncipe (the Prince), having secured an undeniable place in the history books of world football. Francescoli represented his national team at two editions of the FIFA World Cup™ and won the CONMEBOL Copa América on three occasions, the last of which came in 1995, when Uruguay beat Brazil on home soil in a penalty shoot-out at Montevideo’s famous Estadio Centenario.

In addition to his international career, he amassed over 500 appearances at club level across South America and Europe, which exposed him to different playing and management styles as well as club philosophies. Those invaluable experiences serve him on a daily basis in his current position as River Plate’s sporting director.

Speaking to the FIFA Professional Football Journal, Francescoli provides insights on the wide-ranging impact COVID-19 has had on the club, explains the importance of youth development in relation to River Plate’s overall strategy and reflects on an extremely successful last six years – a period that began with Francescoli opting for club legend Marcelo Gallardo as coach and tasking him with transforming the squad.

How has the health crisis caused by COVID-19 affected your club, both in general and in sporting terms, particularly with respect to the management of the squad?

It’s been a big headache for all clubs in Argentina on the sporting front – in our case, not just because of the long hiatus, but also because of the return of the Libertadores and the uncertainty as to whether our fans would be able to cheer us on.

It’s also been an economic challenge, since the country is dealing with a complex situation, which has repercussions in all sectors. For such a major club to be out of action for so long is a significant setback with regard to transfers and players’ market values. That’s an issue that clubs everywhere are grappling with at the moment. We’ll have to see what solutions can be found. For a club like River, not being able to have our fans at the stadium has a psychological impact, as well as affecting revenues.

Speaking of psychology, do you think that the crisis has had an impact on professional footballers in that respect? And what about the physical condition of teams collectively and players individually?

It’s almost definitely had an impact, although that’s obviously more of an individual thing – everyone reacts differently to seeing their usual routine disrupted. But all of society is going to have to get over this as best we can and as quickly as possible, and we know that the squad fully understand that.

The team have taken good care of themselves and hit the ground running on returning to training; everyone has kept working hard individually and we haven’t seen a major impact with regard to physical condition. They’re a very conscientious and responsible bunch and have dealt with it in the best possible way. They’ve all stayed in shape and followed the training regimens they were given throughout this period. The hardest part after such a long lay-off is probably regaining match sharpness; it’s always hard to come back and it’ll take a little while longer to get into the groove.

In your opinion, how did and will the COVID-19 pandemic affect the transfer market?

The market is sluggish; clubs are still unsure about their budgets and potential revenues, which has a clear bearing on the signings that can be made. There’s uncertainty over what the future will look like going forward, what competitions will look like, and how much income clubs will have available. Therefore, we’ve just got to do the best we can and try to be responsible until the picture is clearer.

What can and should professional football learn from COVID-19? How does the game need reinventing?

It’s always been a popular sport, it’s followed by the masses, which is a big complication right now. Without the crowds, the spectacle is a lot poorer; you lose the folklore, the colour, and in some cases it can even affect the appetite to watch matches. Honestly, the best solution would be for a vaccine to appear on the scene so that we can put all this behind us sooner rather than later, which is what society as a whole, not just football, is waiting for.

As for improvements, we have some lingering organisational bad habits in Latin America, things that are done in a sub-par way, and the scheduling process could probably do with being improved, which would enable us to have a clear calendar from the start and to plan the season better.

What’s the biggest challenge in your role as the sporting director of a massive club like River Plate?

It’s a role that’s tied to the team’s fortunes and there are always highs and lows. Since I’m in charge of a sporting area, if the team perform well, that makes my job much easier. In that regard, in recent times, River have rediscovered a sense of purpose in terms of what the club represents in Argentina and the world, which is very important. I think building on that legacy is essential. The hardest part is to minimise the number of mistakes made on the recruitment side, while accepting that you can’t get everything right. That’s the biggest challenge: to increase your transfer hit rate to the highest possible level.

The sporting director plays a major part in the squad-building process. How important is the psychological and personal side when weighing up whether to sign a player?

Firstly, I have to say that I’ve always fully agreed with and been clear on the fact that the coach should have the final say, because it’s up to him to field the players. I’ve always had a very good line of communication with Marcelo and have never had any issues on that score, which is important when it comes to squad-building.

Football isn’t an exact science and there are always going to be mistakes, but it’s about trying to minimise those errors to the greatest extent possible by having a measured approach. We strive to evaluate the psychological side and to find out the most important things about players to understand what makes them tick and gauge whether they’ll be a good fit at the club. So far, we haven’t had any problems and the players we’ve brought in have been able to settle and buy into what River are all about. The most important factor when considering signing players is whether they’re adaptable enough to adjust to the River way.

How would you describe the last six years at the club in sporting and management terms? If you had to pick out three or four key aspects, what would they be?

The key is that I believe in a philosophy and in applying it consistently. Fortunately, since Gallardo took the reins, we’ve been able to maintain that philosophy and achieve consistency of process over time, which is one of the best things that could have happened to River, as it instils an important measure of continuity. That’s been the biggest strength: having a philosophy and being able to implement it over time and stick to it.

Another important aspect that’s often overlooked is the large number of former River players that are now back on the books. That provides a very strong sense of belonging, which is vital for the club’s organisational culture. I can’t name them all, so the people I don’t mention will have to forgive me, but to give a few examples, we’ve got El Pato (Ubaldo) Fillol working in the goalkeeping-coaching team; there’s Hernán Díaz and Ariel Ortega, who are respectively part of the management and technical sides of the youth set-up; and Norberto Alonso in the presidential office. They all know what the club is all about and can relay that to the players, because it’s very important to carry on in the vein of the club’s past, which those of us who have been part of River’s history can pass on.

What are River Plate’s current medium- and long-term plans and goals as an institution?

In football, you live from one Sunday to the next and from moment to moment; that’s the nature of the beast, as well as something I’m personally guilty of. In the medium term, though, you always start every season hopeful of winning trophies and achieving big things – all the more so at a club like River. Plans are also afoot concerning the reorganisation of the youth system, which we’ve been working on over the last six years. On top of that, there’s infrastructure: we want to keep upgrading the training ground and to improve the pitch and general facilities at the Estadio Monumental, among other things. Ultimately, it’s essential that we continue with the philosophy that we’ve been following for more than six years now and which needs to endure regardless of the result on any given Sunday.

What are your personal goals on the sporting side in the medium and long term?

Truth be told, there can’t be any such distinction between yourself and the club: you’ve got to embrace the club’s goals as your own. I’m very comfortable with my position at the club; I’m under contract until December 2021, which is when [club chairman] Rodolfo D’Onofrio’s term of office ends, and we’ll see what happens after that. My plans and success are intimately linked to everything that happens at the club; personal considerations have to take a back seat.

What role does the youth academy play in the club’s overall strategy?

A very important one. River have always had a keen interest and invested a lot of effort in youth development. We’ve now reorganised that work, injecting a bit more structure, installing more and better pitches, and offering more logistical support to the kids playing in the youth system. It’s a highly important factor for any South American club: you’ve got to keep very close tabs on the work at youth level, devoting a lot of attention and care to that area, because it has a major bearing not only on the club’s sporting success, but also on its financial survival through transfers.

You had a brilliant career as a player, making more than 500 appearances at club level and scoring over 227 goals across stints in Uruguay, Argentina, France and Italy. How has the game changed since your playing days?

There’s been a big change in the athleticism and in relation to personal care and all the scientific work, which is a major help for players, coaches and everyone else who is involved on the preparation side. Football has become somewhat more professional than in my day and it shows out on the pitch: nowadays, the game is much faster-paced and more frenetic, and it has changed tactically hand in hand with the physical developments.

Having said that, football has always been about different types of talents and harnessing them within a team structure. So long as there’s talent, everything else can be improved. That’s why I think that anyone who was able to distinguish themselves in previous eras would also do so now, making the most of the tools that modern-day players have at their disposal.

What’s your view on the future of professional football internationally? What are the key aspects for the game’s development worldwide?

We’ve got to be mindful not to overstep the mark and to remember that it’s a game played by human beings, whose ability to perform and physical endurance are finite. The insatiable appetite for matches means that we’re approaching saturation point. We need to take a careful look at the scheduling and coordinate as effectively as we can at global level so that players aren’t stretched to the limit, as they seem to be right now. We’ve got to a stage at which players are playing every two or three days, not to mention the travel involved, which further exacerbates things, meaning that they are under ever-greater physical and mental strain. That’s why I say we’re on the brink and we need to suitably revamp the international calendar to avoid subjecting the players to demands that are not humanly possible.