Balotelli Archives - En Clave Culer

Orlandi’s Monday: a time for real men

30/12/201427/10/2014 por Andrea Orlandi

PULSA AQUÍ PARA LEER LA VERSIÓN EN CASTELLANO

The pursuit of happiness gets more complicated every time. This is, without a shadow of a doubt, the hardest season of my professional career. The way everything started, you could tell that things would need time, that it wasn’t going to be a smooth sailing, but I never, in my worse dreams, imagined something like this. I struggle to sleep, I struggle to be happy and enjoy my job. Only the support of my family keeps me going.

On the other hand, I am one that thinks that the higher the hurdle is the higher you have to jump. And I know that only by putting more effort and being real men, we will manage to forge ahead. And I say real men because the game doesn’t lie. You have to stand up when things are wrong and try again and again. What we cannot do is stop trying, and I say that for everybody. I am the first one that have to show that I deserve to play in this category like I have done in the past, because right now I feel like I don’t give to the team what I am capable of and what I should give.

I didn’t want to write about the team this week, given everything that is going on, but what else can I write about? I don’t have anything else in my head and I want to apologise again to our fans, especially to those who came to Reading. I didn’t go to salute them at the end of the game and that is not nonsense to me. When the referee blew the final whistle, I stayed on the bench disheartened and demoralised. The world disappeared for me and I didn’t behave the way I should have had with the fans. I am truly sorry.

Despite our state of mind and how demoralised we feel, football goes on. In Spain it was the week of the Clasico and it looked like the world was going to end, like if the country would get out of the crisis depending on the match’s result. The truth is that it is a great game to watch, a clash between two great teams with different but beautiful footballing styles. On the trip to Reading, Edu Oriol and I, suggested a sweep stake for the game for £5 each. Peter Clarke and Jef Rentmeister won it. The idea was to enjoy watching the game together in the bus on the way home, after winning our game. Needless to say we weren’t in the mood to enjoy anything…

Barça lost the game but jumping up to conclusions after one game is too risky, especially when the opposition is a first class team. Was Madrid better? Ok, I read that Luis Enrique admitted that they were which is a good way of preparing the team for whatever has to come. By the way, if Casillas hadn’t miraculously stopped that shot from Messi and Barca had gone 2-0 up, the game would have been a different story!

I was surprised to see Suárez starting in the first eleven. That shows his dimension as football player. Normally, any other player would have had to get into the team slowly, building up confidence and adapting to the team, but if Luis Enrique decided to make him start is because he knows that he has a jewel in his hands. I think he can give Barca just what they have been missing lately: energy, ambition and desire, things that we haven’t seen since Guardiola left.

Suarez and Balotelli are flip sides the same coin, one at Barca the other at Liverpool. They are not very happy at Anfield with Suarez substitute and I read in ‘La Gazzetta dello Sport‘ that lots of Liverpool fans went to the club shop to return the Balotelli shirts they had purchased recently. I think that everything around Mario is magnified but he doesn’t do anything to change his image. And the fans in England forgive almost everything as long as you work flat out and fight for the crest you represent.

I am not saying Balotelli doesn’t try because on his own way he seems more involved than in other teams like for example my beloved Milan. But that is not enough. If you arrive to a club to replace the Golden Boot, the least you can do is to give your body and soul on the pitch and to thank your coach with your effort, and people don’t see that in Balotelli. And the fans are the ones who can better distinguish these things. I hope the situation changes because Brendan Rodgers deserves better.

I believe that Liverpool are also suffering the consequences of playing the Champions League, but they have the best coach in the Premier and I am convinced that things will get better. Will Mario get better? I wouldn’t bet on it.

I would bet on us. Yes. With my eyes closed and a heavy heart but I must do it. As you can imagine it hasn’t been a positive week. On Tuesday I got back into the team against Derby County and it was a tiring game. We ran after the ball for most of the game and we ended up losing by a late penalty after having tried hard all game. They were my first minutes after a few weeks and I felt the pain in the following days. Defeats damage you physically and mentally and it is very stressful for me. You try to be positive for the next game and before playing in Reading we were convinced it was going to be a step forward. And damm it, it couldn’t be.

At home, the little one Emma has had tooth ache and we haven’t been sleeping too well. The truth is that Laura is the one who wakes up in the middle of the night but when your baby cries all night you can’t sleep whether you have to get out of bed or not. If you add that I really struggle to sleep thinking about our games, the result is big dark circles under your eyes just like Beetlejuice!

From the bad times though, one can only recover with work and more work and this is what I am going to do this week. I will prepare myself for the next battle. I won’t think about anything else. We have to overcome this situation by all means possible. And working hard is one of those….

You can feel the tension in the changing room and I really hope that things start to get better because we are a very united team and I wouldn’t like to see that union to break. We have talked and talked, we have tried to get out of this situation and we must keep together and have faith in each other. If that fails then it will be impossible to change this negative dynamic. This week, Joan Oriol and José Cubero should get back into the team. When we have had a full team we have been competitive, so I hope this situation gets better and I can soon write about how we celebrate our victories.

Big hugs for all.

Come oooooooooon!

Translated by Alfons Vinent.

Orlandi’s Monday: No nos rendimos

30/12/201401/09/2014 por Andrea Orlandi

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5 derrotas de 5 partidos jugados… Creo que no se podía empezar peor. Pero la pasada temporada el Blackpool tuvo el mejor arranque liguero de su historia y al final se salvó por los pelos, así que esperemos que este año la historia sea al revés. El sábado volví a jugar y hasta que recibimos el primer gol creo que planteamos bien el partido. Pero en la situación en la que estamos no podemos regalar goles como lo estamos haciendo y fallar lo que fallamos de cara a la portería rival. Todos debemos mejorar, todos. Aunque parezca hablar por hablar, puedo asegurar que esta situación me motiva, porque para todo el mundo estamos muertos, nos dan por descendidos y entiendo que cuando consigamos salir adelante será el mayor logro de mi carrera, porque, amigos, aquí no se rinde nadie.

La semana tampoco fue tan mala. Jugamos un partido de la Lancashire Cup contra el Morecambe y conseguimos ganar, que no es poco dadas las circunstancias. Y los entrenamientos han sido positivos para el grupo. Todos sabemos que los partidos son otra historia, pero es un comienzo y pensando en el partido contra el Wolverhampton, dentro de dos semanas, tenemos el convencimiento de comenzar a darle la vuelta a esta situación.

Es un consuelo, al menos, ver como la afición sigue a nuestro lado y nos empuja a pesar de todo. Creo que el equipo no merece esta mala racha. Lo creo. Pero estoy convencido que quien no lo merecen son los hinchas. Pensad que los futbolistas también hemos estado al otro lado, en la grada, sufriendo por el equipo de nuestro corazón, y por eso entiendo esa frustración. Yo me enfado por perder, pero me rebelo por mi, por el equipo y por el hincha. Porque entiendo que nos debemos a todos ellos y tenemos que salir adelante como sea para devolverles todo su apoyo.

En casa ahora mismo estoy sufriendo una tortura constante. A Norah, mi hija mayor, le encanta cantar. Y no se nos ha ocurrido otra cosa mejor que regalarle un piano de Peppa Pig con micro incorporado que emite todo tipo de sonidos insoportables. O sea, que se ha convertido en mi banda sonora diaria. Próxima parada: la farmacia, kilos de paracetamol… ¡Esto no hay ser humano que lo aguante! Pero si ella es feliz… Cuando el sábado por la noche llegué a casa después del partido en Londres, hundido y cansado por el viaje, recibir el cariño de tu hija te da la vida… Hasta que encendió el dichoso piano, claro.

Hablando de todo un poco, ¿qué os parece el fichaje de Balotelli por el Liverpool? Conozco a Brendan y es, sin duda, el mejor entrenador que he tenido. Si le ha fichado es porque sabe que le puede sacar un gran rendimiento, aunque yo tengo mis dudas, no por su calidad, que es indiscutible, sino por su carácter. Mario está como una cabra, pero me cae bien. Ojalá le vaya bien y consiga convertirse en el gran jugador que todo el mundo espera. Lo tiene en sus manos, y sinceramente creo que es su última oportunidad.

Tengo, además, una anécdota divertida con él: cuando jugaba en Swansea, empezamos la andadura en Premier contra el Manchester City. Yo estaba en el banquillo y salí a calentar como se suele hacer en UK. Cada 15 minutos salen 3 y se van turnando. Me tocó calentar entre Agüero y Balotelli. ¡Desde que entrené al lado de Ronaldinho no me había sentido tan pequeño! Empecé a hablar con Mario en italiano. Lo típico, qué tal todo, te gusta la vida aquí, porque no juegas más… Y le pedí su camiseta, a lo que accedió sin problemas. «¡Sí, claro que sí, después del partido te la doy!«, me dijo muy amable. El partido acabó 4-0 para el City. Y él no jugó ni un minuto. Al bajar hacia el túnel de vestuarios nos miramos (yo como diciéndole: «¿te acuerdas? ¡La camiseta!») y él me hizo el mismo caso que mi hija cuando le digo que se porte bien. Se metió en su vestuario con una cara de enfado que no se olvida… Son cosas normales, los jugadores nos enfadamos mucho cuando no jugamos… ¿Lo bueno de todo esto? ¡Me quedé con la de Yaya Touré! Así que no fue un mal cambio.

Siguiendo con el tema locos simpáticos, nuestro último fichaje, Nile Ranger, es uno de los más chalados que he conocido. ¡Qué grande es! No había conocido a un tipo tan peculiar en toda mi carrera, tiene más tatuajes que años y un historial detrás que todos conocen, pero os puedo asegurar que tiene un corazón enorme. Es un chaval noble y además muy simpático. El sábado cuando salió cambió el rumbo del partido solo, creo que nos va a ayudar mucho porque tiene una calidad sobresaliente.

Ahora llega el parón por selecciones y tenemos dos semanas por delante para poder trabajar y mejorar. Tenía previsto irme unos días a España pero me quedaré aquí porque tengo que trabajar más que todos. Mientras estoy escribiendo esto he conseguido esconderle el piano a Norah. Espero que no lo encuentre por lo menos en los próximos 20 minutos. ¡Mi cabeza lo agradecerá!

Y para acabar os doy un dato que en época de vacas flacas me ha animado un poco. Diego Costa es el tercer español que consigue marcar un gol en la Premier League en su primer minuto de juego. Otro es Jesús Navas. ¿Y el tercero? Pues un servidor… Andrea Orlandi.

¡Ahora toca empezar a meterlos con el Blackpool!
¡¡Un abrazo a todos!!

¡¡Vamoooooooss!!

Orlandi’s Monday: We’re not giving up

27/02/201601/09/2014 por Andrea Orlandi

PINCHA AQUÍ PARA LEER LA VERSIÓN EN ESPAÑOL

5 matches, 5 defeats. I think you can’t start worse… but last season Blackpool had the best start up in its history and, at the end, reached the salvation by inches, so I hope things to go the other way round this time. Last Saturday I played again and I think our game was good until we conceded the first goal. Unfortunately, given our circumstances, we can’t give goals the way we do and then fail what we fail in front of the rival goalkeeper. We all must do better. Everybody. Although you could think I’m speaking idly, I can tell this situation is pretty motivating for me because everyone thinks we’re dead and already relegated. I know leaving this situation behind is going to be the greatest achievement in my career, because I tell you, friends: Nobody is giving up here.

The week wasn’t a complete disaster, either. We played and won a Lancashire Cup match against Morecambe, not a minor thing for us right now, and the trainings have been positive for the group. We all know the matches are another matter, but it’s a good beginning. We’re playing against Wolverhampton in two weeks and we believe in turning back the tide.

At least, it’s consoling to see the supporters standing by our side, which makes us believe. The team doesn’t deserve this losing streak. I firmly believe it. And I know for sure supporters are who don’t deserve it. Remember we football players have also been on the other side, at the stands, suffering for the club of our heart, and that’s why I understand their frustration. I get angry when I lose, and rebel for me, for the team, for supporters. We have a duty to them and we must get ahead to give them all their help back.

Right now I’m suffering a constant torture at home. Norah, my oldest daughter, loves singing, and we couldn’t come up with something better than buying a Peppa Pig piano with built-in microphone which emits all kind of unbearable sounds, becoming my daily soundtrack. Next stop: the pharmacy. Pounds and pounds of paracetamol… There’s no human being who can stand it! But if she’s happy… Last Saturday, when I got home exhausted and sad after the match in London, my daughter’s love regenerated me… until she turned on the damn piano, of course!

By the way: what do you think about Balotelli‘s transfer to Liverpool? I know Brendan, he’s the best coach I’ve ever met, no doubt about it. If he has choose the Italian is because he’s convinced he can obtain a lot from him. I’ve got my doubts, however, not because of his unquestionable talent but his attitude. Mario is crazy as a loon but I like him. I wish everything goes fine for him. He has everything in his hands to be the great player everyone hopes. Sincerely, I think it’s his last call.

Besides, I’ve got a funny story: when I was playing in Swansea, we started the Premier League against City. I was at the bench and went out for warming up, next to Agüero and Balotelli. I had never felt so tiny since I did it next to Ronaldinho! I started to talk with Mario in Italian: how are you, do you like living here, why don’t you play more often… and I asked him for his T-shirt. He said sure, no problem, after the match. The game ended 4:0 for City but he didn’t play a minute. When we walked through the tunnel we looked each other. My eyes said «Do you remember? The shirt!». He ignored me like my daughter, when I tell her to behave. He went into the dressing room with an expression in his face that I will never forget… It’s normal, we players get mad when we don’t play. ¿The best of the story? I got Toure Yaya‘s shirt! Not a bad change.

Talking about nice people, our last signing, Nile Ranger, is one of the craziest men I’ve ever seen. What a great guy! I’ve never met such a peculiar person. He’s got a lot of tatooes and and a known history, but I can tell you for sure he also has a golden heart. He’s a noble, very nice guy. When he came into the field last Saturday, he changed the rythm of the match. I think he’s gonna help a lot because he’s so talented.

The recess for the international teams fixtures is here and we’ve got a couple of weeks to work and improve. I had plans to go to Spain but in the end I’m staying here because I must train more than the rest. I’m writing this while Norah looks for her piano (which I hide). I hope she can’t find it in about 20 minutes. My head would be grateful!

To put an end, a fact that cheers me up a bit when I feel down. Diego Costa is the third Spaniard who scores a goal in his first Premier League minute. Another one is Jesus Navas. ¿Who’s left? A such Andrea Orlandi.

Now it’s time to score in Blackpool!

One big hug!

Cooooooooooome oooooooooon!!!