I’m not Chilean, (i’m Brazilian) but the decline in the quality of Chilean football over the last decade is terrifying. Even in the Libertadores, it’s very noticeable.
In the past, playing against Colo Colo, Universidad Catolica and Universidad de Chile was hell. I remember Atlético Mineiro losing to Colo Colo in 2015 in the Libertadores. Today? Well…
Today the Chilean league is certainly behind Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador and even Paraguay. (I haven’t mentioned Uruguay because it’s unfair. It’s a country with 3.5 million habitants, and the fact that they’re a football powerhouse is fascinating)… And we’re talking about the league of one of South America’s most developed countries.
And we look at the new generation of Chilean football, and there’s not much prospect of improvement in the short term. If we compare it with Ecuador, for example, they’re producing youngster after youngster with good potential.
In the case of Ecuadorian football, all it took was for one team to focus on developing youngsters (Del Valle), and that boosted the whole ecosystem in the country. I remember starting to hear about Del Valle in 2014/2015 as a project to develop young talent… Today, if you look at their infrastructure, it’s better than even some big Brazilian clubs that have budgets, I don’t know, 10x bigger.
Its not really a decline more so back to the norm tbh. They never had any real star players, had never even won a Copa America, and would rarley make it to a world cup before 2010 when the golden generation started peering through.
Its not really a decline more so back to the norm tbh.
No, it’s worse than the norm. Before we would at least semi-regularly get out of the group stages in Copa Libertadores… every now and then a club would make a run to quarter-finals and on rare ocassions semi-finals.
Now we can’t get out of the group stages of ANY competition, including Sudamericana which my club won in the 2000’s and Colo-Colo reached a final. It’s absurd. That was never the norm. Football has been left to die.
In the case of Ecuadorian football, all it took was for one team to focus on developing youngsters (Del Valle), and that boosted the whole ecosystem in the country
We brought Luis Roggiero who was one of the key people involved in IdV’s project to be our DoF and his tenure ended a complete failure. It was one single man though, I can imagine the amount of forces that didn’t allow him do his job
I remember when my dad told me about how U.Catolica made some great campaigns in the Libertadores/Sudamerica, I even watched the quarter finals against Palmeiras (in which we deserved more tbh…). funnily enough that was the last time a Chilean team made it to the quarter finals of the Libertadores.
nowadays it’s painful to even see these teams play in the local league. it’s all so shit and badly managed in a lot of aspects. clubs doing shady deals with agents, the tournament stopping for months, lack of professionalism on so many things the clubs do. not to mention academy players are treated like shit here, kids debuting professionally when they’re 21/22 y.o. how the fuck are we supposed to compete when we don’t give them time to get experience from early on?
Católica, who used to have a lot of promising academy players making it to the national team and Europe, is wasting so many players to make way for old, washed dudes. it’s infuriating seeing how clubs on Brazil, Ecuador, Uruguay and Argentina are coming up with so many great young players and doing a relatively good with incorporating them into their main teams.
not to mention academy players are treated like shit here, kids debuting professionally when they’re 21/22 y.o. how the fuck are we supposed to compete when we don’t give them time to get experience from early on?
Here in Brazil, if you’re a young player at the big clubs and you haven’t made your professional debut until you’re 21/22 years old, the chances of you succeeding are extremely low.
Players with the biggest potential (especially attacking players) will debut before they are 18. Defensive players start a little later.
Talking about Atlético Mineiro, for example… The club’s board is under a lot of pressure to give more space to youngsters. It’s part of the country’s football culture.
Católica, who used to have a lot of promising academy players making it to the national team and Europe, is wasting so many players to make way for old, washed dudes.
I checked out Catolica’s squad on Transfermarkt and saw Franco Di Santo there… Holy fuck, one of the worst strikers I’ve seen playing for Atlético Mineiro.
I’m 100% sure there’s a young Chilean better than him.
I’m not Chilean, (i’m Brazilian) but the decline in the quality of Chilean football over the last decade is terrifying.
The “golden generation” crop was a leftover of the “sports club”, fan-owned era. After “privatization” of most clubs, they didn’t bother spending in young divisions and this is the result.
I’m not Chilean, (i’m Brazilian) but the decline in the quality of Chilean football over the last decade is terrifying. Even in the Libertadores, it’s very noticeable.
In the past, playing against Colo Colo, Universidad Catolica and Universidad de Chile was hell. I remember Atlético Mineiro losing to Colo Colo in 2015 in the Libertadores. Today? Well…
Today the Chilean league is certainly behind Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador and even Paraguay. (I haven’t mentioned Uruguay because it’s unfair. It’s a country with 3.5 million habitants, and the fact that they’re a football powerhouse is fascinating)… And we’re talking about the league of one of South America’s most developed countries.
And we look at the new generation of Chilean football, and there’s not much prospect of improvement in the short term. If we compare it with Ecuador, for example, they’re producing youngster after youngster with good potential.
In the case of Ecuadorian football, all it took was for one team to focus on developing youngsters (Del Valle), and that boosted the whole ecosystem in the country. I remember starting to hear about Del Valle in 2014/2015 as a project to develop young talent… Today, if you look at their infrastructure, it’s better than even some big Brazilian clubs that have budgets, I don’t know, 10x bigger.
Its not really a decline more so back to the norm tbh. They never had any real star players, had never even won a Copa America, and would rarley make it to a world cup before 2010 when the golden generation started peering through.
No, it’s worse than the norm. Before we would at least semi-regularly get out of the group stages in Copa Libertadores… every now and then a club would make a run to quarter-finals and on rare ocassions semi-finals.
Now we can’t get out of the group stages of ANY competition, including Sudamericana which my club won in the 2000’s and Colo-Colo reached a final. It’s absurd. That was never the norm. Football has been left to die.
We brought Luis Roggiero who was one of the key people involved in IdV’s project to be our DoF and his tenure ended a complete failure. It was one single man though, I can imagine the amount of forces that didn’t allow him do his job
The FA chairman at the time was a massive crook, but a crook that wanted Chile to do well nonetheless. Even women’s football grew during his spell.
The people now in charge are massive crooks who don’t give a fuck.
I remember when my dad told me about how U.Catolica made some great campaigns in the Libertadores/Sudamerica, I even watched the quarter finals against Palmeiras (in which we deserved more tbh…). funnily enough that was the last time a Chilean team made it to the quarter finals of the Libertadores.
nowadays it’s painful to even see these teams play in the local league. it’s all so shit and badly managed in a lot of aspects. clubs doing shady deals with agents, the tournament stopping for months, lack of professionalism on so many things the clubs do. not to mention academy players are treated like shit here, kids debuting professionally when they’re 21/22 y.o. how the fuck are we supposed to compete when we don’t give them time to get experience from early on?
Católica, who used to have a lot of promising academy players making it to the national team and Europe, is wasting so many players to make way for old, washed dudes. it’s infuriating seeing how clubs on Brazil, Ecuador, Uruguay and Argentina are coming up with so many great young players and doing a relatively good with incorporating them into their main teams.
This happens in Brazil too.
Here in Brazil, if you’re a young player at the big clubs and you haven’t made your professional debut until you’re 21/22 years old, the chances of you succeeding are extremely low.
Players with the biggest potential (especially attacking players) will debut before they are 18. Defensive players start a little later.
Talking about Atlético Mineiro, for example… The club’s board is under a lot of pressure to give more space to youngsters. It’s part of the country’s football culture.
I checked out Catolica’s squad on Transfermarkt and saw Franco Di Santo there… Holy fuck, one of the worst strikers I’ve seen playing for Atlético Mineiro.
I’m 100% sure there’s a young Chilean better than him.
The “golden generation” crop was a leftover of the “sports club”, fan-owned era. After “privatization” of most clubs, they didn’t bother spending in young divisions and this is the result.