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Tag Archives: Juan Manuel Falcón
Venezuela 0-1 Paraguay – CONMEBOL Qualification Stage for FIFA World Cup 2018 (8 October 2015)
Having witnessed La Vinotinto's 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign get off to a calamitous start against La Albirroja, Hispanospherical.com offers up some thoughts on the game.
CONMEBOL Qualifying Stage for FIFA World Cup 2018
Thursday 8 October 2015 – Estadio Cachamay, Puerto Ordaz, Ciudad Guayana, Bolívar State.
Venezuela 0-1 Paraguay
Video Highlights of Venezuela 0-1 Paraguay, CONMEBOL Qualification Stage for FIFA World Cup 2018, 8 October 2015
Late Venezuelan Embarrassment Turns Mediocre Night into Disaster
36,650 fans turned up to a damp Estadio Cachamay seemingly willing to put their experience-derived doubts to the backs of their minds and instead provide some vocal support to help Noel Sanvicente's men get off to the successful start the coach considered essential. Whilst the uneven and bobbly playing surface was not conducive to free-flowing football, the aficionados in attendance always knew this was going to be at a premium. The familiar unsophisticated, unimaginative and toothless Venezuela was very much on display yet as the game wore on, the volume steadily rose. In the second half, the boys in burgundy seemed the more likely to break the deadlock, even if the majority of their efforts were tame or off-target, struggling as they did open up the defence and gain clear sights of goal.
Although an underwhelming goalless draw would have still been below the boss' expectations, a rare clean sheet – only two in the previous 13 games – is not something that can easily be passed up. Alas, with around five minutes remaining, an horrific, rank amateurish error deprived them of this and gifted the game to Ramón Díaz's men. Thus, ground has already been ceded to one of the other outsiders seeking to defy the CONMEBOL odds.
Despite the bulk of the match being as wearily woeful as anticipated, Hispanospherical.com had already mentally – yes, in that sense of the word – signed a contract with itself to provide some thoughts on this and every Venezuela encounter for the foreseeable future. As this game exemplified many of the traits common to performances under Sanvicente since his arrival in July 2014, one will try not to labour too many points. There can, however, only be one place to start.
The Incident: Vizcarrondo/Baroja Confusion Gifts Paraguay the Win
For those hitherto residing in a state of blissful ignorance – or perhaps, having instead watched the likes of Colombia and Argentina or been sanely wrapped up in bed – here is how the game was won: In the 85th minute, a diagonal Paraguayan ball was hoisted forward, where it bounced centrally just before it reached Venezuelan defensive stalwart Oswaldo Vizcarrondo several yards outside his own area. Hauntingly, he tamely chested the ball to where he assumed goalkeeper Alain Baroja to be, only to turn to see the AEK Athens stopper suddenly scramble over to his left in vain; he had not been as central as the Nantes centre-back thought. Dynamo Kyiv's Derlis González pounced, beating the keeper to the ball and tapping home, ultimately winning the game against the run of play.
The usually reliable 'Vizca' became an instant villain; social media was rife with anger, horror and mockery. There were, however, some who switched the blame over to Baroja, citing his poor positioning and/or presumed lack of communication. Upon reviewing the footage, there is some credence to this. It appears that the keeper was anticipating the ball to drift through to his grateful arms, yet had he stayed in line with Vizcarrondo, he would have been near enough to grab the ball before González's arrival. Did he give his colleague a shout to let him know he was claiming it? Baroja said afterwards that there was no communication. On the other hand, some feel the defender could have attempted to clear the ball if he was unsure of Baroja's whereabouts.
Post-game, public scapegoating was not on Sanvicente's mind. 'We continue committing the same errors of 20 years ago', he sighed dejectedly, adding that '[t]here was confusion for both sides, [and thus] responsibility for both.' Diplomatic to an extent, but largely accurate. Two days later, the ever-reflective El Estímulo was still struggling to come to terms with what had unfolded, opening an article by proclaiming that the memory of the mix-up was tormenting the minds of fans on a loop à la Groundhog Day. Elsewhere in the immediate aftermath, however, there was a fairly universal consensus over who was the culprit:
Front covers of the Venezuelan Sports Daily Líder en Deportes and Paraguay's Diario Extra.
Otherwise, A Decent Defensive Display Against Low-Ranking Opposition
The goal aside, however, the visitors could not manage a shot on target. Indeed, while Paraguay were never likely to offer the sternest of tests, Sanvicente, if/when he unslumps his shoulders, will surely be quietly content with the efforts from his rearguard. With the exception of The Incident, there were only a handful or so of relatively minor defensive concerns.
Early on in the frenetic, composure-free exchanges, there were a couple of breaches at the back that came to nothing. The visitors were largely resigned to a few speculative off-target efforts, though late on, they did waste a gilt-edged chance that will never get the exposure it would warrant in different circumstances – not that Édgar Benítez will be complaining. Soon after taking the lead, with the Venezuelan back-line in disarray, a ball was lofted over to the Querétaro attacker who rounded Baroja only to miss what was an open goal. While some camera angles are more generous to him than others, he should certainly have done better. Alas, with the hosts failing to even up the score, there will be no tortuous mental Groundhog Day for Paraguayans.
SIN ARQUERO. Edgar Benítez pudo haber hecho el segundo de Paraguay ante Venezuela, pero así falló el mano a mano https://t.co/ioOLZbEj5y
— Pasión Fútbol (@PasionFutbolFC) October 8, 2015
Otherwise, there was not too much to concern Sanvicente. He could not significantly fault the two players under most threat in this area: the much-maligned left-back Gabriel Cichero and 34-year-old Franklin Lucena, more accustomed to being on defensive-midfield standby, who was preferred over Andrés Túñez to start alongside Vizcarrondo at the back. However, with Fernando Amorebieta returning from suspension for the upcoming Brazil game, a decision now has to be made. According to reports, rather than coming in for Cichero, the Championship defender is instead likely to replace Lucena at centre-back, his strongest position. Here, he can attempt to rediscover a partnership with Vizcarrondo that was regularly deployed during the last qualifying cycle.
Ultimately, despite the performance in this area, Sanvicente will be acutely aware that Paraguay, for all their merits, do not possess one of the region's most testing attacks. Bigger challenges await around the corner; lapses in concentration can easily multiply and be punished accordingly.
New Personnel But Same Old Problems in Attack
Nevertheless, the defensive display combined with the work of the likes of Tomás Rincón and Luis Manuel Seijas edging possession in midfield regularly put La Vinotinto marginally in pole position to nick a narrow win. Alas, to what should have been the surprise of no-one, not only did they fail but they showed little teamwork and collective understanding in the final third. They barely troubled opposition goalkeeper Antony Silva, rarely found space to run at – let alone past – defenders and often had to resort to long-ball and/or hit-and-hope tactics.
The recent retirement of Juan Arango necessitated a change in this area, though Sanvicente seemed keen on revolution over evolution. The Copa America triumvirate fielded behind Salomón Rondón consisting of Alejandro Guerra, Arango and Ronald Vargas was completely overhauled. Instead, in a 4-4-2 formation, Rondón was partnered by Juan Manuel Falcón, with the experienced César González on the left side and newcomer Jeffrén Suárez on the right. Though 'Maestrico' González has played many times with Rondón at international level, the other two are, in terms of experience on this stage, virtually strangers to all those around them (pre-game, Falcón possessed less than a handful of caps; Jeffrén, a mere 30 minutes gained from a forgettable friendly last month). Given these selections for this already vital game, only the eternal optimists could have had high hopes that everyone would instantly gel on-the-job.
All the same, despite not setting up any chances, often struggling to beat his man and failing to get a shot on target, ex-Barcelona man Jeffrén has since received some praise from various Venezuelan journalists. In fairness, he was not fully fit and playing his first competitive fixture, but was still able to show a few glimpses of admirable composure and willingness to make things happen. Yet the subsequent appraisals seem out-of-kilter with events on the pitch and seem to speak more of a clamouring for new heroes and positives on a night when frankly, there were slim pickings to be had.
Nevertheless, irrespective of what it says about Jeffrén and his competition, Sanvicente was implicitly taken by what he saw. Indeed, a few days after the game, he said that he would be prepared to wait 'until the last hour' to see whether the injury-prone KAS Eupen winger will be fit for the Brazil match. However, with several hours to go, it appears that he has conceded defeat on this front. Instead, according to the most reliable sources, in Fortaleza, there will again be wholesale changes in the area behind and to the side of Rondón: Guerra and Vargas are predicted to reprise their Copa roles on the flanks with the more central spot filled by Christian Santos, a man with a comparable amount of international experience as Jeffrén.
Curiously, none of these players were substituted on against Paraguay, with instead Josef Martínez and Jhon Murillo the two receiving minutes in the closing stages. The search for an effective offence shows little sign of going away any time soon.
Wanted: a Competent Set-Piece Taker
Lastly, particularly in the first half on the wet pitch that was fighting a losing battle against the elements, spectators were treated to a variety of sports, though only rarely did these include the one that they had paid money to see. The challenging conditions facilitated some midfield duels and aimless forward forays that resembled some rather tedious ping-pong and head-tennis exchanges. Diving, a cynic might say, was taken as a given. Then, 25 minutes in, 'Maestrico' threw in a topical reference when he blazed a free-kick well over the bar. Not to be outdone, five minutes later Rondón spooned one at least 30 yards above the woodwork. To momentarily engage in a bit of Dad humour, one would like to enquire as to why Venezuela are not represented at the Rugby World Cup?
¿MUNDIAL DE RUGBY? Salomón Rondón y el peor tiro libre en el inicio de las Eliminatorias http://t.co/iP4ux15Vjf
There was not a significant improvement in the majority of set-pieces in the remainder of the game. While the turf may have been partly to blame and, of course, no-one expected Juan Arango's heir-apparent to announce himself in the first encounter following El Capi's retirement, Sanvicente will be keen to see some progress in this area as soon as possible. Given his side's evident shortcomings from open play, dead-ball situations could well offer a lifeline or two. Indeed, no matter how Brazil may, according to their standards, be struggling, Venezuela will need all the weapons in their armoury if they are to gain a result against the one CONMEBOL nation they are yet to beat in a competitive match.
Feel free to return to Hispanospherical.com for coverage of that particular match.
Team Selections
Venezuela (4-4-2): Baroja; Rosales, Vizcarrondo, Lucena, Cichero; J. Suárez (Murillo, 81′), Rincón, Seijas, C. González (Guerra, 62′); Falcón (Martínez, 74′), S. Rondón.
Paraguay (4-4-2): Silva; B. Valdez, Da Silva, Aguilar, Samudio; D. González, Ortigoza, Ortiz (Cáceres, 63′), Benítez; Barrios (Fabbro. 86′), Santander (Bobadilla, 72′).
Darren Spherical
@DarrenSpherical
This entry was posted in Venezuela National Team and tagged Alain Baroka, Alejandro Guerra, Blooper, César González, CONMEBOL, CONMEBOL Qualifying, Derlis González, Franklin Lucena, Gabriel Cichero, Howler, Jeffrén Suárez, Jhon Murillo, Josef Martínez, Juan Manuel Falcón, La Albirroja, La Vinotinto, Lucas Barrios, Luis Manuel Seijas, Noel Sanvicente, Oswaldo Vizcarrondo, Paraguay, Ramon Diaz, Roberto Rosales, Salomón Rondón, South America, South American football, South American Qualification, Tomas Rincón, Venezuela on October 13, 2015 by hispanospherical.
Venezuela 1-1 Panama – International Friendly (8 September 2015)
Tuesday 8 September 2015 – Estadio Cachamay, Puerto Ordaz, Ciudad Guayana, Bolívar State.
Venezuela 1-1 Panama
(To read a preview of both of Venezuela's September 2015 friendlies, click here)
Goal Highlights of Venezuela 1-1 Panama, International Friendly, 8 September 2015 (YouTube)
Venezuela (4-4-2): Baroja; Rosales, Vizcarrondo (Carabalí, 80′), Túñez, Cichero; A. González (J. Suárez, 59′), Rincón, Seijas (C. González, 74′), Guerra (Arango, 74′); Santos (Falcón, 31′), S. Rondón.
Panama (4-4-2): Mejía; Henríquez, Torres, Parris, Machado; Gómez, Cooper, Quintero, Godoy (Macea, 24′) (Escobar, 80′); Pérez (Buitrago, 77′), Blackburn (Addles, 26′) (Calderón, 90+6′).
Little Learned as Venezuela Sneak a Draw in Bog-Standard Conditions
On a rain-soaked pitch that would have been classified as waterlogged in other parts of the world, Salomón Rondón's stoppage-time tap-in enabled La Vinotinto to narrowly avoid two consecutive defeats at the hands of Central American opposition.
Pre-kick-off torrential downpourings delayed the start of game by over 20 minutes and were to mire proceedings. The Panamanians, stung from a narrow 1-0 defeat against Uruguay at the weekend, initially seemed unfazed, taking the lead with barely two minutes on the clock. A central free-kick from distance was hoisted into the area where, after a knock-on, defender Gabriel Cichero uncomfortably nudged it into the path of Rolando Blackburn. Escaping from Oswaldo Vizcarrondo, the Comunicaciones forward squeezed in a fairly tame, bobbling effort from the right byline. However, goalkeeper Alain Baroja misjudged the shot's trajectory and was caught off-balance, with the ball instead ghosting through his attempted grasp to trickle a mere inch or two over the goal line.
Certainly not the start desired in the stands by the hearty souls who shunned any sheltering from the elements. However, in terms of actual footballing action, it proved to be a false dawn. The subsequent half-hour was bereft of goal-mouth opportunities, with the teams instead seemingly trying to outdo each other in providing the referee with justifications for abandoning the match. With the soggy turf regularly halting the ball's unpredictable movement, challenges that only the most nihilistic would not wince at frequently came flying in. Club managers watching on were doubtlessly horrified and there were to be two early victims as goalscorer Blackburn and team-mate Aníbal Godoy had to be taken off in quick succession around the 25th-minute mark.
Five minutes later, a third substitution was made, though this time it was by the hosts and not due to injury. Much online dismay greeted the removal of Christian Santos, who was making his second appearance – and home debut – for his country, having only received the green light to represent the country of his birth within the past year. Last season, the Germany-reared attacker had a spellbinding year with promotion-winning Dutch side NEC Nijmegen, yet this rare opportunity to show manager Noel Sanvicente if he could transfer his goalscoring club form to the international arena was abruptly truncated. In post-match comments, Chita claimed that this was because the conditions were not conducive to Santos' typical style; whether true or not, few can argue that his replacement Juan Manuel Falcón thrived in the circumstances, troubling defenders with his pacy runs and dribbles, getting away several attempts at goal.
The forward, now languishing in France's Ligue 2 with Metz but who has much experience of Venezuela's largely substandard playing surfaces, even thought he had scored a mere four minutes after his arrival. Indeed, shortly after the hosts' first attempt on target – an Andrés Túñez header from an Alejandro Guerra corner that was comfortably saved – Falcón anticipated a hoisted ball into the area and beat the onrushing goalkeeper Luis Mejía to nod home. Alas, within a second or two, the Venezuelan was confronted with the raised offside flag.
Aside from captain Tomás Rincón using the farcical conditions as perhaps the only time in his professional career when it will be excusable to channel his inner Lionel Messi and embark on some uncharacteristic dribbles infield, there was just one more moment of note in this half. This came in the 40th minute when left-back Cichero nearly latched on to a free-kick curled in from the left but could not quite direct a low volley on target.
Nine minutes into the second half, it was again Cichero, currently back in Switzerland with Sion, who had his side's next chance of note. Luis Manuel Seijas' left-sided free-kick was met on the edge of the area by the defender, whose header was tipped just over the bar. Subsequently, the resulting corner was flicked on towards the back post where Falcón was readying himself for a tap-in; fortunately for the visitors, defender Leonel Parris just about cleared the ball away for another corner.
Offering the promise of some much-needed urgency, on the hour mark came the long-anticipated international debut of former Barcelona starlet Jeffrén Suárez. Drawing to a close a saga that lasted the best part of nine years, he has seemingly given up on his ambitions of representing the country in which he was reared – Spain, for whom he won two major trophies at youth level – and has instead accepted the long-standing offer to play for the nation of his birth. Now at Belgian second-tier side KAS Eupen, a few years ago when he was still considered an emerging name worth remembering, he may have received his Vinotinto bow on a grander stage. However, little did the sparse Cachamay crowd know at the time that while they had just seen the beginning of one international career, they were also to witness the end of another.
Indeed, at the post-match press conference attended by the entire squad, a teary-eyed Juan Arango, undoubtedly Venezuela's greatest and most important player of all time, announced his retirement from the national team. No word yet as to whether this was to definitely be the very last of his 129 official appearances, though many fans are already clamouring for a farewell match more befitting of his achievements than a friendly cameo in a stadium only fractionally full.
He arrived onto the pitch in the 74th minute, at which point the match was beginning to look like another toothless, morale-sapping Vinotinto defeat. However, though perhaps not entirely related, his introduction was to coincide with a slight increase in tempo and urgency, as the number of chances and incidents began to rise. The first of these was arguably the most gilt-edged. On the right, Jeffrén cut inside to slide the ball to Rincón, whose finely weighted pass towards the right side of the area found Falcón. However, one-on-one with the goalkeeper, to the dismay of every home fan in the ground, he skied his shot a few yards over. Nevertheless, Jeffrén here provided a brief glimpse of his capabilities and was to be a confident and positive presence on the ball, often looking to get forward and link up from the right.
Venezuela's forward forays continued into the last ten minutes of regulation play, serving up a host of noteworthy moments: Firstly, Rondón beat the opposition goalkeeper to one of Arango's pinpoint long balls but was unable to get a shot away in time; Cichero went up for a corner but could not quite make effective contact from a cross; soon after, Falcón outpaced his marker on the left before passing to Jeffrén who nudged it on for fellow substitute Francisco Carabalí, before the move broke down; finally, in the 87th minute, Arango's ball into the area was well-chested and then struck low by Falcón, whose shot was parried out to Carabalí, who could only blaze over.
Soon afterwards, the hosts' chances of an equaliser appeared to have been ended as Carabalí received a red card, a mere ten minutes after entering the fray. The reason for his dismissal remains somewhat unclear but it is likely that he raised a hand (or two) amidst some heated altercations involving several players.
However, Venezuela were not to be deterred, continuing their attacks and, three minutes into stoppage-time, they were to get their deserved reward. From the right, César González's corner was uncomfortable for goalkeeper Mejía, with the ball falling downwards before being nudged over towards Rondón, who instinctively struck home a fairly straightforward finish.
Immediately afterwards, Panama goalkeeper Luis Mejía evened things up, receiving a second needless yellow card in a matter of five minutes, having previously been awarded one for timewasting. Despite a total of eight stoppage-time minutes being played, this brief return to parity in the playing personnels did not lead to any further goals and thus the game ended in a draw.
Given the conditions, it is unlikely that Sanvicente will feel much was gained from this encounter or, for that matter, the preceding 3-0 loss against Honduras. Nevertheless, Venezuela went into this international week needing to improve their attacking play and goalscoring rate, but it can hardly be said that much has changed in these departments. A few players showed glimpses of what they can do, most notably Falcón and Jeffrén, as well as Josef Martínez (in combination with Rondón) in the Honduras game. Ahead of next month's World Cup qualifiers against Paraguay and Brazil, Juan Arango's retirement opens up an attacking berth either behind or in tandem with Rondón. However, not only is it unclear who will replace him – or if any other attackers have contrived to play their way out of the line-up during these games – but it feels as if little progress in the teamwork of the attackers has been made. Thus, while the defence – who, admittedly, hardly covered themselves in glory either – proved in Copa América that they are more than capable of doing a respectable job in big games, Venezuela's attacking problems are set to be an ongoing issue well along the road to reach Russia 2018.
This entry was posted in Venezuela National Team and tagged Alain Baroja, Alejandro Guerra, Alexander González, Andres Túñez, Central America, Christian Santos, Gabriel Cichero, International Friendly, Jeffrén Suárez, Juan Arango, Juan Arango retirement, Juan Manuel Falcón, La Vinotinto, Latin America, Latin American Football, Luis Manuel Seijas, Luis Mejía, Noel Sanvicente, Oswaldo Vizcarrondo, Panama, Roberto Rosales, Salomón Rondón, South America, South American football, Tomas Rincón, Venezuela on September 9, 2015 by hispanospherical.