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Ayala revealed Scaloni’s unknown nickname
The Argentine team is going through an unbeatable present as it is the current continental champion, winner of the Finalísima against Italy (final between the winner of the Copa América and the winner of the Euro Cup) and the best on the planet after winning the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. In addition, He is currently leading the South American Qualifiers towards the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada.
One of the main keys to this success is Lionel Scaloni, who carried out a renovation within the Albiceleste squad and created a game system so that Lionel Messi can shine and feel supported by the team. Another important point is the harmony that is breathed today within the national team.
Roberto Ayala, one of the members of the national team’s coaching staff, focused precisely on this last point during an interview with the TyC Sports stream, where he revealed the unknown nickname that Lionel Scaloni has and told intimacies from the WhatsApp group.
El Ratón confirmed that the name of the group is “Selection” and that “there is the Lion King as an avatar. I think the teacher (Luis Martín, the physical trainer) put it together, I imagine he put it for Estudiantes.”
“We went through everything, honestly. In the place you are, you have to go through complicated situations, you have to constantly decide. There is something very good: we know the moments of each one, when someone is not well or has woken up badly. The silences help you recover,” commented the former Valencia. However, within the CT they know how to separate the moments and humor is also present within the group: “Lionel has something very good because he lets you be and also encourages you to let go and be original. Jokes? There is everything: moments in which we laugh a lot, in which we have to work or we get angry because such a thing does not come out.” On the other hand, he clarified that “we do not use stickers.”
Ayala also surprised when it came to revealing the unexpected nickname that coach Scaloni has within the Argentine technical staff: “We have baptized Lionel as He-Man. “It’s a joke between us because of everything that’s happened.”
Other highlights of Roberto Ayala:
– “It is very difficult to stay in one place for a long time, and even more so in the Argentine National Team. Already in this Cup they are going to be demanding of us. We are aware, we know it and we are working hard to sustain what has been achieved.”
– “Winning again is very difficult but it is a challenge. I hope we can compete as we have been doing, in the Copa América.”
– “A group that competes in each game, that does not choose rivals. In the National Team you can’t choose them, we would like to play against other rivals but at a certain point we couldn’t do it. That would help us grow even more. The games we wanted didn’t happen because it helps us a lot for what’s to come. The friction in those games gives the player a lot of information.”
– “In the Montiel prison I turned and fell. When I wanted to get up, I couldn’t. The Profe (by Luis Martín) got scared and called the doctor. ‘I can’t move my legs,’ I told the doctor. My body had gone limp and it really was like that. ‘Breathe, breathe, it’s going to pass,’ the doctor told me. “I don’t know how long it was, maybe a minute, a minute and a half, but for me it was eternal.”
– “I imagine Messi game by game. Then we’ll see what happens in the Cup, how he is. In the end, the decision will be made exclusively by him, how he wants to continue. He enjoys it a lot, he is enjoying it a lot every time he comes. It is until the end, as long as it lasts.”
