The smile of Ernesto Valverde could be crucial

The smile of Ernesto Valverde could be crucial

Lluís Mascaró

Director de Información Deportiva de Prensa Ibérica

El apodo de Ernesto Valverde, analizado por la Fundación del Español Urgente
El apodo de Ernesto Valverde, analizado por la Fundación del Español Urgente | EFE

Ernesto Valverde posed before a big Barcelona badge that adorns the club offices. It was his first official photo. He looked comfortable. Smiling. Joking with the journalists. It was little more than 60 seconds of posing. An eternity for someone who likes to be on the other side of the camera lens. But he took it on with gusto. Because he knows that this is only the top of the iceberg of what is waiting for him as Barcelona coach. Those that know him well (that is less than those that think they do), say he is an affable type, a good talker and he accepts dealing with the media as part of his job. With this, surely, we have won. Although we have to see how he acts in moments of tension. And they will come. Because this is Barcelona. Luis Enrique hated journalists. Even from when he was a player. And his time in the Camp Nou press rooms was a siege. For him and for the media.

It’s true that to be a Barcelona coach you do’t have to be nice to journalists. But there has to be a dialogue, a relationship that fits what the club represents and the transcendency that it has. It’s not good to go before the media with the face of a dog, ready to convert any question into a war. That’s what Luis Enrique did. And he was mistaken. He wore himself down more than he needed to in battles of dialogue. Valverde, I don’t think, will make the same mistake. And his relationship with the media will be more simple. More natural. And in the end, everything is easier when you take it on with a smile on your face. Including complex situations. Zidane is the best example of that. The good way he deals with people works for him in the dressing room and the press room. And everyone is happy. Including him.