Brazilian coach Mano Menezes began his training with the Peruvian national team in Paris (France), with a view to his debut in the friendly match next Saturday, March 28 (12 pm ET) against Senegal, which will be followed the following Tuesday, March 31 (2 pm ET) by another preparation match against Honduras in Leganés near Madrid (Spain).
After arriving in the French capital on a long flight from Lima, the Peruvian team went to carry out its first training session at the Louis Boury stadium, the same one where the “Blaquirroja” will train for the rest of the week, until the day before the match, scheduled for the Saint-Dennis stadium.
Menezes gave a talk to the players and later attended a soft session to get in touch with the field, as shown in the images released by the Peruvian Football Federation (FPF).
In Paris, the coach was able to reunite all his players called up for these two games, with the exception of Alianza Lima defender Renzo Garcés, who was called off due to a muscle injury.
The Brazilian coach explained in an interview that these days he will talk with the players in more detail about the first ideas and work, “so that everyone is clear about what we want to do.”
«The players are anxious, like us, because a new coach arrives with new ideas and also new players. For some it is the first call. “They are excited and excited about starting a new stage, which is our main objective: to be in the 2030 World Cup,” said Menezes.
The 63-year-old strategist anticipated that his intention is for all those called up to have minutes against their rivals from Senegal and Honduras, with the purpose of forming the Peruvian team that will compete in the South American qualifiers for the next World Cup.
Menezes’ mission is to renew the Peruvian team after having exhausted the generation that managed to play in the 2018 World Cup in Russia, and for that reason renowned and very experienced figures such as Paolo Guerrero, Christian Cueva, Carlos Zambrano, Edison Flores and Luis Advíncula, among others, were left out of the call.
First call for Mano Menezes
Peru’s new coach, Mano Menezes, chose in his first call for the friendlies against Senegal and Honduras, young footballers such as midfielder Jairo Vélez from Alianza Lima, defender Fabio Gruber from Nuremberg in Germany, forward Juan Pablo Goicoechea from Defensor Sporting from Uruguay and the surprise creation midfielder Adrián Quiroz, from the Chankas, co-leaders of the Peruvian League 1 tournament.
Menezes’ first list is committed to a reformulation of the Peruvian team with a view to the next qualifiers for the 2030 World Cup after having been excluded from playing in the 2026 World Cup. Only four who played in the 2018 World Cup in Russia are in this call: Miguel Araujo, André Carrillo, Pedro Gallese and Yoshimar Yotún.
Menezes said that they are “very excited” about the new bicolor team and added that the average age of the players in this new process is 26 years and stressed the importance of starting a renewal in the “well-supported” Peruvian team ahead of the matches against Senegal, current African champion, and Honduras, traditional Central American squad.
Regarding his cast, Menezes stated that Vélez has the characteristics he is looking for to rebuild the team. “He is a player who weighs in, finds solutions for important plays and building the team,” he added.
Likewise, he told reporters “We want a very competitive team, for the players to have good technical quality, and there are several players who have it.” He added that we have to think about the physical issue because they must have the intensity to play 90 minutes, but what he values most is tactical discipline.
When commenting on other players with greater experience in the national team, such as goalkeeper Gallese, midfielder Yotún, defender Araujo and winger Carrillo, the coach stated that it is important to have references for the young people who are arriving.
«When they asked me if the door was open to everyone, I said it was open to everyone, to those players who are capable of helping the reformulation process and assuming the role. It is hard to lead, you have to be an example,” he explained.
The list with the players called to the “Blanquirroja” is the following:
– Goalkeepers:
Pedro Gallese (Deportivo Cali-COL), Diego Henríquez (Sporting Cristal) and Diego Romero (Universitario).
– Defenses:
Alfonso Barco (HNK Rijeka-CRO), César Inga (Universitario), Fabio Gruber (Nuremberg-GER), Marco Huamán (Alianza Lima), Marcos López (Copenhagen-DEN), Matías Zegarra (Melgar), Miguel Araujo (Sporting Cristal), Oliver Sonne (Sparta Prague-CZE).
– Midfielders:
Adrián Quiroz (Chankas), André Carrillo (Corinthians-BRA), Erick Noriega (Gremio-BRA) Jairo Concha (Universitario), Jairo Vélez (Alianza Lima), Jesús Castillo (Universitario), Jesús Pretell (Liga de Quito-ECU) and Yoshimar Yotún (Sporting Cristal).
– Forwards:
Álex Valera (University), Joao Grimaldo (Sparta Prague-CZE), Kenji Cabrera (Vancouver Whitecaps-CAN), Adrián Ugarriza (Kiryat Shmona-ISR) and Juan Pablo Goicochea (Defensor Sporting-URU).
