Mexican coach Rodrigo Prieto shares his adventure in Denmark with ESPN
The Mexican Rodrigo Prieto He arrived in Denmark in 2021, after receiving a job offer from a friend to join a textile company, after hanging up his boots a year earlier. With just two weeks in Europe, his CV reached the Central Jutland and was hired to train the U-15 forwards, but days later he was promoted to the first team as a technical assistant thanks to his command of languages and now, three years later, he almost qualified for the League Phase of the Champions League.
“I didn’t come for football, I came for another friend who offered me a job here, in a textile company, and we took the option of coming here, with the family, and while we were here, he sent me my resume, which I had sent him, well, it was 90% football, the other 10% of the rest, of what I studied, languages, and the rest was football, so he sent my resume here to the team. Central Jutland“, said Rodrigo Prieto in an interview for ESPN.
The relationship of Rodrigo Prieto y Central Jutland It began in 2001, when the then 17-year-old footballer spent six months in the Under-19 team that was founded in 1999, without knowing that 22 years later the ball would unite them again, but now with the Mexican as technical assistant and in the run-up to the Champions League.
Rodrigo Prieto is assistant coach at Midtjylland in Denmark and is one match away from reaching the Champions League. Courtesy
“They asked me if I could help with the first team, which had a lot of Brazilians and several Latinos who couldn’t speak to them, and if I spoke Portuguese, they knew I had played soccer, that I had my coaching degree, so I combined everything, the language issue as well, so the opportunity opened up for me. Portuguese and Spanish are very similar, so I was able to help with the whole Latino issue here on the team, I speak English, I speak French, so that opened the doors for me to be part of the first team, the rest is history. I’ve been here for three years now,” he recalls. Rodrigo Prieto on his promotion to the first team Central Jutland.
Rodrigo Prieto is part of the technical team of Thomas Thomasberg, a Danish coach with whom he was proclaimed champion of the Danish Super League in the 2023/2024 season, which gave him the pass to Central Jutland to the Second Round of the Champions Leaguean instance in which the dream of competing for the ‘Orejona’ began. First they went through Santa Coloma of Andorra, then they beat Ferencvaros of Hungary, but they fell by the wayside against Slovan Bratislava of Slovakia.
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However, already in the last round of qualification prior to the League Phase, the matches are played under the rules, sponsorships of the Champions League And that was the first time that Rodrigo Prieto He experienced the atmosphere surrounding the tournament. The Mexican, from the bench, listened to the anthem, the one he only knew from television, before the first leg of the tie against Slovan Bratislava of Slovakia that ended in a 1-1 draw and was decided this Wednesday with the visit of Midtjylland, who ended up being left out.
“The whole protocol changes, the sponsors, the simple anthem, when you enter the field and hear the anthem, you get goosebumps, I think it is something very beautiful, it is something great, we hope that we can get it, we go to a game and then we can go in. I saw it on TV and you got emotional. Living it there on the field, being able to hear that anthem, is something great.”
Rodrigo Prieto reveals that, although she has tried to enjoy herself, this week has been full of nervousness before the stage of the Champions Leaguebecause it changes the entire logistics of the week, from training, balls, clothing, which have to be sponsored and everything that UEFA requires for the competition.
“You fall in love with these tournaments. They are unforgettable experiences. All the trips, everything I have experienced around football, the stadiums, the fans, the different leagues that these tournaments offer, it is impressive. It is something that I will never forget, that I have loved, that I may not have imagined. I didn’t imagine it, but now that I am experiencing it, it is something I have dreamed of.”
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Rodrigo Prieto He asks Mexican coaches to be encouraged to go abroad given the few possibilities that there are in Liga MX and also advises them to study languages, which in the end was what opened the doors to him. Central Jutland and the possibility of disputing the Champions League.
“I know that sometimes it is difficult, or you think it is not. I know it is difficult, it is not easy, but they should be encouraged. If they have the opportunity to go out, they should take that opportunity. In Mexico there are few opportunities, especially for Mexicans. If you don’t have an opportunity at home, you have to go out and look for another place. I got it abroad, I am happy with life, I am learning a lot. For the moment I don’t want to go back, I want to keep learning, I want to keep living this. But yes, the coaches who come can, first of all, prepare themselves, which is also very important. Prepare themselves, learn another language, which is also a force in the world.”
Rodrigo Prieto had his last experience as a soccer player in Mexico with Vénados Yucatán. Imago7
What was Rodrigo Prieto’s football career like?
Rodrigo Prieto He ventured into his early years as a footballer. In addition to passing through the ranks of the Central JutlandHe also tried his luck in England and Malaysia, before returning to Mexican football to debut with Morelia in the 2003 Apertura.
Between 2004 and 2005 he played in the First Division A with Mérida and Tijuana, until in 2006 he joined Cruz Azul, where he played one match with the star team, a duel against América in the then called Estadio Azul. He later went to Puebla and returned to Mérida.
In 2008, his career changed and he moved to Venezuela, with Carabobo FC and Caracas FC, but it was with the second team that he won two championships, a league and a Cup, as well as two top scoring titles in the Cup.
In 2011, he returned to Mexican soccer to sign with Dorados de Sinaloa in what was his second and last period in Aztec soccer, in which he also played for Neza, Delfines, Necaxa, Zacatepec, Juárez, until reaching Venados, with which he played his last game in November 2020.
When does Midtjylland play and who is their opponent?
Central Jutland is playing for its pass to the League Phase of the Champions League This Wednesday, August 28 at 1:00 p.m. against Slovan Bratislava, a team from Slovakia.
Slovan Bratislava is the top winner of the Slovak First Division with 14 titles. Even the current rival of Central Jutlandhas been crowned champion for the last six seasons.
