Mario Arteaga discovered Ricardo Pepi on a tour of FC Dallas in the CAR and from there he saw conditions for him to become a figure in the United States
The Mexican-American forward of MLS FC Dallas, Ricardo Pepi, has enough quality to surpass his compatriot and also a battering ram, Christian Pulisic, who plays for Chelsea in the England Premier League.
Prior to the match between El Tri and the United States of the World Cup qualifying round, the former coach of Pepi in the U16 National Team of Mexico, Mario Arteaga placeholder image, who was its discoverer for the Tricolor a couple of years ago, said that “Pepi shows better things than himPulisic) at this moment, that is why I dare to say that he is going to be a figure, because despite his young age, he is standing out “.
“I met PulisicIt was category 98. Against them we played on a par with the U-17 that I brought. He showed himself, he was a good player, but just as he was a good player, here we had four of the same style, who are good players. Nevertheless, Pulisic he was growing, he was growing and now he is a figure in Chelsea “.
“Pepi will be a figure in football USA, because he has Latino characteristics that hurt him a lot, or that are not the same as the American footballer. What happens is that the American player is not better than the Mexican; however, he has many possibilities of going to Europe, because even the club offers them to him at the time of signing. “
“The United States National Team, I imagine they have to have agreements with several teams. I imagine they say to them: ‘Sign with us, you are going to participate in the 17th, the 20th, and I’ll put you in Europe.’ They look for the opportunity, something that does not happen in Mexico; on the contrary, here they put you high for if they buy from you, it was an economic benefit and not a sporting one. “
YOUR STORY WITH PEPI
“I brought Pepi for the first time to a selection. He was a normal player, although he had interesting things and I brought him with U-16. Dallas came to play a few games with us and later, that same team faced the Guadalajara teams, and I saw it there too. “
“Pepi He is technical, skilled, strong, you do very well with your head, and as a forward center he defines well. Those points that I mention to you, for a single player it is enough to stand out from others. Another can be skillful, but he doesn’t score goals, Antuna’s case; someone else can be a scorer, but has neither mobility nor dynamics. “
“He’s very strong, fast, one of those cheeky guys. They’re ‘crazy’ guys, but on and off the pitch; not just off the pitch. They’re guys who give themselves 100 percent and solve a game for you, He had a strong character, he fought with everyone, not that he was a fighter, but he didn’t let himself be. “
“So, I liked Pepi and I asked to be summoned, so they brought him and he was two concentrations with me, “he added.
Remembered Mario Arteaga than Ricardo Pepi, who is barely 18 years old today and has a great future ahead of him, did not have an ideal weight when he met him.
“He was half ‘chubby’. I talked to him and said: ‘You have to stop eating, focus on this, do this.’ And the guy, very obedient, did what we told him to do. But he came willingly, totally. He talked to me, told me not to stop calling him. “
However, over time. Pepi He no longer wanted to report with El Tri, because he was no longer going to direct it.
“Later, I no longer brought that team and they told me: ‘He doesn’t want to come anymore Pepi‘… And one day I meet him at the CAR, since he came to play, but he was already about 18 years old and I told him:’ What happened cab …, you don’t want to come anymore? ‘…’ No Profe, if you’re gone, what for? “.
And it is that, he explained Arteaga that his mission was to give confidence to young people as a trainer in National Teams: “It is not that you teach them things, but that you make them feel confident. I assume that before being footballers, they are people, and that is how you should treat them. They They are in a stage where they are still in their training, they are young and you have to guide them and give them a good treatment, “he concluded.