27 Sports Wednesday, February 13, 2019 Solari’s fledglings breathe life into Real Madrid as Ajax lie in wait Vinicius is the poster boy of Solari’s meritocracy AMSTERDAM: Real Madrid against Ajax would typi- we’ve got to give him the time to settle that every play- cally be a clash of stars against prodigies but when er needs.” they face each other in the Champions League last 16 Solari, in charge of Real Madrid B at the time, was today, the difference will be harder to distinguish. the coach that received him, witnessing first-hand as Ajax will have their latest crop of young gems at the the 18-year-old scored twice against Atletico B, curled Johan Cruyff Arena, where Frenkie de Jong and in a free-kick against Unionistas and equalised against Matthijs de Ligt will attempt to live up to already- Celta Vigo B. swelling reputations while the likes of Donny van de Vinicius was raw but when Lopetegui was Beek, Andre Onana and Kasper Dolberg could also sacked, Solari had greater legitimacy to promote enhance theirs. him. He had faith too. Solari gave Vinicius 90 min- The surprise is less that Ajax’s line-up will be sprin- utes in his first match in charge, more than kled with emerging talents than the expectation Lopetegui had in all 14 of his. Madrid’s will be too. Gareth Bale aside, the galacticos Almost four months on, Vinicius has 22 appearances are gone, replaced by a handful of prospects trying to for the first team, the latest pair against Barcelona at forge their own way through, only at the biggest and the Camp Nou and Atletico Madrid at the Wanda most demanding club in the world. Metropolitano. In both, he was Madrid’s greatest The shift was not so much initiated by the current threat, to the extent that even Bale’s starting spot has coach Santiago Solari, whose predecessors Zinedine been questioned. Zidane and Julen Lopetegui both used youth when they “His adaptation has been very fast,” Solari said. “He had to, primarily to rest key players or remind them is 18 and he has adapted to a new country, a new cul- their place was not guaranteed. ture, a different type of football. He has shown his talent But in the biggest games, Zidane and Lopetegui but we have to take care of him.” were drawn to experience, while Solari has made youth Vinicius is the poster boy of Solari’s meritocracy, an first choice since being tasked with rejuvenating his approach that puts reputation far below humility and team in November. Vinicius Junior has had less time hard work. Among those to lose out have been Isco, AMSTERDAM: Ajax Amsterdam’s Dutch coach Erik ten Hag gives a press conference at the Johan Cruijff Arena yester- than Ajax’s De Jong, with only six starts in La Liga and who is yet to start a league game under Solari, and day on the eve of their UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg football match against Real Madrid. —AFP one in the Champions League, but his impact has been Marcelo, whose form deteriorated at the start of the arguably just as dramatic, the hype around the Brazilian year. Casemiro has also been relegated to the bench. have played 64 games since Solari was appointed. coached the youth side and then managed first team, already comparable. Among the fresh faces to come in have been Sergio “They are the future of Real Madrid,” Solari said. said last month that youngsters should ideally be intro- Signed last summer for 45 million euros, Vinicius was Reguilon at left back, the Spanish 22-year-old with a “Therefore, they have to be part of the present.” duced gradually, allowed to bed in while more experi- supposed to spend his debut season settling in with the wand of a left foot, Marcos Llorente in defensive mid- But the present is now a strenuous few weeks when enced players shoulder the responsibility. reserve side, a strategy adhered to, perhaps too rigidly, field, and Dani Ceballos, who could make the transition Madrid’s season could be defined by matches against Solari has had to fast-track his fledglings and so far by Lopetegui. “He’s very young and has just arrived in after Luka Modric slightly easier to bear. the best opponents, both in La Liga and Europe. Jorge that faith has been rewarded. Ajax, and the Champions Europe,” Lopetegui said. “He’s very keen to learn and Together, Vinicius, Reguilon, Llorente and Ceballos Valdano who, like Solari, played for Real Madrid, League knock-out stages, is the next test. — AFP Pochettino faces Matches on TV defining moment (Local Timings) UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE in bid for first Tottenham Hotspur v BV Borussia Dortmund 23:00 beIN SPORTS HD 2 trophy at Spurs Ajax Amsterdam v Real Madrid CF 23:00 beIN SPORTS LONDON: Mauricio Pochettino faces a defining moment in his Tottenham reign as the in-demand Argentine tries to keep his bid for a first major prize alive against Borussia Australian legend Dortmund in the Champions League. Pochettino has taken to defending his failure to win sil- verware in almost five years at Tottenham by insisting he hails #HakeemHome values qualification for Europe’s elite club competition more highly than success in the domestic cups. as win in battle But for all of Pochettino’s protestations that reaching the Champions League is his primary goal, that claim rings a lit- tle hollow when they never make it to the business end of for football’s soul the tournament. Tottenham have never been past the last 16 of either the Champions League or the Europa League since Pochettino SYDNEY: Ex-Socceroos captain Craig Foster was arrived from Southampton in May 2014. Now Bundesliga capped 29 times for his country, but believes the fight to leaders Dortmund, who visit Wembley for the Champions LONDON: Tottenham Hotspur’s Argentinian midfielder Erik Lamela (L), Tottenham Hotspur’s Belgian defender Toby free Hakeem al-Araibi was the most important battle of his League last-16 first leg today, stand between Pochettino and Alderweireld (C) and Tottenham Hotspur’s Argentinian defender Juan Foyth (R) take part in a team training session at life and vital for saving football’s soul. The young Bahraini footballer and refugee is on his way his first European quarter-final in what could his last season Tottenham Hotspur’s Enfield Training Centre, north London, yesterday. — AFP with the north London club. back to Australia from detention in Bangkok and it is Pochettino, yet to win a trophy in his managerial career, largely thanks to player-turned-commentator Foster. has been strongly linked with a move to Manchester United “We hope to keep going in the same direction, to fight tame Europa League last-32 defeat against Fiorentina and When the Thai authorities arrested the 25-year-old at the end of the season. If that mooted deal may now be for big things.” But for all their undoubted growth in the the following year they were outclassed by Dortmund in the defender on his honeymoon and looked set to deport him less of a sure thing given Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s remarkable Pochettino era, there remains a nagging feeling of unfulfilled last 16 of the same competition. to his native Bahrain-where he feared facing torture and impact as interim boss at Old Trafford, there is little doubt potential about Tottenham, who have won only three cups in His maiden voyage in the Champions League was even prison-Foster used his considerable public platform to Pochettino will still be a man in demand, with Real Madrid the past 28 years. more rocky as Tottenham failed to qualify from the group cause a stink. also believed to be interested in his services. Failure to land a big prize with the generation of stage. Finally hitting their stride last season, Spurs enjoyed a This, Foster told AFP, was not just about Australia keep- Derided as serial underachievers when they struggled to Tottenham stars he has cultivated so astutely, including memorable 3-1 win over European champions Real Madrid ing its word to offer a young man refuge from persecution, break into the Premier League’s top four, Pochettino has Harry Kane, Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen and Son Heung-min, in the group stage and they also drew in Madrid and twice but about the fate of football itself. The 49-year-old made Tottenham into Champions League mainstays capable would be considered a missed opportunity. beat Dortmund. But as the pressure mounted Tottenham believes it is the start the process of redeeming the soul of of ruffling the feathers of Europe’s aristocracy. Tottenham have finished in the Premier League’s top melted, blowing the lead in the last-16 second leg against sport from the “sordid” grip of big money and politics. “We feel so proud and with all the circumstances the three for the past three seasons and they retain an outside Juventus as two second-half goals sent them crashing out. “It was clear to us in football that this kid was in serious team is doing fantastically, the performance of the squad is chance of winning the title this campaign. But their poor Vexed by mounting criticism following recent exits from the trouble, because football was never going to come to his unbelievable,” Pochettino said. “We are showing great char- record in domestic cups under Pochettino is a significant FA and League Cups, Pochettino said chairman Daniel Levy aid,” Foster told AFP.