When the Yellow Submarine fell against Pellegrini’s Betis, the Chilean striker did not even enter the field of play. His adaptation to Spanish football is proving much more complex than expected, a situation that has been recognized by his own coach: “He is suffering like the damned,” revealed Quique Setién. From Chile, they communicate weekly with the attacker to find out about his progress, as the Qualifiers approach.
Ben Brereton cannot adapt to his new club in Spain. Despite his desire to quickly join Villarreal, in which he even surprised during his “baptism” by singing the song aloud Sweet Caroline from American Neil Diamond Unleashing the euphoria of his teammates, the Chilean striker suffers to show his best version in the Yellow Submarine.
Quique Setién, his coach at Villarreal, was responsible for clarifying Ben’s difficult present. He did so in the press conference ahead of Manuel Pellegrini’s Betis duel, in which his cast fell 1-2. “This period of adaptation cost him dearly because of the heat, we see that he is suffering like hell. It’s not easy for those who live here, imagine that in England it was 12 or 13 degrees. You see his face, but the intent and enthusiasm he has is palpable, and his desire to learn and improve things,” the strategist said.
The truth is that different aspects complicate Brereton’s start in La Liga. Coping with his first experience outside of England has become quite a challenge. In Spain, he no longer enjoys the undisputed ownership he held at Blackburn Rovers. Facing Setién, his new boss, the Chilean must demonstrate and deserve his place.
The language was one of the most difficult points for Brereton. Despite intensive Spanish lessons, the striker struggles to make himself understood. “I’m learning Spanish. It’s been hard, I have lessons all week. I understand more than I can speak, but since the baby arrived it’s been difficult to follow lessons. I hope to take them back and learn the language” he confessed a few weeks ago.
In pre-season, Ben Brereton could not stand out either. Like the rest of the squad, which only raised questions about the poor results, the footballer received sour criticism from the Spanish press. He only scored one goal, from a penalty, after failing to execute it, in a draw against Nice, in the Newcastle St. James Park . “The point of attack was shared between Ben Brereton and Morales, who didn’t understand each other very well and were absent for most of the minutes,” report Marca.
This Sunday, in the fall against Betis, Brereton did not add minutes. And his trainer did not hesitate to explain his absence insistently. “It’s the same reason why other players who could have entered did not enter: we understood that it was not necessary”, he began by saying. “Those who were there might just be doing just fine and I don’t begin to think now who didn’t come in. But if he had seen the need for himself or someone else to come in, he would have,” said he added.
In the Chilean national team, they do not hide their concern for the moment of Brereton given the proximity of the debut against Uruguay, in the qualifiers. They spoke weekly with the footballer to find out about his progress. They assure that although his present is not easy, at no time does the player have a bad time. They warn it’s only a matter of time before the Red striker earns a place in Setien’s squad.
Setien’s support
Quique Setién is a coach with a career in Spain. He managed Barcelona and had to deal with big stars like Lionel Messi, for example. For the same reason, DT has no problem sitting on the bench any player who considers that he does not provide solutions. For the same reason, despite the expectations Brereton has raised, he does not add minutes. However, Setién continues to trust the alternatives he can offer him in attack.
“Luckily for him and for the team, this away position can also be considered. Our mechanisms allow him not to have to be blocked on the wing, but to play a little more inside and take advantage of his ability to stand out from this position. “, specific.
“Forward too, because he is a player who has very good movements and I find that interesting because we connect a lot with the interiors to filter forward passes and we need players with this ability and this speed to stand out . He has already given us demonstrations in pre-season in both positions. In any of them it can be useful to us, it will depend on the needs of the team and the competition it can have in both positions, ”he insisted on the usefulness that it may mean for its gaming system.
“We give you a margin. There is no problem . When you have to explain to him or he doesn’t understand something, he asks. My English is not very fluent either, but Ramiro talks to him a lot and he has no problem understanding things, what he hasn’t understood becomes clear to him and there is no problem. It’s a matter of time, he’s going to have that time, he has to apply himself a bit and he’ll understand everything,” said the strategist.
In fact, Setién ended up valuing the support his teammates gave Brereton and revealed that it was the team that decided he had to take the penalty against Nice, in pre-season, so he could score his first goal and gain more confidence. “I hadn’t decided who was going to take the penalty, there are things we leave to them,” he revealed.
Villarreal will return to competition this Friday, for La Liga. Brereton’s side will travel to Mallorca in the duel in which the Yellow Submarine will look to add their first victory in the Spanish tournament.
Track to El Deportivo
Source: Latercera
I’m Scott Moore, a professional writer and journalist based in the US. I’ve been writing for various publications for over 8 years now, and have been working as an author at athletistic for the past five years. My work has been featured by some of the leading sports websites and magazines across Europe.
