Yago Iglesias: “There are clubs that start with promotion, but we are Pontevedra CF”

Yago Iglesias (Ribeira, 1982), is looking forward to the start with the maroon jersey. In his head, he is consolidating a project that returns Pontevedra to the First Federation from a solid base.

—You arrived at the club a week ago, are you ready to start?

— Yes, I really want the ball to start rolling and training. We are already preparing the template. My secondary role, but there is a lot of understanding with Charles in the movements that are made and the profiles of the players. Sports management has the most work now.

—If you were able to follow Pontevedra last year, do you think it is necessary to make many changes?

— We who are Galicians always follow Pontevedra even if we are outside or in other categories. If you have to change a lot, well, you have to see it. I think it’s a different season and a different category and, therefore, with different requirements, but the truth is that we have a block of players who are following and who will provide that continuity at a high level for the Second Federation.

—Chiqui and Charly, two offensive players, have been announced, is the team starting to be built from above?

— The club moves and contacts players from different positions and these are the first with whom an agreement has been reached, but it has nothing to do with the position. They are footballers we know well. Last year Charly already worked with us and was the first scorer in the category in group 1. The last two seasons were very good.

— The competition groups are already known, are you satisfied?

— Yes, it is a group that I know from last season, we know who the players and coaches are, and there is a great continuity between them. There are new teams, like us, and others coming from Tercera from their midst, but it is a group with several candidates for promotion, who were already at the door last year. The best in the group is, apart from the level, the composition taking into account the geographical situation. It will be much more affordable travel for the club and the fans.

— In her presentation, the president talked about progress, is that the goal?

— His time in the category was short-lived and served the team to know the demand. The club appreciates it as a step back to return with more solid foundations in order to stay.

— Do you dream of achieving the same successes with Pontevedra that you achieved with Compostela?

– That’s an idea. The game model is related to the football players, but it is true that the coaches have some guidelines that wherever we go we want them to be the characteristics or representative characteristics of the team. Pontevedra is the ideal place for that.

“Wouldn’t going up there be a failure?”

— That cannot be said on June 30, the evaluation must be in May, when the competition ends. If there’s one thing learned from last season, it’s that you have to start with humility. All categories are very complicated and there are rivals who also have a clear goal of advancement. You can already see what many teams are investing in. There are many clubs that start with a promotion band, but we are Pontevedra. We will invest all enthusiasm and work to return to the category in which the club had to be.

— Did you want to return to Galicia?

“Yes, I really want to. I was away for two years and the experience was good both on a personal and sporting level, but you always want to come home, and when it comes to a club with the history of Pontevedra, it’s even more exciting and there are more desires.

“The coach must be where they are looking for him, and this club has always shown interest”

His name has been mentioned many times, but only now has it become a reality. Now he is counting the days until he starts working on a project that excites him.

— His name was always in the pools, why this year?

— Everything happened very quickly, within a few days. Usually it takes longer, now we see it with the players, to whom you have to sell the project in order to consider coming to Pontevedra. Things happen when they have to happen. They contacted me and after a few days everything was ready. A coach has to be in a place where they like him, and Pontevedra always showed interest.

— And what kind of project is it that they tell the players about?

— There is a higher category, which is the First Federation, and all the players we talked to have that profile. A footballer will always choose to be in the highest possible category and in the end Pontevedra is always valued as the first option. He has an exciting project and in the medium term he is looking for a promotion, he is a continuist and a project that a footballer should be excited about.

— I understand that this project of continuity can be seen in what the players sign for two seasons?

— We see that it is successful in the medium or long term. What is required is to have a solid foundation and a continuous goal, not forgetting that what you want to do is not something to rush and run.

“Are you excited?”

— Very excited and eager to get started, get to know the players firsthand and finally get to work. It’s a homecoming for me. Pontevedra is a big club in Galicia and it’s a project I’m really looking forward to.