In his youth he worked as a teacher and since then the nickname stuck to him. He was a brave central marker. As a technician, he marked an era. He was champion with Boca and with Peñarol. In the 2018 World Cup, he built a new Uruguayan miracle. Then health conditions and uncertain results in the South American qualifying stage forced him to abdicate in favor of Aguirre, his successor.
In Eduardo Galeano's house, in the Malvín neighborhood of Montevideo, hanging over the iron railings painted dark green, there is a sign with a notice: "Closed for soccer". In there, together with his wife Helena, among books and handicrafts, the Uruguayan writer is amazed and enthusiastic: La Celeste performs magic and miracles in the South Africa World Cup and is in the semifinals, contrary to those predictions made during the rigors of the playoffs against Costa Rica. The match against the Netherlands is just a few days away. Galeano then wrote: "I hope that today the goddess of the wind kisses our feet again so that, regardless of the results, we keep our honor high".
Uruguay did just that. Although they lost, they left their honor high. And there, in the middle of the sad scene but without reproach, was the father of the new Uruguayan miracle in World Cups: Oscar Washington Tabarez, that Maestro. He is the owner of all La Celeste's victories in the last forty years of World Cups. And he also built the best campaign since that memorable Maracanazo, that black-and-white epic that took place more than six decades ago. From there, the great names (such as Roque Máspoli, goalkeeper of that team captained by Obdulio Varela, who was able to leave that 200,000-headed monster in silence), successful coaches in their clubs (such as Jorge Fosatti) and outstanding foreigners (such as Daniel Passarella) passed through the ranks. None at any time achieved as much as Tabarez, who has already earned a place on the pedestal of Uruguayan soccer.
Thus, Tabárez has assembled a team in his own image and likeness. No fiddling, no false promises, with the charrúa grit that tells the story, with the contribution of valuable players (such as Diego Forlán, chosen as the best player of South Africa 2010). Because the coach knows it and says it with conviction: "You can't build a great team without great players. And we have the chance to count on that kind of players". Uruguay was in its last epic episode and also now, in the run-up to the Copa América, a reasonable team. Like Tabarez at the time of the words, who tells realities without makeup. Perhaps he learned it in his teaching days, when the nickname that still accompanies and defines him was born. It was a time when his passion for soccer shared space with his other quest: teaching, as he did in three schools in Cerro, Paso de la Arena and La Teja.
Beyond his way of seeing soccer, Tabárez is a remarkable team leader. Those who know him in detail, his players, can tell. And the managers, who have to make an effort to rise to the occasion, know it. An anecdote is worth mentioning: during the World Cup, Sebastián Abreu asked him to kick the last penalty in the quarter-final series against Ghana. The coach, even knowing that El Loco could do something crazy -kick it Panenka-style-, let him. He trusted him. He gave him the responsibility. The result was this new miracle for La Celeste. That detail happened in the only possible way in recent history: with El Maestro giving a driving lesson.
As a boy -as a botija, in Uruguayan terms- he had played as a striker. But he soon became a central marker. As the history written in sky-blue rules: brave, intense. He played for minor teams: La Fraternidad, Sudamérica, Sportivo Italiano, Wanderers, Fénix, Bella Vista. In the course of that sporting life, he also walked through underprivileged areas, of working people, teaching in classrooms where nothing was too much. The schools where he taught were close to his home and, above all, close to his concerns. Those were not easy times, with big contracts. He once told the newspaper Olé: "I ended up as a soccer player without having saved any money. I played for many small clubs. It was enough to buy a little house".
After his retirement as a soccer player, he started his long and valuable career in that job that took him around the world. The new occupation forced him to move away from teaching in the classroom. "I had to leave the schools. I was on unpaid leave," he says whenever he is asked about those days. He started at Bella Vista, with the youth teams. He continued with the Uruguay U-20 national team. Then, after coaching Danubio and Wandereres, he helped Peñarol win the 1987 Libertadores Cup. People were already talking about him, that man of little to say and a lot of hrkr5ZneTvQlacer. He was at Deportivo Cali, led La Celeste to the 1990 World Cup in Italy; he led Boca to the championship after eleven years. Then, he came to Europe: Cagliari, Milan, Oviedo. Later he returned to Argentina: he coached Velez and was runner-up with Boca in 2002. The following was the most resounding: his second cycle in the Uruguayan national team ended with the historic podium in the first World Cup in Africa.
Now, legitimized by his achievements and his work and driven by the popular clamor, he will also lead Uruguay in the Copa America. It will be his third appearance in the continental tournament: he was runner-up in 1989, in Brazil, and finished fourth in the last edition, Venezuela 2007. He will face the challenge as he always does, putting himself in the background even though he will be in the center of the scene. He says now as he has always said: "A coach must have the virtue of taking advantage of his resources, but he does not play". And that is how Uruguay will arrive, with its Maestro in charge. In the name of more glory.
Source images: Conmebol Twitter.
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