Mark Gonzalez headlines the latest episode of FIFA’s Living Football podcast
Petr Cech, Ryan Nelsen and Lindsay Tarpley also feature
FIFA Medical Director Andy Massey discusses head injuries
The Living Football podcast is back, and episode 6 is certainly worth a listen. Reshmin Chowdhury chats to a 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™ star, one of the greatest goalkeepers of his generation, a former centre-back regarded as one of his region’s best-ever players and a two-time Olympic gold medallist.
Chile hadn’t won a World Cup match in 48 years heading into South Africa 2010. Mark Gonzalez’s unanswered goal against Switzerland – ironically in his country of birth – gave them back-to-back wins and ultimately helped La Roja into the knockout phase.
The jet-heeled winger represented the likes of Liverpool, Real Sociedad and Real Betis before ending his long career in 2019. Thereafter, he hasn’t been directly involved in the sport, but he revealed to Reshmin that might be about to change.
“I’m very interested in getting into football again,” said Gonzalez. “Coaching… it’s not something that I really want to do, from being under pressure for so many years, being a football player, so being a coach is going to be quite the same.
“I think that I can help in other ways, other areas, especially working with kids, for example, and transmitting [my] experience a bit on how to get to be a professional, for example, making good decisions.”
We also hear from Czech Republic and Arsenal great Petr Cech and Andy Massey, Director of FIFA’s Medical Department, about the new concussion protocol, while New Zealand icon Ryan Nelsen and 125-times-capped USWNT international Lindsay Tarpley discuss the draws for the Men’s and Women’s Olympic Football Tournaments in Tokyo.
Furthermore, we go to Honduras to find out how the FIFA Forward programme is having a positive impact on the game at all levels in the region.
iTunes/Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/fr/podcast/fifa-living-football/id1553345611?l=en