THE Spanish national women’s football team is riding high on the squad’s success at the 2023 Women’s World Cup.
The team is scheduled to take on England at the final of the FIFA tournament on August 20, but fans have noticed that the players have not been celebrating their victories with manager Jorge Vilda.
Spain coach Jorge Vilda has not been included in his team’s celebrations at the 2023 Women’s World CupREUTERS/Hannah Mckay
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Why doesn’t the Spanish football team celebrate with manager Jorge Vilda?
Football fans noticed that the Spanish team snubbed Vilda as they celebrated reaching the final of the Women’s World Cup, which has been held in Australia and New Zealand.
There has appeared to be tension between Vilda and a number of the players on his squad – three of whom mutinied against him in 2022.
Fifteen of Spain’s players wrote letters to Spain‘s football federation in September 2022, threatening to quit if Vilda was not fired.
Vilda’s coaching techniques were having an impact on “their emotional state and their health,” according to the identical statements.
The revolt against the manager came just weeks after Spain were defeated by England in the quarter-finals of the 2022 Euros.
Team selection, training sessions and how injuries were managed at the competition were amongst the reasons for players being dissatisfied with their leader.
Vilda, who then chose three of the players involved in the drama for the World Cup, later spoke out about the incident.
He said he had not considered resigning, despite multiple players wishing him to do so.
He said at the time: “It would be unfair, for what we created in the past and are in the present.”
Since then, players have kept their distance from Vilda despite their huge success at the World Cup.
The manager has been seen celebrating their wins on the pitch solo as the team have ignored his efforts to join in on their post-match festivities.
Forward Mariona Caldentey, midfielder Aitana Bonmati and defender Ona Batlle are the three revolting players who made it onto the World Cup squad.
Sandra Panos, Mapi Leon, Patri Guijarro, Claudia Pina, Leila Ouahabi, Laia Aleixandri and Lucia Garcia are some of the players who were not chosen by Vilda to represent their country at the tournament.
How long has Jorge Vilda been manger of the Spanish team?
Vilda has been the manager of Spain‘s women’s football team since 2015.
He took on the role after spending many years working with the country’s national women’s youth squads.
Vilda was once a player himself but suffered painful knee injuries as a teenager, leading him to move into a career in coaching instead.
He began by working with a small neighbourhood club in Madrid called CD Canillas.
What has the Spanish FA said about Jorge Vilda?
The Spanish FA, The Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), has thrown its support behind Vilda following the demands to oust him.
Back in 2022, the federation ordered the players who had said Vilda should be fired to apologise to their manager.
In a statement, it said that the federation would “not allow the players to question the continuity of the national coach and his coaching staff, since making those decisions does not fall within their powers”.
Vilda has thanked RFEF president Luis Rubiales for his backing, saying at the 2023 World Cup semi-final that his support means “so much”.
He said: “The support of Luis Rubiales and everyone at the federation means so much and will always stay with me, as well as that of my family because they have suffered this year.”