THE QUESTIONS

“Carlos Tevez and I knew very little about West Ham – and the manager didn’t know us at all! But we didn’t have many options”

In 2006, the befuddled looks of Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano were mirrored far and wide. If the duo were at least partly optimistic about what was in store for them at West Ham, however, their first meeting with manager Alan Pardew put paid to that. “He asked us what our positions were,” Mascherano tells FourFourTwo now, with a wry smile. “He didn’t know, even though we’d played at the World Cup a month and a half earlier.”

In the end, things did turn out well for him, notwithstanding that doomed, brief stint at Upton Park. First Liverpool came to the midfielder’s rescue, then Pep Guardiola converted Mascherano into a brilliant defender at Barcelona. Later, he even surpassed Javier Zanetti to become Argentina’s most-capped player with 147 appearances.

Last November, El Jefecito (‘The Little Chief’) retired in typically quiet fashion: with a simple, short speech following a loss at Estudiantes. He had returned home in January 2020 after a spell in China, but COVID-19 impelled him to finally call it a day.

On the pitch, at any rate. In January, Mascherano joined the Argentine FA as their new National Methodology and Development Director, focusing on La Albiceleste’s next generation.

But amid everything, the 36-year-old found time to answer your questions...

What was it like as a young player breaking into a River Plate first team where the expectations are so high? 

Facundo Pestalozzi, London

When you’re moving up through the ranks, the penny doesn’t always drop immediately. Everything evolved quite quickly for me: I joined River’s academy in 2000, and within 18 months I’d been promoted to the first team. I faced all of it as naturally as I could, but in 2003 I suddenly made my senior Argentina debut having not yet played for River’s first team. After that, I started getting more minutes for my club, and didn’t stay there for too long – just two years, before going to Corinthians [in Brazil].

I think my laid-back personality was key to helping me get through those stages smoothly, but I won’t lie: I was overjoyed with how my professional career was progressing back then. My dream as a boy had always been to become a footballer, but experiencing those extraordinary moments never crossed my mind. I was very fortunate.

Real Madrid were linked with you in your youth. Was a move ever close? 

Marco Lane, London 

I played at the 2004 Olympic Games, [winning gold], then Real approached me because they were on the lookout for a defensive midfielder. But the deal didn’t happen. I was only 20, and they were after a more experienced player. That didn’t affect me at all, though, as I was still really young. I felt confident that other great opportunities would arise naturally along the way if I kept doing a good job.

One of your earliest Superclasico games against Boca Juniors [below] was in the 2004 Copa Libertadores semi-finals. In the second leg, Carlos Tevez scored a very late goal which seemed to have sent Boca through, but your River side netted again to draw level on aggregate – and then lost on penalties. That had to hurt...? 

Rico Lucero, Buenos Aires 

It’s hard to explain what a Superclasico is – you have to live it. And it can easily turn into madness! I played in many of them, but for that one specifically we spent weeks at home without going outside, because there was so much external pressure. If any of us bumped into a River fan, he’d ask desperately for us to win. Unfortunately, we ended up losing on penalties.

All things considered, I feel so lucky to have had the chance to enjoy many Superclasicos. It’s a very special kind of match: River vs Boca; Argentina vs Brazil; Liverpool vs Manchester United; Barcelona vs Real Madrid. These games gave my profession a meaning. All of the effort and sacrifices I made to be a professional player were rewarded in matches such as those. [FFT: Was the Superclasico the biggest, though?] The pressure from the supporters lets you know what the game means to them. From what I’ve experienced in Europe, other clasicos end at the final whistle. The Superclasico, however, can be vital for what unfolds afterwards during the season – there have been many cases where a manager has been sacked for losing a River vs Boca derby. Everyone lives it with such phenomenal intensity and passion.