Q&A with Inter Miami coach Diego Alonso, on his life, playing vs. Beckham, his plans

On a chilly, but otherwise picture-perfect day, Inter Miami formally introduced its new coach, Diego Alonso, on Wednesday afternoon at a press conference at the Rusty Pelican Restaurant on Key Biscayne. Set against the backdrop of the turquoise bay and sweeping downtown Miami skyline, the 44-year-old Uruguayan answered questions about his past and his decision to take the Miami job.

Afterward, he sat down with the Miami Herald to shed more insight into who he is and why he is so energized about taking over an expansion Major League Soccer team.

Here’s what he had to say...

Q: How did you get started in soccer?

A: ``In Uruguay everybody plays soccer. The first thing they give you when you are born is a jersey of the team you must support and a soccer ball. For me, my father made me a fan of Rampla Juniors. Later, I became a fan of Penarol. Those are the two teams I followed the most, a lot of love for Rampla because of my dad, and a lot of love for Penarol, for which I played and identified with.

Q: Tell us about your parents.

A: My father was a very good basketball player. My mom was a housewife. After my dad finished playing basketball, he worked at a medical lab and was a pharmaceutical salesman at hospitals and doctors’ offices.

Q: Did you always want to have a career in professional soccer?

A: Always. From the time I was little, I wanted to be a pro soccer player. I finished high school and I went to college intending to become a doctor, but it was impossible in Uruguay to pursue the two careers of medicine and professional soccer. It was too hard to deal with my studies, exams and training so I decided to play soccer.

Q: When did you know you wanted to get into coaching?

A: At 21 years old, I realized that my passion was coaching. I dedicated myself to focus on that aspect more than my teammates did because I was knew coaching was in my future after my playing career. I always say I am a soccer coach who was lucky enough to play soccer. For a long time I took daily notes of all my training sessions with my teams. I had a notebook and wrote exactly what we did day by day, but I then realized that wasn’t really useful because you have to coach by your own instincts, not by what you see and not by copying other people. It’s more rewarding to be original and express yourself. When I retired from playing (in 2011), after the Copa Libertadores with Penarol, within a few months I was coaching.

Q: Does your experience playing help you be a better coach?

A: I don’t think it determines whether you’re a good coach or not, but it is good experience. The majority of coaches have played, but the players respect you for what you do as a coach. The first impression maybe before they know you they notice if you played at a high level. After that, you gain respect in the day to day, how you are, if you are real, if you are sincere, if you are direct, if you don’t hide things.

Q: Did you ever play against David Beckham?

A: Yes. In Malaga (Spain). He was with Real Madrid and I was with Malaga and we faced each other. Then, another match in Madrid when I was with Los Pumas (UNAM) of Mexico in the Copa Santiago Bernabeu. We didn’t speak. For me, it was the same as facing a lot of big-time players.

Q: Why did you choose to take this job, coaching an expansion MLS team?

A: Because this is a very ambitious project. I was lucky enough to win in Pachuca. I was luck enough to win at Monterrey and my next step is to keep winning. I had to find a team that has the same objective as me, and this club does. No doubt, it won’t be easy. This is a building process, we have to go step by step, but my ambition is to win. And when you have that ambition to win, that desire, it’s much easier. You don’t find it, you have to go look for it. That is what motivated me to make the decision.

Q: When did you first interview for the job?

A: I got the call in late-November, maybe early December. I flew to Miami. We sat down to meet each other. Once I met them, spoke to them, got a feeling about them face to face, they told me they were interested in me, and the feeling was mutual.

Q: How familiar are you with Major League Soccer?

A: I know practically everything about the league. The only thing missing is playing in the league format. I have had the chance to play against MLS teams in the CONCACAF Champions League, in friendlies, the experience of fans and the stadiums has been wonderful. I can’t wait to get started.

Q: The fans are big dreamers. Can the fans still expect a big-name Designated Player to join the team among the five or six players left to be signed?

A: The club has been working very hard to get great players. To say who it’s going to be or who it’s not, or if they’re going to be big names, those are private matters. We can’t make that public until they are concrete. But I can assure the fans we will have a very competitive team, and we will dream together in the quest for a trophy...My roots are in Uruguay, and we were raised to believe that nothing is impossible. We live next to two giants, Argentina and Brazil, and we compete against them. Brazil has nine Copa Americas, Argentina has 14 and Uruguay has 15. We may be less, but when we compete, we’re more. That is the spirit and passion I bring here.”