A moment with…Carlos Ortega

Carlos Ortega will always be remembered as the guy who shed a tear on the day his team qualified for the VELUX EHF FINAL4 in 2014. Having just disposed of PSG over two legs, the emotion of the situation and the size of the prize overcame a man used to winning. It is a good image of a family man, a caring and nurturing player and coach who has won just about everything there is to win in the game.

"So difficult to beat us there”

The Marist Fathers have had a huge bearing on the development of handball in Spain. Maristas Malaga, where he began his career and Ademar Leon are just two of the big clubs that have the priests to thank for their existence. Carlos began as an eight-year-old in the school at Malaga and played there for fifteen years. The school hall was their home ground and they punched above their weight there. Teachers were the coaches and he was happy, twice being top scorer in Spain. 

“I had a 6^th sense”

The right back at the age of 23 moved on due to economic circumstances. He landed at the biggest club in the world FC Barcelona. In the next eleven years he was to win the EHF Champions League six times plus countless other titles. He admits moving from RB to RW was difficult at first. He wasn't the fastest or the best jumper, but he always “arrived on time”. Valero Rivera was the key to keeping them hungry, pushing them all the way.

“Zagreb had nightmares”

He admits that winning the CL back then was easier as there was a home and away final and at the Palau they were almost unbeatable. He remembers times when there were people queuing outside to get tickets to matches and not just the important ones. With a faraway look in his eye he says “amazing, amazing, amazing”, he remember that time so well but is loath to say whether they could make it today. He thinks that maybe this team would be in the top four, but might not win every time. “Handball”, he says, “has become more physical, but we played with the brain”. And when that didn't work they just threw the ball to Xepkin. In the end Valero pushed them hard, kept them hungry and this is why they won so much.

“If I make a mistake, he tells me”

A knee injury during 2005 season was the end of his career and a degree in sports and handball led him to the coaching life. Believe it or not his assistant coach Xavi Sabate and he began coaching together at Barcelona's u14 team with roles reversed. They made their way together to Antequerra and again economic circumstances dictated that they needed to find another job. They caused a great scandal by going on strike. (or streak as he first says) And lest we think the phone is always ringing for top coaches, he tells me that he went looking for the job.

The possibility that he might be reunited with Laszlo Nagy was a big plus in his favour. Listen to him tell the story, it's quite incredible to think he might not have been in the job at all. He has a special relationship with Sabate and he jokes that he sees him more than he sees his wife. They talk about everything and Sabate is not afraid to point out if he thinks a mistake has been made.

“The right place for every player”

He has a system at Veszprem. The players understand it and the new ones are starting to understand it. Chema was the most important piece in his jigsaw as he “understands” the game. It's amazing to hear how he talks to players, to make them understand that their role no matter how insignificant it may appear to the public is vitally important. He listens to everybody.

From right back to right wing to coach, he is a man who thinks very deeply about the game. His nurturing of young players at Barcelona (when he was a senior player) has ably helped him in his development as a coach.

'Terrible' singer (check out a performance of his on YouTube and you be the judge), funny man (listen to his Chistes), he wants to be remembered as a good player, a good trainer and a good friend. The joker in the pack at FCB, he played in every position except LW and GK, he has learned his trade and has risen, rightly, to the top of the tree in terms of coaching. One of the greats of the game opens up to us about players, coaching, pressure at Veszprem and what it meant to be part of the “Dream Team” of 1995-2000. Listen to the full interview here.