Castaneda: Football is the same as theatre

As well as being a coach, Jurgen Castaneda is a theatre director. His early work was with Cruz Azul’s youth sides, and now he is preparing for his World Cup debut, taking charge of Mexico at the FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2026™, which kicks off on 19 November. Just as in the theatre, a team’s star player needs the support of those working behind the scenes.

He must balance the demands of competing while continuing to nurture and develop the future stars of a nation that marvelled at Gilberto Mora’s talent at the last senior World Cup. His task is to help them understand the game, handle the spotlight and make the most of the opportunities football brings, without losing their sense of awe.

FIFA recently caught up with the Mexican coach to see how the nation's preparations are shaping up for Qatar 2026.

Everything you need to know about the U-17 World Cup

FIFA: How do you prepare players to adapt to different formations and styles of play?

Jurgen Castaneda: We have a responsibility to contribute to the player's development. The national team gives you something you don’t get at club level: exposure on the world stage and the chance to compete against the best players from other nations. As part of that process, we aim to develop the players’ tactical awareness.

When they reach the top flight, coaches will judge them based on whether they are ready, not by their age. We try to teach them to play in different formations and positions, understand their roles and read the different phases of the game. Conceding in the fifth minute is very different from conceding in the 90th. The team has to know how to respond.

We also speak to them throughout the process, even when they haven’t been called up to the squad, helping them address issues from their club matches, highlight what they did well and identify areas for improvement.

How do you prepare a player to handle the pressure of the spotlight and the expectations placed on them at such a young age?

We do mock interviews with them and talk to them about social media, stressing the need to be careful because it can make or break them these days. We work with them to help them manage their emotions and, above all, enjoy themselves, because ultimately, it’s still a game.

A World Cup will give them invaluable experience. It could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so the aim is to enjoy it, stay true to ourselves in every match and keep trying to progress.

What does it take for a footballer to go from being a promising talent to establishing themselves in the top flight?

I’ll always feel that we need to do a little bit more when it comes to developing the players’ mental strength. Mexico has everything in place to develop players, but sometimes you need to instil a little bit more hunger in them.

Competition is strong because the league is so well organised, but more could be asked of the players. To go from being a promising young talent to establishing yourself in the top flight, you have to be consistent and get the little things right.

The difference between those who go on to make it at the top level and those who fall short comes down to the finer details. Especially off the pitch, in how they look after themselves and whether they put in extra work with double training sessions. I don’t think that’s something you see very often in Mexico.

Your career took off at a remarkable pace: Cruz Azul, working alongside Martin Anselmi and now the national team. What was that journey like for you?

Even I could never have imagined things would pan out like that. Martin handed me my first opportunity, bringing me into the Cruz Azul setup and giving me my first taste of a top-flight dressing room. He fast-tracked my career by several years, and I’ll always be grateful to him for that.

From that point on, the opportunity arose to take charge of the U-23 side. I think I made the most of it. We helped develop a lot of players who went on to play in the top flight or earn moves to other clubs. Then came the call from the national team. It all happened in less than two years.

I’d been through other experiences in life outside football that helped me appreciate just how extraordinary it all was. Mexican football gives you all the tools you need to bring young players on and grow as a coach. Life outside football helped me keep my feet firmly on the ground, stay consistent and always remain hungry for more.

Does that experience help you convey to the players just how valuable these opportunities are?

Yes, absolutely. At a tournament in London the other day, I reminded them that football gives us the chance to visit London, stay at a hotel, compete against top national teams, eat well every day and experience the local culture.

It’s important that they never lose their sense of awe or their hunger to keep improving. Football can offer you so much, but it can also take it all away if you rest on your laurels. Fortunes can change in the blink of an eye.

You used to say that to disrupt a defence, you had to unsettle your own attack as well. How do you coach that kind of freedom without losing your shape?

If a defender keeps tabs on you all afternoon, it’s easy for him to nullify your threat. We want the players to pick up pockets of space between the lines and have license to roam. I try to combine positional play with a more fluid approach, but I prefer giving the players freedom because you never know where the space will open up or how the opposition will react.

What I do know is that certain players need to pin opponents down to give their team-mates the freedom to move. There has to be a balance.

So much of it comes down to understanding what it means to play for the team. I move to create space for my team-mate to receive the ball. The pass isn’t coming to me, it’s going to him. We want players to recognise the advantages the game can offer. That’s something we work on every day through video analysis, training sessions and friendlies.

Is it hard to get them to make a run to create an opportunity for a team-mate to receive the ball or score a goal?

It’s easier to do at club level. At international level, it takes more time because you bring in different players for each squad, so you have to explain it all over again.

I always tell the players to think of a team as a play being performed on stage. Everyone has a role to play, from the person selling the tickets to the actor playing a tree who has to stand still, right through to the lead actor. For the whole thing to come together, everyone has to do their job.

Sometimes the goalscorer will get all the plaudits, but it was a team effort. It’s all about believing in our ideas, being unselfish and playing for the team. Once everyone understands and buys into the idea, everything becomes much easier.