Venezuela's 'Tropical Mourinho' - NYTimes.com He has been referred to as the Tropical Mourinho and is now on the cusp of attaining something significant in South American soccer, putting Venezuela within striking distance of a World Cup spot. The story of César Farías, coach of Venezuela, which lost to Nigeria, 3-1, in a friendly in Miami last Wednesday, has been a journey, with an important New York chapter. Born in Güiria, in the eastern part of Venezuela, Farías started at Nueva Cádiz, where he won the second-division local title. After moving through Trujillanos, Deportivo Táchira and Mineros de Guayana, he took Deportivo Anzoátegui to second place in the Venezuelan league. Then, a series of firsts. In 2007 Venezuela broke with a tradition of hiring foreigners to coach the national team with Richard Páez, who raised the competitive level of La Vinotinto (the red wine, for the claret color of the team's jersey). Copa América 2007 was held in Venezuela. When Páez resigned in November 2007, Farías left his club, and took the reins of the senior and the wnder-20 squads. You have to have courage to do this job. It's not easy, but here I am," he said. I was not the most simpatico of the bunch. In Egypt 2009, Venezuela participated in its first World Cup in any age group, and made it to the round of 16 of the FIFA U20 World Cup. The Vinotinto showed continued progress by finishing two points from the last ticket to South Africa 2010 and then reaching the semis in Copa América in Argentina in 2011. At present, they are tied with Uruguay and Chile in fourth place in South American qualifying with 12 points from nine matches. Four countries qualify directly to Brazil 2014, and the fifth-place team disputes a playoff against a team from Asia. Brazil qualifies as the host, which means the South America confederation could have six of its 10 members in the finals. All along, Farías, 39, has cultivated the home-grown brand; when Venezuela qualified for Egypt, he stridently declared "God bless the 21 wombs of the mothers which gave birth to these 21 Venezuelan players." He has also cited the pacifist Mohandas Gandhi, noting "first they ignore you, then they laugh at you, attack you and finally you prevail." These days, rivals are no longer laughing at Venezuela, the traditional whipping boy of South American soccer and the only team in the region never to have participated in the World Cup. No longer taking goleadas from their South American counterparts on a regular basis, (like the 11-0 drubbing from Argentina in the 1975 Copa América) la Vinotinto will host five of its final eight qualifying matches. Farías said: "We can get beaten or take a goleada once in a while, but now we can compete. That has changed for good. Farías' debut with the senior team was in storied Estadio Centenario in Montevideo, where Venezuela tied Uruguay, 1-1. But after nine qualifying matches, Venezuela finished two points behind Uruguay for the final spot. There have been some unprecedented achievements, such as the first victory over Argentina (in a World Cup qualifier in October 2011). Farías has also called for dispensing with "false modesty" because this is the 'best Venezuelan generation in our history." Farías recalls: "They used to laugh at us when we traveled to play [in Argentina]. They asked, 'Aren't you guys baseball guys? You guys play fútbol too?' History will be thankful to [Páez] and me. When they said 'who wants to do this job,' I raised my hand and that was important. Richard and I were born in the country, and raised in Venezuela. We are authentic Venezolanos, and that is a plus. Farías credits the youth tournaments, started in 1992, with the development of "criollo" talent. We started with the under-21, and now we have 333 clubs in the under-12 division. The math shows we are the number one sport in the country," he said. Players like Juan Arango (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Fernando Amorebieta (Athletic Bilbao), Salomón Rondón (ex Málaga, now Rubin Kazan in Russia) Nicolás Fedor (Glasgow Celtic, known as Miku) are some of the Venezuelan exports. With this generation of players flourishing, Farías hopes for a historic first in qualifying. "We used to have to tell Venezuelan players anecdotes of players from other countries," he said. Now, we tell the new players about what Arango, Rondón and the rest in Europe. They want to go to the big leagues of soccer. Before, Venezuelans were not prepared for this. The Venezuelan soccer scene, once dominated by expats or coaches from Italy, Portugal, Spain or Argentina, now is sprouting local product. Foremost is Arango, whose exquisite left foot has produced goals for Mönchengladbach and Mallorca in Europe, (Pachuca and Monterrey in Mexicobefore that). It was Farías who launched the career of Arango at Nueva Cádiz. If Venezuela has traversed a long journey to compete, so has Farías. In the late 1970s ('76 to '79), Farías's family moved to New York City so his sister Ana Karina could receive treatment for leukemia. They took up residence near Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. "It was in front of a park near the hospital," he said. There was a basketball court, a fronton, and a playground. I don't remember much else. We spent a lot of time in the hospital. Ana Karina died three years later. "My father and I went back after we played Colombia in New Jersey, and I see a lot more Venezuelans now," he said. I even saw Vinotinto shirts at N.B.A. games. My father kept saying 'come to U.S.A..' I replied, 'If I go to U.S.A. sometime, it will be as a celebrity.' The coach's controversial declarations, prickliness and guile have brought comparisons with Real Madrid's José Mourinho, who he considers a friend. "Farías is Farías," he said. I'm different from the rest, but I have an excellent relationship with Mourinho, especially since we have similar beginnings. It is debatable whether fútbol or béisbol is now more popular in Venezuela, but last Wednesday, the Detroit Tigers' triple-crown winner Miguel Cabrera kicked off the soccer match to fellow Maracay native Juan Arango at the Marlins Park in Miami. Keyvan Antonio Heydari is a soccer journalist and broadcaster.