'It's not about me' - Contepomi on Irish return

Felipe Contepomi took over from Michael Cheika as Argentina boss after the 2023 World Cup

While plenty of attention has already been given to the looming return of former head coach Joe Schmidt when Ireland welcome Australia at the end of this month, Friday's visit from Argentina will bring another familiar face to the opposing coaches' box at the Aviva Stadium.

The Pumas head coach Felipe Contepomi represented Leinster with some distinction as a player for six years between 2003 and 2009, before returning as the province's attack coach for four seasons in 2018.

Having spent chunks of his playing and coaching career in Ireland, the 47-year-old, who qualified as a doctor while a Leinster player, enjoyed "really good memories" in Dublin.

"It’s always good to be back. I love Dublin and Ireland," he said.

"I've got one son and a daughter who were born in Ireland as well. Unluckily, they are not Irish because of the rules or whatever, but many milestones in my life happened here in Ireland, definitely.

"I spent 10 years here. It's a lot of my adulthood. I'm 47 so say from 17 to here, 10 years is a third of my [adult] life in Dublin, so that's a lot, and I'm grateful."

Rather than reflect upon history, the World Rugby Hall of Fame inductee is keen to see his side make it on Friday night.

Ireland have won 13 of the 19 Tests played between the two sides, including all 10 in Dublin.

"It's not about me bringing the national team here. We have the chance, as Argentina, to play against one of the best teams in the last few years," he added.

"Ireland has been consistently in the top three for the last six, seven years, so it is a great opportunity for us. We are always very proud to come here and try to beat Ireland, which, by the way, we have never done here in Ireland.

"I think it’s a big challenge, a great challenge, but we always want to play against the best and that’s what we are preparing for."

With so many of the Ireland side drawn from Leinster, Contepomi has coached five of Ireland's seven starting backs.

Noting that means Andy Farrell's players are equally familiar with his thought processes, the former fly-half does not believe his insight will play a major role on Friday.

"Maybe it could have been an advantage if I could have played," he said.

"You can know the players, and I've coached them, but it's our players who need to go and do their homework and know who they are playing against.

"So I don't know if it's an advantage. It's the same way as those players know how I think as well, so it works both ways."

'The progress is trying to do what we say we are going to do'

Contepomi worked with plenty of the Irish squad when an assistant coach at Leinster

In his 10 games at the helm after taking over from Michael Cheika following last year's World Cup, Contepomi's Argentina have claimed some notable scalps, splitting their summer series with France before beating each of Australia, South Africa and the All Blacks in the Rugby Championship, the latter in New Zealand.

The former Bristol and Toulon man, however, is not using results as measure of progress.

"Results gives you confidence, definitely, but more for us the progress is trying to do what we say we are going to do, or trying to, what we train to do, and then go and do it on match day.

"I give you a very simple example, we beat South Africa in Santiago [in September] but it came up to the last minute where [Manie] Libbok missed a penalty. What if he would have got that penalty? Would that have changed our way of evaluating ourselves?

"Now from the outside, you change the evaluation because you say, 'oh, you beat the double world champions', you know?

"For us it's the same, how we evaluate. We know we are in progress because the things we say we are going to do, we are doing them more frequently than not on game day."