What is common in the soccer market is that it is Europe that monitors the South American soccer rosters, reviews, offers and buys. And so, year after year, dozens of players cross the Atlantic in search of new opportunities. That a European player takes the opposite path is news. And more, one with a track record for big teams from the Old Continent.
Mexico, at the time, showed the way: Tigres hired Frenchman André-Pierre Gignac and settled there. But in Colombia it is a novelty.
Except in the early years of Colombian football, at the time of El Dorado, when the teams were towers of Babel that mixed players of different origins, you have to search the archives in search of Spanish players. The most recent case was Gorka Elustondo, a brand midfielder that Juan Manuel Lillo requested as a reinforcement for Atlético Nacional, and who left very soon, after playing just eight games.
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The story of Falqué, the great surprise of the transfer market
América de Cali shook up the Colombian market by bringing in a player with a long career, with many games in Europe and very current (see box). Since he was European U-17 champion with his national team, he began to project himself: he went through Barcelona and Juventus and had a long career in Italy.
Iago Falque, Born in Pontevedra 32 years ago, he has already signed and hopes to get ready to play. But it is not the only thing that makes it different: his mother, Carmela Silva, was a senator in Spain and today is the president of the Provincial Council of his hometown. Although he clarifies that her only relationship with her career is affection towards her son, because, he says, he doesn’t like soccer.
Falqué says that when he gets something into his head he makes the decision and that he wanted to play in South America. That is why he is today in Cali, Colombia, awaiting his debut with the team of Juan Carlos Osorio. This is how he described his arrival in the country to EL TIEMPO.
It is not common for European players to come to Colombia, and even less so with his career. What motivated him to come to América de Cali?
He knew Colombian soccer, obviously, but more because of the players who play in Europe, the number of players who are there, and because of the quality of the National Team, there is a lot of talent. It seemed to me a very good opportunity, a country that I always wanted to know. My wife is Venezuelan and that also had an influence. It is a very passionate football and at this stage of my career I needed to experience something like that.
Whenever we compare European football with Colombian football, we say that the game is played here with much less intensity. Do you feel that way?
I can’t answer that because I’ve only been here a short time. I haven’t been able to play any games yet. The same here in Colombia there is a lot of talent, it is physical football, with very physical players and it is a very competitive league, there are important teams and people behind who work well. Let’s see it, when I have more reference I will be able to answer that better.
What reference did the Colombian players with whom you shared in your career give you about what you were going to find here?
In my career I shared with several Colombians: I played with Cristian Zapata, with Johan Mojica, with Andrés Tello. I spoke above all with Cristian, who is like a little brother to me, with whom we played at Genoa. We always had contact and he explained to me what the city was like, how people live here in Cali. He gave me a great reference of what he was going to find in this city.
Juan Carlos Osorio has a work system in which the payroll rotates a lot and even changes position players. What have you been able to talk to him about and in what position do you think he can contribute to the coach?
Those are the coach’s issues and I don’t have an opinion there. I talked to him, I told him where I like to play, where I think I can perform better. I adapt: I’ve played as a winger, I’ve played in midfield, I’ve also played as a ’10’ accompanying the striker. I am a player who adapts to different situations. So, where the coach tells me to play, then I play, period. He is the boss and the coach’s decisions are always respected.
“I am a player who adapts to different situations. So, where the coach tells me that I have to play, then I play, period. He is the one in charge and the coach’s decisions are always respected”.
How did the topic of your family and your origins influence your decision to pursue a career as a footballer?
Well, the truth is that my mother never liked football and she still doesn’t like it today. She likes to see me, because I’m her son, and that’s it. My father is much more of a soccer fan. He always accompanied me from a very young age and he was a person who influenced me in many ways. I never had any pressure at all. Whatever it was, it was, and it turned out pretty well.
Who was he a fan of as a child?
From Barcelona, always from Barcelona. There I became a lover of good football.
What is special about La Masía and the training that the players receive at Barcelona?
I think he has a way of understanding football, of understanding young people. To empower it, to make it grow in every way, professionally and personally. It helped me a lot, professionally and also gave me a lot of values. It is a different club, which works the lower categories in an incredible way.
Of the countries you played in Europe, is there much difference between those leagues?
Yes, there can be many similarities, but there can also be many differences. Italian football is much more tactical, Spanish football can be more technical, more offensive. In Italy it is more like a game of chess, the Spanish is more daring, there is less speculation about the result. I think those are the biggest differences.
How much did the fact that your wife is Venezuelan influence your decision to come to Colombia?
Well, it’s not like it had that much influence. It helps to take the step, it is a very big change, daring if you will. I had offers to continue playing in Europe, but it helped me to take the step of daring, more than anything. I did it for personal reasons, but also for technical reasons, because you also have a status and you want to show it off. I met my wife in Italy, we’ve been together for a while now, we already have a baby and things have gone quite well for us.
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Normally it is South America that exports players to Europe and not the other way around. Could this decision of yours open the door for Colombia to think that it is not so unreasonable to bring figures from there?
To be honest, I don’t know. Mine was a very personal decision: I’m like that, when something gets into my head and they call me, for whatever reason, well, I do it. I don’t like to be in the comfort zone, South America always caught my attention, I had the offer of an important, big team, and I took advantage of it. It is a decision that is not easy to make because it is obviously a very big change.
What kind of player is Iago Falqué, for those who have not seen him perform in Europe?
I am a very technical player, who likes to associate a lot, I like to be in contact with the ball as much as possible. I like to play a lot between the lines, assist, I always had a lot of goals, to be a winger I had years of 14, 15 goals in Italy, which is a very important figure. Above all that, being a very technical player.
He arrives at a team with a very passionate fan, who even had to experience a relegation and got up. What do you say to those fans who are so dedicated?
Well, thank you for the welcome, I will do everything possible to return the love and affection you have shown me on the field and hopefully we can achieve many successes together.
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The resume of Iago Falqué
Iago Falqué was born in Pontevedra (Spain) on January 4, 1990. At 32, he is the fifth Spaniard to play for América de Cali. The first four (Jorge Brazalez, Diego Gregori, Diego Cascón and Jesús Suárez) arrived without much posterity to play for the team when it was in B, in 2014.
Falqué, on the other hand, has a respectable track record. He was trained in the Barcelona youth academy and was European Under-17 champion with Spain in 2007.
At the beginning it was difficult for him to consolidate. From Barcelona he went to Juventus without debuting in the first team, but he couldn’t perform there either. He was loaned to Bari and then moved to Villarreal B. In 2011 he joined Tottenham and was also loaned to Southampton.
His important career began at Almería in 2012. He played 22 games. The following year he moved to Rayo Vallecano and in 2014 he made the leap to Italy, where he had the best minutes of his career, in Genoa, Rome, Torino and Benevento. The most outstanding step of his was at Torino, where he scored 32 goals in 108 games.
Jose Orlando Ascencio
Sports Sub-Editor
@josasc
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