It was not December 22, but on October 10 there was the same euphoria in the Estadi Hipòlit Planàs in Vic as if El Gordo had fallen. The draw for the first round of the Copa del Rey paired them with Atlético de Madrid.
The footballers and fans of the Unió Esportiva Vic will make their dream come true today at 7:00 p.m. (Teledeporte). It is the most relevant duel of an entity with 102 years of history. Although it is the second time that the club from the capital of Osona has competed in the Copa del Rey – the first was in 1978 against Orihuela –, they had never played against a team of such caliber.
The red and white team (in this they agree with Atlético) plays in the Lliga Elit, equivalent to the sixth national division, and leads it. Six out of ten of its footballers are from the city. They face professional players who are fully dedicated to football, while for them it is a hobby to which they dedicate the free time that their jobs and studies allow them.
Max Morell, Ramon Carrascal and Izan Pérez of Unió Esportiva Vic, before facing Atlético de Madrid in the Copa del Rey.
For this reason, only some were able to follow the draw from the entity’s sports facilities, but others like coach Ramon Carrascal (40) or striker Izan Pérez (19) did so from the classrooms. The first is a Physical Education teacher and his students asked him to see the draw. The second was in one of the Catalan Philology classes at the University of Barcelona. Max Morell (27) experienced it by changing pieces. He is a mechanic in a workshop in Sant Quirze de Besora.
Carrascal, Pérez and Morell attended to The Vanguard and they agree that this Thursday has to be “a party” beyond the result. The coach of the Vigitano team, who in turn is the one who has played the most games for the club – 403 –, claims that it is an opportunity to shine and “compete face to face with a great.” Personally, he wants to stay with a very specific image: “I want to see the eyes of the Vic boys and girls when we go out onto the field. It will be exciting. Illusion is also a responsibility.”
Ramon Carrascal is a primary school teacher, Max Morell is a mechanic and Izan Pérez studies Philology
In the case of Izan Pérez, it will also be special because today he turns 19 years old. Furthermore, in their family and neighborhood environment they are colchoneros: “They will come to see me, but even if I play they go with Atleti. They tell me to enjoy it, but I hope I lose.” His love affair with the rojiblancos extends to the virtual sphere. Since primary school, he always chose Atlético in video games because it brought him luck in a bet. But this Thursday all this is left aside.
Talk from the Vic coaching staff to the players before starting training.
For his part, forward Max Morell has been at the club for five seasons and coaches the Benjamins: “We have had all the colors. I have been playing soccer since I was four years old and you always dream of reaching professional soccer. “It is the closest we will get to fulfilling it.” He, who gets up every day at five in the morning to go to the workshop, maintains that “gifts like this” are what make him feel “passion” for football.
What happened today is unprecedented, they insist. In the morning many will work or study, and in the afternoon they can face off against Griezmann, Koke or Julián Álvarez. Izan has spoken with his tutor to change the date of an exam so that it can be moved forward.
The atmosphere on the artificial grass field will also be exceptional. Extra stands have been installed to go from 4,000 to 6,300 spectators. On October 21, more than 2,500 tickets were sold in less than three hours to the more than 500 club players and members. The queue ran from the north goal to the south goal. The players and coaches lent a hand at the ticket offices.
Coach Ramon Carrascal, during his conversation with ‘La Vanguardia’.
They have continued to preserve that humility and proximity to their fans despite the exposure of these days. It is common for fans to talk to the players and the coach before training. They see Carrascal as their Cholo and they give him confidence to beat Atlético. He replies that you have to “keep your feet on the ground.” “Do you see how similar they are?” says one of the partners.
“We always dreamed of reaching professional football. “It is the closest we will get,” Morell acknowledges.
In addition to enjoying it, the coach wants this to grow the club’s social mass: “In league matches we have an average attendance of 500 people. Today we will exceed 6,000. I hope people get hooked on the Vic.”
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