The time has come for a new consecration. This shark is already prowling the banks of the Merseyside. Although it seems like a dream, this lad is now part of the red devils.
It was a July Tuesday. Another inconsequential night of new normality whose only expectation fell on a football game. The growing numbness, caused by the passing of pandemic years and government ineptitude, made that game between Colombia and Argentina to be relegated to the last of priorities.
Those were not the only reasons for disappointment. The previous games had left little space for inspiration. Football, as it was presented at the Copa America tournament, was proof of its boring and dreadful state. This game, now so dependent on cameras, on the fourth referee’s call, so prone to interruption, doesn’t look like football at all. It’s something else.
The stage was Mané Garrincha stadium. Perhaps without being aware of this, a fantastic skinny lad stuck to the left side. Barely after half the court he prepared a new attack, and receiving a short pass there was no turning back. Stunned, we witnessed a transfiguration, a revelation that this thin guy made of his true nature.
In some TV broadcasts, he has been called “The shark”, but at that moment it was evident that this is due not only to his professional debut in Junior of Barranquilla. What we saw was a beast, a creature that does not experience fear. It only causes it. His rivals, as happened with Montiel at that inexplicable moment, know that when facing him the terror lies in the uncertainty of his attack, his speed, and his agile change of direction.
With the audacity and insolence of the one who gave his name to the stadium, he took the ball off the ground and in a single movement passed the ball over his rival to quickly overpass him and leave us with master control. That was his best revenge for the kicks he was a victim of. The shark is not intimidated by the harpoons of those who want to hunt it. He knows how to fight every battle guided by the clarity of his instinct.
The shark is not thinking of effective ways to simulate. It is not interested in indulging in dirty and aggressive play. He knows that football is something else. Football is ballet. It is a beautiful synchrony of physical capacity, good treatment of the ball, and integrity of spirit. This football has nothing to do with corrupt organizations, fixed matches, or disgusting marketing. Here the president of FIFA doesn’t matter, Coca-Cola doesn’t matter, Adidas doesn’t matter.
This football, the real football, is only learned in the neighborhoods. On the sand courts. On the paddocks. It is there where you learn that the result is not everything. That a defeat doesn’t matter if the magic and beauty of movement were present. If there was a delight in the retinas. Beyond the numbers, a player’s job should be that: fascinate, inspire, and seduce.
The proof that this lad from the Wayúu indigenous community, on the Caribbean coast of Colombia, is a player of another category took place a few days later. His rival was the always fearsome Brazil. An exceptional team with an unmatched history that stands out for its magical and unpredictable style. The predator is irreverent because he knows that no one deserves its homage.
That was how, without caring that this legendary Brazil was playing at home, he placed himself in the center of the small area. He fixed his gaze on the ball that came from a long pass. Directly from the right sector. He waited and calculated, perhaps unknowingly, the perfect move. The unexpected stunt. In seconds, we remembered his great goals in Porto. His freshness against the most fearsome rivals in the Champions League. But this was unprecedented. His volley shot dazzled fans across the continent.
These types of plays are the ones that turn new fans. A whole generation will play on the fields of parks and schools, claiming to be Lucho Díaz, imitating his tricks, and facing life with the same insolence. This inexplicable moment is proof that deep down it doesn’t matter where you come from. If you happened to grow up in a region of extreme poverty, surrounded by material deficiencies, it is the richness of the spirit that is really worth it.
It was this unusual mix of shark tenacity, speed, and lethality that surely caught the attention of the big clubs. This exceptional performance in the national team, added to the dizzying growth in the European continent, made a coach of a similar nature such as Jürgen Klopp set his eyes on him. The confrontation with him in the past was decisive.
Now the time has come for a new consecration. This shark is already prowling the banks of the Merseyside. From his first performances, he has begun to allure over one of the most legendary and passionate fans on the planet. This Wayúu shark has now dressed in red and although it seems like a dream, this lad is now part of the red devils. This fantastic skinny lad wears the #23 shirt in the mythical Liverpool F.C.
