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Posted - Feb 07 2003 : 3:10:02 PM
From Argentina to Spain - Juan Roman Riquelme
The 2002 financial crisis in Argentina has affected the country’s ability to hold on to its greatest football talents. One such player is Juan Roman Riquelme who, after the kidnapping of his younger brother, left the club he loved, Boca Juniors, to play for Barcelona.
“The threat of football violence,” says Argentine newspaper ‘Clarin,’ “is now dangerously re-inforced by the general insecurity in our streets. That, and the poverty of our football, is a clear reflection of the country’s devastating social and economic crisis. We are left with a tournament of juniors and veterans. In the middle age band there is almost nobody left.”
The youngsters seek to make their name and earn a move to Europe. The old stagers are winding down their careers, frequently after a spell across the Atlantic. Where Argentina once sold meat and leather it now sells footballers. Recently, Argentina’s clubs traded players to Spain, Mexico, France, Germany, England, Italy, Colombia, Bulgaria, Israel, Turkey and Greece.
One man swam against the tide. Where his colleagues hoped every phone call would bring an offer from Europe, Juan Roman Riquelme seemed to want nothing more than to star, season, after season, for Argentina’s most popular club. Diego Maradona became a legend in the blue and yellow of Boca Juniors. He is still a fervent supporter, and has a private box in the stadium from where he frequently leads the singing.
But the history of the club extends way beyond its most famous former player. Boca Juniors stands for working class Argentina. The dockside streets around the stadium were the scene of the immigrants’ hopeful arrival, and of the harsh realities of manual labour which greeted them. The Boca neighbourhood gave birth to tango, Argentina’s musical soundtrack of passion and despair.
For five years Riquelme drew inspiration from the passion flowing down from the terraces. He was the elegant conductor of the Boca orchestra, twice leading the team to victory in the Copa Libertadores, South America’s Champions League.
Riquelme could have commanded higher wages in Europe. But he stayed, and was still a Boca player as he approached his 24th birthday. By then, though, there was little to celebrate. Argentina’s four year recession had exploded in chaos. And as Riquelme soon discovered, being the biggest name in domestic football offered no protection from the fallout.
Unpaid salaries had already put a strain on the relationship between Riquelme and the club directors. And any chance that he might stay was extinguished when his brother was kidnapped.
Behind South America’s bleak economic statistics lie countless tales of despair, fear and nagging worry. Pay is poor, jobs are scarce and there is no safety net. It is no wonder that some turn to illegality. Throw in the weakness of the state in the battle against crime and the result is that nobody is safe.
With his profile, earnings and huge family, Riquelme was a soft target. In April one of his many brothers was snatched. 17 year old Christian Riquelme’s ordeal only ended after Roman paid a reported ransom of $160,000.
As Roman became poorer, so did Argentine football. He accepted an offer to join Barcelona, and played out his remaining time with Boca with a cloud of sadness obscuring his usual exuberance.
Those left behind can only lament his absence. They struggle to find the money to go to stadiums in dire need of investments to give more comfort to the supporter and deter the hooligan.
Often, though, something happens on the field which makes the fans’ efforts worthwhile. In Riquelme’s absence 18 year old Carlos Tevez is taking advantage of the chance to make an early bid for greatness. The crisis contains a paradox. Every star sold opens up space for another to shine. Argentina can no longer hold on to its stars, but the conveyor belt of talent is working better than ever.
Perhaps it is no surprise. After all, dribbling round life’s difficulties has always been at the heart of football in South America.
Tim Vickery, October 2002 |
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