Alberto announces his retirement

The time has come to say goodbye. Alberto García (Barcelona, ​​1985) hangs up his gloves, just a few days after Rayo got promoted to First and after one year and nine months unable to play due to a serious knee injury. With tears in his eyes and exuding emotion in every word, the red-haired captain announced it in a video for the club's website: “I started in the village team, I never thought it would be something so long and that I could get where I did. Having fun led me to live an experience that reaches the end“.

As it approached, each step of the way became more important. “I never imagined being lucky enough to represent so many templates, nor live this dream practically 21 years. I have indelible memories here that I hope my children do not forget. The people I have met, what I have suffered and what I have fun in this field … You can be remembered for many things, but it is incredible feel that the human groups that have surrounded me do so because I was someone who fought and defended the common good, who wanted the ship to reach port and the group is, for me, the essence of football, “he confessed.

Precisely that has been the flag that has flown throughout these four campaigns in Vallecas, where It has not only been a very important piece under the suits, but also in the dressing room. Always working for that group, morning, noon and night. His words reinforce, more if possible, his actions: “Fight, win and lose together. The common good, sharing the path. I never imagined that the companions would remind me so much. Vallecas has no idols, here we all go in the same boat. It is as important who is in the green as who is out “.

From its origins to withdrawal

Every story has a beginning and Alberto went back to his. To those first steps in the village team. “There was no goalkeeper and both my father and my brother, who were the ones who trained him, led me to that position. It is a totally different way of life from the rest. At first I did not want to play there and then it has been closely linked to my way of being“, he revealed. One of those 'culprits' was Javier, his brother and Villarreal goalkeeping coach: “He always cared about the rest of the teammates, so that they were comfortable”. He was already pointing out ways. Because if there was a sacred place for the goalkeeper, it was the dressing room, for all that it entails, a bond that transcends the players. “There are many important people on a daily basis. Behind us we have hobbies, cities, neighborhoods …”, added.

His arrival in Vallecas was a before and after because it is “that step to be different.” The captain soon understood the essence of the neighborhood, of the Strip, of what the fans demanded … And he not only made it his own, he also transmitted it. “The player is one more part and from here I take that closeness to people in good times and the love they have shown me in bad times,” he proudly wielded. For him being captain “is the greatest responsibility there is because a group chooses you to defend a common good”.

Suddenly, his life took a turn. On September 21, 2019 he played his last match with the Strip against Almería. Oblivious to what was unleashed days later. An ordeal was about to begin. Alberto entered the operating room with hope and came out with news that fell like a jug of cold water: “It was an impact. After the operation they already told me that what they had found could be complicated and that we had to live with the possibility that the game could be lost. I felt since I started that the rival, the knee, was going to be very complex. I thank the doctors for their frankness. Showing strength to my children in those first moments was very hard for me“.

And in that pain he found an inseparable companion, the pai, Baby. “I feel that the energy I had left was given to him. Seeing him cry, collapsed, like a baby, in a hospital box … Dr. Beceiro asked me for help to talk to him and I told him that if either of us did not go out it would be me, that we could not both die sportingly speakingThat he trusted me and that's how it was, “he narrated with a broken voice.” It is an example of an attitude towards life. He has that virtue of making those who come into contact with him better “, defined the 'Doc'. “He has marked me,” declared Baby.

They weren't the only ones who sent their message to Alberto. “It would highlight their charisma. You realize what a person gives off with the attitude of others and when he speaks, everyone attends, “said IraolaAfter him, Catena, Mario Hernández, Miguel Ortiz, Antoñín, Montiel, Álvaro, Andrés, Guerrero, Martín, Pozo, Moncayo, Armenteros, Martos, Qasmi, Mario Suárez, Fran García, Saveljich, Advíncula, Isi, Comesaña were praised , Óscar, Trejo, Velázquez, Ulloa … Also his teammates under sticks, Dimitrievski (“He's a great person”), Luca (“He goes straight through thick and thin”) and Morro (“He's been everything for me, a reference”).

This path would not be understood without his family. “I am very proud of you and what you have achieved. A new stage begins and nobody says that it will not be better, “ventured his wife Lidia. Later, a carousel of images of the tribute held in the Sports City appeared. The president, Martín Presa, handed him a plaque and the rest of the staff made him a corridor while applauding him. In the background were her children, her parents and Lidia. Together they drew an end, which is nothing more than another beginning …