“Espanyol opened America to Real Madrid and to soccer in Spain”

When Espanyol decided to start a trip through America, in 1926, to pay debts generated in the construction of Sarrià, They were the own colonies of Spaniards residing in America and Uruguay who implored him not to do so, since a Basque team had succumbed to the biggest ridiculous only four years before. Months later, on the return from the expedition to Barcelona, ​​the tour had been such a success that a Barça legend, Josep Samitier, was in charge of personally receiving the perico team between gifts and tokens of appreciation. 'The Reconquest of America' is the eloquent title of the book which, in digital format through the Amazon platform, was just published this Wednesday, regarding the Sant Jordi Day.

“The feat of Espanyol opened America so that, just a year later, Real Madrid was hired and received with all the honors. And also later on Barcelona, ​​and Spanish football in general “, highlights in AS Jose Antonio Pastor, architect of an enormous work that has led him to dive through archives of Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Peru and Cuba, the countries that Espanyol stepped on, in a work whose authorship he shares with the long-awaited Jordi Puyaltó, with whom in 2011 he had already published 'Ricardo Saprissa, a life of legend'.

“They could lose, but no one was going to beat them out of illusion and pride, something that the American press would recognize at all times. For Jordi, this feature of Espanyol was like a brand name of those times. Hence, at the time, we talked about the possibility of investigating this incredible tour “, claims this Costa Rican journalist and writer converted to the blue and white faith after establishing a friendship in the 80s with the legendary Saprissa. “Together we mourn the day of Leverkusen“, rescues.

With 17 days of travel of the perica staff –which had reinforcements from Osasuna, Madrid, Valencia or Tolosa– aboard the Italian ocean liner Principessa Mafalda an unrepeatable adventure begins. “Spanish football was not in the first line of Europe,” warns Pastor, while “the Uruguayan team was the Olympic champion, which then meant to be the king of the sport, and Espanyol beat one of its most famous clubs, Nacional, which had eight members of that team. “Such was the impact of the tour that some presidents of government attended to the massive receptions and to the matches before rivals such as the Argentine national team, Peñarol or Alianza de Lima.

Although, without a doubt, the great protagonist of the trip was Ricardo Zamora. “His performance at the 2020 Olympics in Antwerp made him a legend in both Europe and America.” “So much was said about the great Ricardo that the businessmen who hired Espanyol put as the only condition that he should be a starter during the tour. In Argentina and Uruguay, their presence led to impressive crowds“, narrates the writer, who does not neglect the other great focus of attention: Saprissa. “It was another letter of introduction.” Being a 'sportman', a tennis champion from Catalonia and Spain, “In all the cities where Espanyol was presented, Saprissa was honored by the tennis clubs“.

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That they were other romantic and unrepeatable times attests the unique journey of the players through the Andes on the back of mules, since the snow made it impossible to travel by train from Argentina to Chile. “That they rented a hundred mules to get to the next stop was a real madness that today would be unthinkable. Mules walked in single file through stretches of snow-covered gorges. For the players it was a pleasant experience, but that road was a death trap that could end in a tragedy“, details Pastor.

“The reports of the tour”, which lasted more than four months, “astonished Spanish sport”, compiles the co-author of 'The Reconquest of America', who recalls how “Ricardo Saprissa said that that trip had been the greatest adventure of his life, that nothing could overshadow the memories aboard the Principessa Mafalda or the hours on a mule crossing the Andes in completely snow-white settings. “Unique prints with which any parakeet, or simply a football fan, can enjoy in this Sant Jordi.