Radamel Falcao is back. Is a reality. His signing for Rayo Vallecano raised both euphoria and doubts: But is it to play? Hasn't it been several years from injury to injury? Both questions are affirmative. El Tigre, since leaving Atleti, has suffered 18 different injuries that have made him miss 110 official matches. The infirmary pushed him offstage, but the Lightning He has given him a zenith for himself.
He has not started with the Strip yet and yet he is already the team's top scorer (along with Trejo and Álvaro García, both with two goals). El Tigre came out in the 71 'against him Getafe and on the fifth ball he touched, he took out his right paw. Similar situation in San Mamés. “I want it here,” he told Baby in the last of the game. And he put his head to put the 1-2 and silence the Cathedral. Two substitutions, two goals. He blows out every 17 minutes with Rayo.
In Vallecas he has found a family … And a second life. He is adored by the fans (more than 2,500 fans queued for hours to see his presentation) and has fitted the team like a glove. “He has come with an attitude of integrating,” Iraola said. Said and done. It is already one more. On the last day of the market, he chose Rayo over other offers, and two reasons led him to do so: one, Madrid, an ideal city to calm the life of his family after several years of adventures; and two, Qatar 2022, World to which you want to go anyway. With the Lightning, he saw an opportunity to be happy and to be able to roar again. It already does both.
Medical report: 18 injuries in eight years
As an Atleti player he did not have a single injury, zero. But it was to leave the Calderón and the curves began. In total he went through 18 different games, which made him miss 110 official matches between Monaco, United, Chelsea and Galatasaray. A nursing routine that made him lose pace and confidence.
At PrincipalityBetween the two stages he spent there (he was loaned out to United and Chelsea and then returned) his numbers were remarkable: 83 goals in 140 games (to target every 125 '). And his injuries, intermittent: He went to the infirmary ten times with all kinds of discomfort, the most serious, a torn cruciate ligament. He missed 44 bouts.
That ligament It is what has given him the most. He broke it for the first time in January 2006, wearing the River Plate Strip. And although it gave him a truce for years, it was temporary. The annoyance ended up coming back, to the point that, for a time, he had to learn to live with some pain.
Falcao, during his time at River Plate.
Marcos Brindicci (Reuters)
But the real problems started when he approached the Monaco airport. He signed for United on loan and only scored four goals in 29 games; signed for Chelsea, also on loan, and only played 12 games … scoring a goal. In London, a groin injury left him in dry dock for 150 days. And when he recovered, he stopped counting for Hiddink. It was raining when it was wet.
The icing on the bitter cake came with his departure to the Galatasaray. He had only been in Turkey for a month when he was injured Achilles tendon: two months out. Shortly after they came thigh discomfort and a tear in the femur. It was impossible for him to enjoy football; pick up a rhythm. He scored 20 goals with the Galatasaray shirt (in 43 games). Definitive diagnosis: 18 injuries since 2013. And 110 official games in the dry dock.
Vallecas, a second chance
Its history with the humble Madrid neighborhood, for the moment, borders on the idyllic. The Tiger, aware that his signing raised unknowns, he has decided to silence them with claws. He has not come to the Ray to retire; Nor to take a year off to recover 100%. No, he came to put on his overalls and sweat. He wants to be an idol in Vallecas, he already is. He wants to go to the Qatar World Cup 2022, he is on the right track. Falcao's second life has begun.