Riquelme, without turning against Barco: “What the boy did is very wrong”
The president of Boca, Juan Román Riquelme , attributed absolute responsibility to the footballer Valentín Barco for his departure from the club and questioned his decision to execute the exit clause of his contract to sign with Brighton in England, considering that “it was very evil”. “What the boy (Barco) did was very wrong, that is not done,” the leader said in an interview with the ESPN channel, in which he excused the player’s representative (Adrián Roucco) and the British institution.
Riquelme recalled: “It’s my turn to be a footballer. I don’t know if it was better or worse than Barco, but they came looking for me a lot of times when I was 18 and I always said no. For this reason, the decision is always the player’s and then there is the representative and the family,” he said. Riquelme insistently echoed the same idea: “What he did was very wrong, for me. When you present a paper to rescind, it is your decision, that’s how it is, you don’t have to turn it around . That is not done and what the other club did is not right either.”
Barco, 19, paid the exit clause of his contract (10 million dollars) to break his bond in Boca and emigrate to Brighton, which hired him until June 2018 and awaits him once his participation in the Olympic Qualifiers is over. Venezuela. ”We offered to renew for four years and the representative said no, he wanted only one year. I wish you good luck, have an excellent career. If I spoke to him? “It is my issue,” he clarified.
Riquelme became uncomfortable when he was consulted about Barco’s statements, who stated that the Boca leadership did not answer the phone in the midst of the negotiations for the renewal of the contract that ended on December 31 and added: “Everyone looks for their excuse.” . ”There was no conflict, we did what we had to do. The boy from Vélez (Santiago Castro) also left due to the clause, the same thing happened and the representative. Who is he? He is the same (Roucco)”, he exemplified.
On the other hand, the president of Boca showed approval for the club’s performance in the transfer market, in which it has so far obtained two reinforcements (Cristian Lema and Kevin Zenón) with a third very close to arriving (Lautaro Blanco). ”I am happy with the market , there is a lot of talk about Boca, whether it brings one or the other but the main thing was to support the team that reached the final of the Copa Libertadores. It was very important to maintain it and we are happy because we have very good footballers, who have been lucky enough to have a good preseason,” he considered.
Asked about possible movements, he discredited the rumors about the departure of Colombian Frank Fabra: “Since the championship ended until today, they have said that most of the footballers were leaving, that is what always happens in Boca . ” ”The Blanco thing is a good opportunity, he is a winger who has good conditions, he has done very well in Rosario Central and we hope to continue advancing,” he explained about the footballer who arrives from Elche in Spain.
When questioned by the new coach, Diego Martínez, who this Saturday will have his official debut against Platense for the League Cup, Riquelme answered: “He looks good, he is happy, he is very excited, he is a coach who has done it well in several clubs, the way he plays could be good for us because of the players we have. We hope to be protagonists in each tournament this season.” In addition, he confirmed that Boca will play its first home game in the tournament at the Nuevo Gasómetro due to the reconditioning of the La Bombonera grass, where the club’s last presidential elections were held. ”We had planned to vote on December 2, if it had been on that date we would have arrived at the start of the tournament, but it was still good for us because we lifted everything and the grass was changed. For the second game we can return home. “We are very grateful to the people of San Lorenzo for making things easier for us for the first game,” he acknowledged.
In relation to the La Bombonera reform project, Riquelme was cautious when pointing out that “we all dream of the field being bigger , with more people coming in, but one should not promise something when it involves the neighbors. “I’m no one to go knock on a door and ask a family if they want to leave their house.”