Once upon a time, kids who played amateur soccer had a little dream of their own ......
On June 23, 2021, Colombia faced Brazil in Group B of the Copa America. It was a disappointing day for Colombia, but in the darkness, there was always some hope. Nine minutes into the match, Cuadrado cut the ball into the center of the field with just the right amount of precision, only to see a man in the penalty area sink his back and shoot the ball into the goal with a thunderous inverted hook, which surprised all the Brazilians present, and Luis Díaz's celebration on the ground after he scored the goal swept away all of his childhood encounters, and it was the hard work that made him what he is today.
Once upon a time they had a golden boy who faced Uruguay in the same stadium and sent the world into a frenzy with a chest-stopping overhead kick and a star goal. That was the winner of the '14 Puskas Award and Colombia's biggest fan, James Rodriguez.
Luis Díaz's goal gave Colombia a surprise that has not been seen for a long time, after the tiger Falcao, the golden boy James, the next flag-bearer of Colombia Luis Díaz may be in this year's World Cup, will let everyone once again see the whirlwind of the third power of South America ......
Colombia, a country that is one of the top few in the world in terms of chaos and a pretty wide gap between rich and poor. Most people live in silence, and few can turn their lives around with anything else.
Luis Díaz was born in this particular country, but more seriously than James, he was born in Barrancas, which is almost the poorest place in Colombia. The Wayuu is the most populated place in Colombia, and according to a United Nations study, 5,000 Wayuu children died of starvation between 2008 and 2016, making it an area of major concern for the UN in terms of human rights, hunger, and crime.
Díaz's escape to start a new life here seems like a distant dream ......
"Maybe it's all down to soccer, there's not a moment in my life that I haven't been playing."
Treating the streets and alleys as blank canvas boards, using the footwork to splash around, lightly picking like a leaping bird, leaping onto the paper; observing everyone's movements delicately, a foot and a step is to make this picture vivid, and completing each classic painting in detail.
Luis Díaz has never given up on the biggest dream in his heart, just like Brazil's Neymar, even if there is poverty, no sneakers, or even no stadium, as long as there is a ball, I can play to my heart's content.
He played soccer happily until he was 18 years old, and just when Díaz wanted to enter society and work seriously for his family, fate knocked on the door of Díaz's life.
In 2015, Barrancas called up all the indigenous players in the region to help the Colombian national team participate in the Copa Americana de Pueblos Indigenas, a tournament for the indigenous people of South America, and Díaz, who had already made a name for himself as a soccer player in the region, saw his first turning point in his life when the coaching staff went to visit him. When the coaching staff visited Díaz's matches, they saw his exaggerated footwork, which made all the players look like they were marking the ball, and the coaching staff unanimously agreed to put Díaz on the 22-man roster immediately. After a long period of informal training, Díaz was finally given the opportunity to play for the Colombian national team, and was the first local player to be given the chance to play on such a big stage.
When people recognize Colombian soccer, it may be the golden boy James, or the tiger Falcao, but the hitchhikers always forget about the predecessor who inspired them, El PipeCarlos Valderrama, the 2-time South American Footballer of Champions, and one of the members of the Fifa100.
He is the godfather of all Colombian players and the driving force behind why Colombia has been able to produce superb strikers. And this time, while working as an assistant coach for the Copa Americana de Pueblos Indigenas, Valderrama discovered the attacking genius of Luis Díaz.
Why is Luis Díaz called Colombia?
Lionel Messi (1987-), Argentine footballer
In addition to the same perverse ability to carry the ball, of course, the dominance of the game, the entire tournament 2 goals, as captain, Díaz is also by himself to lead the team all the way to the final.
This is the first time he has had the opportunity to stand on the big stage to perform, and it is also the stage that he has been fantasizing about from time to time for 18 years. He has played big and small matches in his life, and this time, the success of competing for his country's glory will take him to a different world of soccer.
