Radamel, Radamel...oh what to do with Radamel.
Let's start from the beginning shall we?
Once upon a time, Falcao was believed to be one of the best strikers in the world. Moving from FC Porto to Atletico, that was where the world looked at him as being in at least the top three. This also coincided with Colombia's amazing World Cup qualifying campaign, where as the captain, the long-haired finisher propelled his people to the big tournament.
It was during this time that everyone wanted Falcao and he was the most coveted striker in the world. This was all before Lewandowski, Aguero and Aubamayeng had made global names for themselves. But in true modern footballer fashion, Falcao opted for the cash and inexplicably moved to....Monaco.
Everyone and their grandparents saw the move as simply a cash-grab and not made entirely on football. To his folly, PSG also stacked up, and did so a lot better than Monaco. Which left Falcao and his other superstars playing Robin to PSG's Batman. So it was time to focus on the World Cup and prove to the world that he was still the elite striker. What better stage to stick two fingers up at the haters than the international stage eh?
The injury.
Del Piero had it. Ronaldo had it. The dreaded knee injury that put Falcao out of the World Cup, and put a stall on his career. Colombia went on to do very well without him with a new superstar being born in the form of James Rodriguez. So it was about coming back from injury and taking back his spotlight as Colombia's best player. But this is where the story gets darker....
Ever since Falcao left Monaco for United and now Chelsea, it's been like watching a ghost. He has had absolutely no effect on matches and feels like his team is playing with one man down. Even at the Copa America, he huffed and puffed, put in a shift; but it was to no avail. Watching him trying to make a run, or take a shot or even create a chance is like seeing a someone run into a metal wall time and time and time again.
Any time I see Falcao either on the pitch or just playing football, I forget that he is still involved in the sport at a professional level. He is so irrelevant that when his face pops up, I need to remind myself of his name, background and exactly who he is. And he seems like a nice guy. That's the worst thing. Nobody wishes ill on him and he's been such an inspiration to Colombian kids who look up to him.
But we need to deal with facts. It's an insult to call him a professional footballer. I don't even want to add further embarrassment by going all mathematical and giving you the amount of goals he has scored in the last three years. Let's just say that Radamel, my dear friend, this is the time where you really should be giving serious thought about a career beyond football.
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HH
