This is the Colombian soccer figure who was rejected by some teams due to his short stature

Figure from América assured that he was rejected by some Colombian teams for not being tall – credit América de Cali

América de Cali has consolidated one of the best-equipped rosters for the second half of 2023, with the majority of players who were part of Alexandre Guimaraes’ process in the last championship and aiming for the title.

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Although they had a difficult start, to the point that the board of directors was going to fire the Bogotá coach, the players supported his work and now have the Red Devils in second place with 26 points, nine games without losing and fighting for a place in the Conmebol Libertadores 2024 in reclassification.

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Among the América players who are standing out in the second semester, one of them had to face some situations to be the figure he currently is, among them the rejection in some Colombian teams due to his short stature and which almost distanced him from professional football.

Cristian Barrios became one of the figures of América to be second in the Betplay League, he scored two goals against Atlético Nacional, he has scored eleven in 37 games during 2023 and hopes to win a title with the Red Devils to make history for the club .

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However, he had a hard time in his beginnings in soccer because he was not as tall as other athletes: “Some teams in Barranquilla closed their doors to me in the minor divisions. I never wanted to get close to Junior or Barranquilla FC because when my brother (Michael Barrios) was at Autonoma he had a very difficult time because they didn’t accept him due to his short stature, so I didn’t want to get close either so they wouldn’t cut my dream short.” .

The attacker highlighted the support of the people and his double in the 4-1 win by the Betplay League – credit América de Cali

“Even now I arrived in a city where they say that the majority of players are very tall. I have shown that height is not everything in football. “I never did tests at Junior or approached him for fear that they would reject me because of my height,” added the attacker.

Although his short stature continues to cause him problems, the red fans have great affection for him: “People compare me to very important players who passed through America, that is a personal pride, a motivation to continue working and continue doing important things for the team.” club. It’s nice to be compared to one, but I want to make my own story here in America. “I want to succeed, win my titles and for people to remember me for Cristian Barrios and not for the similarity with the Smurf of Ávila.”

Although América has great forwards like Adrián Ramos, Carlos Darwin Quintero and Facundo Suárez, Cristian Barrios’ objective is to be the figure in the attack and he has been demonstrating it with his five goals in the second half, four of them in the Betplay League.

Cristian Barrios has 11 scores in 32 commitments with América during the 2023 season – credit América de Cali

“It is very good for the team, personally I would like to be a scorer for America, it would be very nice, but in addition to that it is nice to know that we have several players with goals. It is very good and gives confidence to know that we have several players with goals. Every time someone scores it does good for the team,” he said.

Finally, Barrios praised the work of Lucas González since his arrival and how he is empowering each soccer player: “He is a very studied teacher and that has served us well. Our intention to support the process was not a coincidence, but because we knew the kind of coach we had and that we could lose him. Professor Lucas studies the rivals very well and draws a new conclusion from each one and that helps us on the field. Things become easier because Professor Lucas gives us instructions in the best way.”

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