Bringing Back the Colombian Hype Train
What to do with both Lucho and Duvan moving on?
I will admit, I have been a bad football fan this summer. I watched a grand total of 60 minutes of the Euros, and to my chagrin it was a brutal hour watching England attempt to crack the parked bus that was Slovakia.
But hey, I made up for it, rocking the tri-color of South America - yellow, blue, and red instead. Colombia was inches away from securing its second ever Copa America victory, and for those who know my origin story - it was the Colombians that pulled me into the Atalanta fray.
The 2019 Copa America was the first non-World Cup tournament I watched with serious intent, and I still have vivid memories of Colombia upsetting Argentina in the group stages - with Duvan putting the nail in the coffin with a stone cold goal.
Unfortunately, there is an extremely high chance that this will be the first season since Duvan’s inaugural season that Atalanta will be without a Colombian on the first match week roster. Luis Muriel is stuck fighting Florida traffic with crazy Disney tourists, and Zapata is a fully-fledged Toro after an excellent resurgence last season in Torino.
To me, this borders on unacceptable, we need a Colombian in the squad! Even if it is Johan Mojica blasting crosses into opposition ankles, Atalanta is just better with some cafetero blood in the mix.
But Who’s Available?
Fortunately for Colombia, the state of the national team is much better. They were on a 28 game unbeaten streak until falling in extra time to Argentina and Lautaro Martinez (doh!). Nestor Lorenzo has them playing much better football, and he was not afraid to bring new players into the fold this tournament. He didn’t care which league they played in, he looked for the best players, and the team has blended nicely behind a resurgent James Rodriguez.
Two names stood out to me as the standouts of the Colombian tournament. These are definitely lesser known names, one I didn’t even recall prior to the Copa, who undoubtedly can move up into a higher level of domestic competition.
Watching Jhon Arias and Richard Rios boss the midfield all tournament was a sight to behold. Even against a vaunted Brazilian side, both guys took over the match. Arias likely has more versatility in his arsenal. He was stuck playing central midfield - no one is taking the left flank from Luis Diaz - but he really had no issue playing a more tempered game as a central midfield, letting the flair of other players dictate the offense. Instead he pressed well, was great in possession, and was was extremely clean with his passing. And he’s not a nob offensively either! 14 goals and assists last year were instrumental in leading Fluminese to an historical Copa Libertadores title.
His midfield partner Richard Rios was arguably more impressive. Discovered playing in a futsal tournament by Flamengo, Rios stormed onto the scene this year, instantly becoming a staple of Nestor Lorenzo’s starting XI. His futsal flair still shines through in his play. He’s expressive, has little issue getting to the goal line to drill in a cross, oh and he can also cover a bunch of ground. Sound like anyone else we know at Atalanta? Vice-Ederson perhaps?
Both guys are reasonably priced on Transfermarkt - Arias 14M euros | Rios at 5M euros, and they have attributes and traits that Gasperini can absolutely find a use for. I gravitate to Rios given our almost perpetual thinness at central midfield. We never know how long Marten de Roon will continue to hold on for, and even though Atalanta already did a little midfield bolstering by bringing in Ibrahim Sulemana - three midfielder deep plus jack-of-all-trades Mario Pasalic can quickly become a concerning area of depth, once again. Editors Note - Gianluca Di Marzio is reporting that AC Milan is also interested in Rios, and if he goes there I will forever be ungrateful for his past services to Colombia’s international trimpuhs.
It would be no shock if both guys get a big move to Europe this summer, frankly they deserve it after their Copa America performances. While either of them moving to Bergamo is unlikely, we need to somehow keep the dream alive of having Colombians thrive in Bergamo. While only five Colombians have ever played for La Dea, Ivan Valenciano and Mario Yepes being the other two, a sixth would be sweet. Even more sweet would be the guy donning the #6 this summer. Rios is my preference, his panache demands he be on the big stage, and Champion’s League football (not that Arias isn’t a slouch after carrying his team to silverware)! So come dream with me, and see if any on my clairvoyance comes true. And if it doesn’t, that’s okay - we know that Tony D’Amico, and Lee Congerton’s old notebook, has our back and will follow through and get us the pieces we need to keep on thriving. Until then - Forza (or Vamos) Dea!