I was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. I have my father, my mother who passed away six years ago, six brothers and three sisters. I am the youngest in the family. I have 22 nephews, whom I try to talk and send messages to. Some of them are young and some are old. I have a lot of family in Argentina and everyone is with their families, with their sons, daughters, and each one took their course, their path. We are doing well.
Since I was little, my positions were offensive. I didn't always play as a '9'. Sometimes I played on the outside and after growing up, I played behind the ‘9’ as a second striker. But I played as a ‘9’ most of my professional career. The truth is that ever since I started playing in that position, I liked it because I got to score goals. I think [scoring goals] is beautiful and it’s what led me to want to play as a '9' and have more opportunities to score goals.
As a child, I played in a small indoor team in Buenos Aires since there is a lot of play there. I started my career in River Plate, where I took on more and more responsibilities until I made it to the first team and made my debut in 2007. I was there for several years and then went to Poland where I played in Wisła Kraków in 2010. I went back to River briefly, and then to Deportivo Cuenca in Ecuador and later to Club America in Mexico. Then, I played in Brazil with Vasco de Gama and later returned to Argentina with Racing, so there were several back and forths but with nice experiences.
I noticed a difference playing in Ecuador with the fact that football attracts mostly the same passion, the desire to win that competition, and people want to go see their team win. There was a difference in their style of football, but I always take the best of everywhere I play. I had the opportunity to play in Mexico, where people are also very passionate. I got to play for Club America, which is a giant club, where there were always 50-100 people outside waiting for us after practice. Those types of things make you realize that they give football high importance and that they are passionate. I then went to Brazil, which is, from what I got to live, the closest football ambiance to Argentina. People double up, stadiums are full, and people are passionate. When you win a match, everyone is happy. When you lose, they want to kill you. Those are things that happen in football, and they really make you feel it. Everywhere I go, I try to keep the positive and the beauty of it.
After being in Racing, where I got to win a championship in 2019, I always had the desire to be able to go to MLS. The possibility arose after the championship of being able to come [to San Jose] and the truth is that I took it with very good eyes because it was my wish, and also after speaking with Matias Almeyda, whom I had as a coach before and shared some time with. I’m someone who shares his thoughts and his way of thinking, so that also contributed to my desire to join the club.
I took the few months that I had in 2019 as an adaptation period where I got to meet my teammates, how the league works, and what kind of players and teams there are. Watching the games is not the same as being in them, so I was learning that there are great players, great teams, and a very dynamic style of football. The truth is that I am grateful and happy to be in San Jose because I know that we are united and it’s a group that has the capacity to achieve important things.
I hope to establish myself in the team, earn a spot, obviously continue playing as we all want, but to also be able to create and finish on the field and because I have to be there. As a group, I think we can qualify to MLS Cup playoffs, and can reach that goal little by little even if it seems far, by building the path to a championship match after match. I like to think positively, dream, and I think that from there I will contribute my vision to the team.
What I can tell our fans is to remain convinced as much as we are, that they go to the stadium and they will see a team that never gives up, a team that leaves everything on the pitch. We are going to do important things and they will be surprised.
Vamos San Jose.
