Ian Poveda: Colombia’s secret weapon in soccer?
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Even in the face of the leaders' refusal and disinterest in summoning him, the 18-year-old still gives a lot to talk about after his debut with Manchester City
With only 18 years old, his talent, discipline, passion, and commitment to soccer have begun to cause conmotion in the various media worldwide, thanks to its technical director José "Pep" Guardiola. This is the young Ian Carlos Poveda Ocampo, who was born on February 9, 2000, in London, England, of Colombian parents, who yearn as much as he does to see him wearing the shirt of the Colombian team in the not too distant future.
Leer en español: Ian Poveda: ¿el arma secreta del fútbol colombiano?
Since his foray into the world of football as an extreme forward, Poveda has worn the uniform of important teams in Europe in youth categories. He began his career with Puerto Malagueño and then went through Chelsea, Arsenal FC (2010-2012), Barcelona FC (2012-2014), Brentford (2014-2016); since 2016, he plays for Manchester City in the Premier League. He has also played at a national level with the Sub 15, Sub 17 and Sub 20 of England, information released by the web portal TransferMarkt.
His evolution as a soccer player has increasingly gained strength and recognition, given that this year the talented player, who has played 23 games between the Premier League 2 (Fourth Division of English football), UEFA Youth League and the EFL Trophy with five goals. He had the good fortune to be part of the starting 11 for the big team of his current English club for the FA Cup against Burton Albion.
On that occasion, he played alongside figures such as the Dutchman Kevin de Bruyne, the Brazilian Danilo and the Argentine Sergio Agüero and, of course, under the eyes of his coach Guardiola, on which he left very good impressions. "It was a good debut, he showed a lot of his talent and I know he will continue to progress, he is a brave player," said the head honcho at the MSN Deportes portal.
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However, despite receiving praise from Guardiola, the attacker has a fixed goal, which is to be able to be taken into account and play for the Colombian national team, which reached the knockout stages in the Russia World Cup 2018: "I would like to represent the Colombian team because it is the country where my parents were born, where they grew up, I was born in London, but I have always been attentive to Colombian football with my fans who are very fanatical, we have followed the Colombian players Outside Radamel Falcao, James Rodriguez, Juan Fernando Quintero, I play in the band but I would like to play as a 10", the young player emphasized to the RCN TV network.
Despite his interest in being part of the Colombian team, journalist Diego Rueda revealed through Caracol Radio the program 'VBar' that his approach was not entirely productive, since the tricolor directors were not interested in him entering the team, nor to greet him or to observe some of his performances in the old continent. This aspect was criticized harshly by Rueda, alleging that the player has always indicated his intention to play with Colombia, but unfortunately the managers are enclosed to a small cluster of players and do not take into account future promises of soccer.
At the same time, Arturo Reyes, the current coach of Colombia in the U20 category — currently not having a good time in the South American Championship in Chile, after losing to Argentina and Ecuador and drawing with Brazil— , argued the reasons why Poveda has not been included in the call-ups: " Ian has had processes with three English national teams and we want players to be committed to our shield," he said in statements published by Antena 2.
If he is summoned to play in the future as the extreme forward of England's team, its options of being with Colombia would automatically end completely. Even so, now with Carlos Queiroz as the new manager of the Colombian National Team, the circumstances could turn 360 degrees and the Londoner could finally be taken into account and join the great Colombian figures to fulfill his dreams.
LatinAmerican Post | Rubén Sanchez
Translated from "Ian Poveda: ¿el arma secreta del fútbol colombiano?"
