“The greatest of all my fears, usually the only one that worries me, is the fear of ridicule…I am terribly shy. I am terrified of appearing in public, of speaking, of being in front of a room full of people to walk in.”
These are the words of Gabriel García Márquez in an article entitled The Writer in His Labyrinth in 1996. Jorge Valdano read this Nobel laureate’s stage fright and footballed it to describe the terrible imbalance that occurred in rivals’ nervous systems. Real Madrid in the 1990s, when they visited the Santiago Bernabéu stadium in European competitions, in which they arrived with an advantage on the scoreboard and, between the quality of the white team’s players and the unbearable atmosphere in the stands, Madrid back and I eliminated them.
Last Thursday, Atlético Nacional experienced the famous stage fright in Argentina. In the first leg, in Medellín, they had beaten Racing by four to two, but they could not keep up the difference and were beaten by three to nil.
It’s not physical fear, the fear of being hit or injured, no. It has to do with the fear of being wrong, it’s a fear that paralyzes, that doesn’t allow you to take the initiative, rush to the rescue of a teammate, guide the plays with determination and clarity.
It is a fear that stiffens the legs and slows down the reflexes. That numbs the aggressiveness, that makes the rebounds late, to lose in the jumps, to get off the ball in any way. Nacional was unable to make a direct shot and with some danger throughout the match. He went to Argentina to spar with Racing. What a languid image one of the most representative teams of Colombian professional football has left behind.
On the other hand, the one who has been a great and pleasant surprise is Pereira who, with a small and modest selection, and in his first participation in this South American tournament, is in the quarter-finals. Extraordinary campaign. And unforgettable for his fans.
They will face a great player from the continent, Palmeiras, and nine out of ten football fans will say – we will say – that the Brazilian team will qualify. The other is from Pereira. Is it worth dreaming. It’s football…
Source: El heraldo
I’m George Gonzalez, a professional journalist and author at The Nation View. With more than 5 years of experience in the field, I specialize in covering sports news for various print media outlets. My passion for writing has enabled me to craft stories that capture the attention of readers all over the world.
