At my kids football training last night, I talked to one of the Dad´s (business man in technology sector) who is a serious River fan and has friends involved in various of the committees running the club.
They rate Funes Mori really highly. Firstly, his path to the top has been far from straight-forward or easy. He has had to fight his way to where he is. He has, at various stages, received dogs abuse from the media, particularly the Boca loving elements of it (think of how Liverpool get treated in the UK and how all their ex players are in the media, it is the same hear with Boca). He took it all on the chin, never caused a ripple in the dressing room, did his talking on the pitch. He is considered a really level headed guy, not the norm here either for a football star. Never on the gossip pages with some "model". Most of all, they say the guy is a born winner. The bigger the challenge, the better he responds. The bigger the game, the better he plays.
The can not believe that a Champions league team did not come in for him and were amazed that Everton got him. They reckon he will be playing for the Sky 4 in three years after a huge transfer.
They say that he does make mistakes but that they are becoming fewer and fewer in his game. Keeping Ballanta out / the appointmentof Gallardo as manager (who in the first training session told everyone "this guy is a future argentine national centre half") has been the watershed moment of his career. Everything has taking over from that.
All the crying about him going is because he is the player the fans identify with most. He has dug them out time and time again to launch a golden era for the club in the last 18 months when they were relegated for the only time ever four years ago.
I told the guy that Everton fans love a fighter and he was delighted to hear that and said that you will love him so because first and foremost, that is what he is.
Because he speaks English, he should find it much easier to settle and there are plenty of Argentine footballers in the Greater Manchester area that he can have an asado with at the weekend. The usual worry with Argentines in English footie is that they get homesick or do not like the physicality. Neither of these apply to Funes Mori.
This is going to work a treat I reckon.
