Last Wednesday, the Guardian newspaper published a special remembering the Newcastle de 1996 where Faustino Asprilla was and that he was close to reaching the English football title, remaining four points behind Manchester United in the standings.
They consulted several players of that special team and several of them had words of praise and admiration for the former Colombian footballer, who scored 9 goals with the shirt of the Newcastle in 48 games of English football.
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“With Tino, you would expect the unexpected. He had that rebellious and crazy side, but he was never malicious. He was definitely the most peculiar of our team… “His nickname was the octopus because his legs were all over the place and you literally had no idea what he was going to do. I have very fond memories of him. He was also a first-rate player. A lot That is lost to his antics and the way he celebrated, but what a player. He was phenomenal. At the end of a game, he looked as if he had been thrown back, socks down, shorts tassels untied, and shirt hanging down. But he was fast, smart and had a great stride, “said the exdefensor Robie Elliot.
For his part, Warren Barton, a defender of that cast, went further: “” When I think of him, I can’t help but smile… He was the life and soul of the team. We were a very close-knit group and he came in and joined that. He integrated very quickly; his smile every morning was contagious. I could hear his voice. He had an interpreter, but his English was better than he showed. “
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And Barton closed by comparing him to Michael Jordan recalling his legendary game against Barcelona: “” I was causing chaos. Tino’s headbutt timeout was like Michael Jordan. There was a special atmosphere. We were all doing our group warm-up before the game, but Tino was chewing gum, holding the ball up, swinging it, and swinging it over his head. He looked like a naughty boy, ready to have fun. He was not in the zone and he was concentrating on us, but he was in his own zone. When that whistle blew, he knew he was going to destroy the opposition and do it his way. “
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