40 years ago, Sports Tolima it made noise, a lot of noise, in South America. In that distant 1982, the team reached the semifinal of the Liberators cup and he even defeated Cobreloa from Chile in Bogotá, a finalist in 1981 and who later repeated his qualification to the last instance of the tournament.
A long time passed and Tolima stepped on hell and then reached heaven: the descent to B in 1993, the return to A a year later with the return of the same manager who made them dream of an international title, Gabriel Camargo, and then, the growth until achieving its first star in 2003, a second title in 2018 and then, last year, it had the best performance in its history, going around the Olympics in June, against Millonarios, and then repeating the final in December , who lost against Deportivo Cali.
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Tolima, from austerity to high investment
In all those achievements of the last three decades, although the name of Camargo was always present, the Tolima plan was always managed with austerity, taking care of each peso, without large investments and with the need to sell a player to maintain financial balance . In recent times, he transferred, for example, Sebastián Villa to Boca Juniors and Jaminton Campaz to Gremio.
The team that has shaken the market, even disarming the rivals, is Junior from Barranquilla, with the purchase of Miguel Ángel Borja from Palmeiras and the hiring of Fernando Uribe and Daniel Giraldo, pillars of the Millionaires campaign in 2021. But few have They have fixed on the movements of Tolima, which is not usual for it to make so many signings, and fewer, of players with a presence in international teams.
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In 2022, the year that Tolima will return to the group stage of the Copa Libertadores after three years, the vinotinto y oro wants to think big and try to advance as much as possible in Conmebol tournaments.
Camargo was applauded in the second leg of the final against Cali and even in the south tribune of the Murillo Toro stadium they showed a tifo with his face.
The gesture did not go unnoticed by the president of the club, who even uploaded a message to the social networks of Deportes Tolima in which it is noted that the tears of joy were drained.
“I couldn’t let time go by without thanking them for that gesture of affection and appreciation they had in the Tolima-Cali match. I have appreciated it in all its context and everything it deserves, that support to continue fighting and make up the magnificent team that we have to play in any international tournament. That’s the way I can reciprocate, ”Camargo said.
???? Our president Gabriel Camargo Salamanca sends a special greeting to all our fans and wishes them a happy and prosperous year. pic.twitter.com/qWdmxL17a2
– Club Deportes Tolima SA ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (@cdtolima) January 6, 2022
A World Cup goalkeeper and a national team creative
Tolima did not stay still and began to move fast. He hired the starting goalkeeper of the Ecuadorian team, Alexander Domínguez, to cover the departure of Álvaro Montero to Millonarios. Domínguez, 34, with 62 international matches and a World Cup in Brazil 2014, is the loudest name of the ten hires Tolima has announced so far.
But it is not the only reinforcement with minutes in the tie that reaches Tolima. He also hired Peruvian creative midfielder Raziel García, who comes from Cienciano and has his first international experience in Ibagué. He is 27 years old and has played eight games with the team led by Ricardo Gareca, four in the 2021 Copa América and four in the tie.
In addition, Tolima repatriated from Mexico to Michael Rangel, of proven performance and proven in teams like America, where he was champion; Nacional, Millonarios, Junior and Santa Fe, and from Argentina to central defender José David Moya, who will live his second stage at the club.
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He also brought to his ranks Juan Camilo Angulo, champion winger with Deportivo Cali; two pieces from the National Cup champion last year (Brayan Rovira and Jonathan Marulanda, who had already played for the club), and other footballers such as Álvaro Meléndez, from the recent past in Bucaramanga, and Fabián Mosquera, Jaguares central defender. It’s been a while, perhaps since the campaign to return to A in 1995, that Tolima hadn’t made so much noise.
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