He overcame brain cancer and returned to play almost two years later: Virginia Torrecilla’s emotional return to the courts

When the clock struck 86 minutes in the final of the Spain Supercup, the emotion took hold of the players of the Atletico Madrid. It didn’t matter that the team mattress was suffering a rout against him Barcelona and that the fall was already practically consummated. At that moment, all the soccer players smiled and applauded when they saw the entrance from the bench of substitutes of Virginia Torrecilla, the midfielder who returned to step on a court officially after almost two years of absence for having undergone treatment to cure brain cancer.

Football was looking forward to this return and expectations had increased even more when in the run-up to the match, the coach Oscar Fernandez announced that Torrecilla would be among those cited for the decisive duel against the Catalans. Finally, his entry came with four minutes to closing, instead of Months. As soon as she passed the other side of the lime line, the midfielder received the applause of her colleagues and also the captain’s ribbon of her team, which finally fell for 7-0 before the powerful group of Alexia Putellas and company (the goals were from Engen, Graham Hansen -3-, Rolfo and Martens -2-).

“It was something very special, that I will never forget, regardless of the result. What my teammates, the team and the coaching staff have done for me to be here today is incredible.”, Said the 27-year-old player once the match that was played at the Ciudad del Fútbol in Las Rozas was over. Before going up to receive the trophy for his consecration, the Barcelona players had a great gesture with Torrecilla and made a ‘manteada’ throwing her into the air: “Throughout my process, women’s football has been very involved with me. Regardless of the shirts and badges, they have helped me at all times, they have been with me throughout the entire process of my illness and I want to thank all those people because I have felt loved”.

Through tears, the Atlético Madrid soccer player dedicated this return to her loved ones: “I remember my parents, my family. I promised them that I would return and here I am”.

Torrecilla’s last official match had been on March 11, 2020. That day he visited the Spain national team shirt in the 1-0 victory against England in the SheBelieves Cup, one of the most prestigious friendly tournaments in the world. world. Some time later, she began to notice difficulties when performing actions such as running or jumping, which led her to make a series of medical consultations. The diagnosis showed that he had a “tumor located in the deep part of the cerebellum, next to the pineal gland”.

The disease forced her to go through the operating room in the middle of the pandemic and then she underwent a treatment that included chemotherapy sessions. In March 2021, a year after the cancer was detected, the player with a past Collerense Sports Union, Sporting de Palma, Barcelona and Montpellier HSC of France was able to train again with Atlético Madrid. This Sunday, 22 months after that last meeting, Virginia returned to enjoy her great passion and, making it clear that the disease is part of the past, she stated as a commitment: “I promise I’m going to get better.”

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