At the meeting of the round of 16 of the King’s Cup between Deportivo Guadalajara and Barcelona (0:2), one video overshadowed the duel itself. In the 19th minute, the television cameras zoomed in on the defender of the home team, Borja Díaz, and social networks burst into flames with the question: “Well, is it possible, is it really Sergio Ramos?”
The 27-year-old Díaz’s resemblance to the celebrated Real Madrid and Spain captain has sparked a flurry of jokes and memes. While netizens debated whether Ramos’ father could confirm the “family connection”, the main actor of the viral photo was tirelessly running around the right side of the defense of the lower league team from Castilla-La Mancha.
Díaz started the match in the starting line-up, and the coach withdrew him in the 62nd minute, when the scoreboard still read an unexpected 0:0. Barcelona broke through Guadalajara’s disciplined defense only in the end and secured passage with goals, with much more trouble than the difference in budgets and reputation suggests.
The duel also marked the return Marc-Andréa ter Stegena among the goalposts of the Blaugrana. The German goalkeeper played the first minutes after a long absence due to injury, and kept the net intact.
And while positive impressions about Ter Stegen’s return are being collected in Barcelona, in Guadalajara there will be talk for a long time about the “fake Ramos” who became the face of the Spanish Internet for one evening.
