It is surprising how within football there are increasingly more surprising stories. How many people in this country, and in the world, have dreamed of ever wearing Boca’s number 10? Well, today’s protagonist can say it calmly and with pride.
Ezequiel “Equi” Gonzales, born in Rosario on July 10, 1980, is a former soccer player who retired quickly at the age of 31, but who nevertheless played for major national and international soccer clubs. Currently, Equi continues to step on the green grass, but it is not that of the fields, but rather that of the field.
Although soccer continues to be one of González’s great passions, the former soccer player opted for a path away from sports at the time of retirement and dedicated himself fully to agricultural activity. However, there is no doubt that his career as a player had great steps that are worth remembering.
What was Ezequiel González’s football career like?
Equi was lucky enough to debut in one of the most important teams in the country and in his hometown. In 1997, with the help of the renowned DT, Michelangelo Russianthe 17-year-old hitchhiker wore the team’s shirt for the first time Central Rosaryin a 4-0 victory over Independiente de Avellaneda.
In his first time at Central, González’s career was positive. Even the former enganche was close to becoming champion on several occasions, but unfortunately for the “Canalla” club it could not be. In 1998, with the help of Edgardo Bauza, Equi formed the team that was runner-up in the Conmebol Cup. In turn, Rosario Central was runner-up again the following year (and with a great squad), but this time in the Apertura tournament. Likewise, El Canalla was close to reaching the final of the legendary Copa Libertadores in 2001, but ended up in the semifinals with Mexico’s Cruz Azul.
Being a leading player in those years and on a team that was always on the verge of winning, the talented player was sold for almost five million dollars to the Fiorentina of Italya club in which he did not have a successful time: 25 games and a single goal in a single season.
By 2002, Equi reached one of the greats of Argentine soccer: Boca Juniors. At the riverside club he arrived to supplant the enormous figure of Juan roman riquelme and he was part of a squad that remained in the history of the club. González joined the team led by Carlos Bianchi which became 2003 Copa Libertadores champion. The hitch shared that squad with figures like Roberto Abbondanzieri Hugo Ibarra, Rolando Schiavi, Nicolás Burdisso, Clemente Rodríguez; Sebastián Battaglia, Raúl Cascini, Diego Cagna; Carlos Tevez; Guillermo Barros Schelotto and Delgado.
However, unfortunately for the man from Rosario, Equi was not able to shine among so many stars and his time in Boca was very short. Although he was part of the Copa Libertadores champion team, he played a handful of national and international matches without being able to stand out. Boca did not renew his loan and had to return to Italy.
In 2003, the hitch returned to his home, Rosario Central, for only 6 months. Despite being part of a team that finished 4th in the tournament, Equi could not arrange his continuity in Canalla and he returned to European football but this time in Greece.
Between 2004 and 2007, Enganche played for the Panathinaikos FC, a club that definitively bought him a move to Fiorentina. González in Greece won the title of the local tournament in the 03/04 season and at the same time the Greek Cup. In 2006, the former player suffered a cruciate ligament injury that sidelined him from the field for several months.
2008 began to mark the beginning of the end of his football career for González. He spent a year back in Rosario Central, then in the Fluminense of Brazil (played 6 games, but became champion) until falling into Quito University Leaguean express request from Patón Bauza.
In 2011, unable to reach an agreement with the institution, Equi González decided to hang up his boots at the age of 31, thus starting a new stage in his life.
What happened to the life of Ezequiel González after his retirement from football?
Ezequiel González was farsighted and already knew exactly what he was going to do after retirement. Advised by his father while he was still doing his thing on the field, Equi invested money in purchasing fields. Even the former player stated that unlike other footballers, he did not suffer the change in his life after retirement.
“My friends told me I was crazy for the time I spent developing this. I poured all the passion and energy I had for football into developing the field and the company.. The first decisions were shared but then I grew and learned more and more about business,” stated the former player in Clarín Rural, referring to his field.
Ezequiel’s father, largely responsible for the entire industrial assembly, had a field that he could never exploit, and that is why Equi fulfilled his dream little by little. Since his retirement until the present, the former Boca dedicated himself purely and exclusively to livestock activity. He is the owner of “El Cheru” Groupa company dedicated to different areas of agricultural activity such as the production of corn, soybeans, eucalyptus forestation and, above all, the production of pork.
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The company has its main headquarters in Maciel, a town located near Rosario, and the other in Esquina, Corrientes. Living in Santa Fe, his routine consists of visiting the El Cherú plant in Maciel every morning and due to the distance he does not travel as often to the Corrientes countryside, although he tries to travel every two months.
Speaking of the main business, the breeding and production of beef and pork, in 10 years Equi’s company grew by leaps and bounds. In 2014 the agricultural group started breeding 500 mothers and currently works with 4,500. The goal for 2024 is to invest in expanding the farm to reach 6,500 and thus be able to produce 28 million kilos of pork per year.
Although the entire González family is dedicated to agricultural activity, Equi did not completely give up football as many former footballers decide to do after hanging up their boots. “Now I see football as a fan. I take my children to the field. Football is still my main passion although everything I do has replaced it. I developed all the idiosyncrasies that we have in the company from football, how to put together work teams, always with the values of football. The truth is that it served me a lot,” declared the former Boca player.
Source: Ambito
I am Pierce Boyd, a driven and ambitious professional working in the news industry. I have been writing for 24 Hours Worlds for over five years, specializing in sports section coverage. During my tenure at the publication, I have built an impressive portfolio of articles that has earned me a reputation as an experienced journalist and content creator.
