In the immense world of football there are stories of all kinds. A lot is known and little is said, but how many cases have there been of disappointment behind thousands and thousands of boys who dedicate their entire lives to youth football and when they reach a certain age the clubs do not sign them professional contracts. Some decide to leave their dream behind to dedicate yourself to another life and others exhaust all opportunities to be able to be professional soccer players.
Generally, a soccer player starts at a young age in school, then works in some institution until they sign a professional contract. However, Jaime Barcelo, today goalkeeper for Defensores Unidos de Záratecan tell a very different story from the one already known by most footballers.
The goalkeeper born on October 6, 1999 was able to fulfill his dream at a very advanced age and in a very particular way.
The career of goalkeeper Jaime Barceló in Argentina
As we mentioned before, the “professional” training of a player starts from childhood. However, until he was 17, Jaime took football as a passion, but he did not enjoy it beyond enjoyment. Only at the age of 18 did he set out to prepare to be a professional archer. and thus fulfill his dream: playing in Europe.
“I’ve been playing ball since I was a kid. I started in amateur clubs and, between the ages of 17 and 18, I realized that I wanted to dedicate myself to this in a more professional way. Yes, I admit that I arrived late, because in the clubs, the “Boys begin to train as professionals when they are 14 years old. But that was not an impediment to going in search of my goal,” the goalkeeper said in Olé.
After his time in amateur football, Barceló decided to try his luck at Excursionistas where it was in the fourth division. However, after a few years Jaime was free in 2020. In a pandemic world, and at almost 21 years old, it would have been very easy to let that dream go to pursue something else. Far from that idea, the archer decided to go in search of his desire no matter what the cost.
How goalkeeper Jaime Barceló managed to sign in Finland
After being free in Excursionistas, The goalkeeper decided to put together a resume and spread it around several clubs in Europe., especially in Nordic countries. “I chose to start with Nordic countries, because at that time they were without activity, so they could listen to some offers. My philosophy was always to go knock on doors, send a thousand emails. In one afternoon I sit down and send a thousand emails to several teams from different countries. There are few who respond, but among those who offer me a response, I sit down to analyze these different proposals until we reach an agreement,” commented the current CADU goalkeeper in 2023.
“He who seeks finds” the saying goes and so it was. After sending a large number of emails to the clubs in Europe, Barceló fulfilled its mission. In 2021 the goalkeeper came to the rise of Finland where he played for 3 years, a period in which he went through Keuruun Pallo and FC Vaajakoski. During that time he managed to stop in the fourth, third and second categories of the Nordic country.
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Furthermore, in 2022 and encouraged by his girlfriend, Jaime became popular by telling his story on the networks, which transformed him into a content creator. Currently The goalkeeper has more than 612 thousand followers on TikTok and 37 thousand on Instagram. “I am always a footballer first, before a content creator. I simply try, through content, to reach these kids and inspire them to, whatever their dream, work hard and intelligently to achieve it,” Barceló commented in an interview with TyC Sports.
Thanks to his popularity on social networks, different goalkeepers and players exchanged messages with Jaime to greet him and ask for advice both in the world of networks and also to put together a correct resume to present at football clubs.
Returning to sport, at the beginning of the year Jaime managed to fulfill another dream and that was to have signed his first professional contract in Argentina. Currently the archer belongs to the CADU staffwhich plays in the second category of Argentine soccer.
Jaime Barceló, at 24 years old, not only inspires all those who want to become professional players, but also all those who want to fulfill a dream.
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.
