“It was the last chance for me”: Cuadrado expresses his sadness at running out of World Cup

Juan Guillermo Cuadrado, who was not in the last game of the qualifying round due to accumulation of yellow cards, expressed what it means that the Colombia team has run out of space in the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

The one born in Necoclí (Antioquia), one of the leaders of the team in the last decade, expressed his frustration at not giving the fans more joy, but, above all, of not being able to attend what would have been his last world championship competition. At the age of 33, it is difficult for the versatile player to join the team looking for a place in the tournament that will be held in 2026 in Canada, Mexico and the United States. Every cycle has its end and that of Cuadrado apparently arrived.

On his Instagram account, the Juventus footballer shared a story that reads:

He is right in his publication: after France 1998, the Tricolor managed to attend a World Cup alone in Brazil 2014. And he was one of the key chips of the team that excited all of Colombia with a title in that tournament, hoping that he was undone after the defeat against Brazil in the quarterfinals. The fans were so grateful then that, when the national team arrived in the country after the elimination, they received it in a great way at the El Dorado International Airport, from where they accompanied her by caravan to the Simon Bolivar Metropolitan Park, the place of the commemoration. “Pekerman is Colombian”, sang the followers of the DT who is missed today.

Although the Colombian Football Federation (FCF) has not officially made Reinaldo Rueda's departure as technical director official, his step to the side is only a matter of time, which implies a new coach. It will be up to him to call or not to call Cuadrado despite his age. For some historical coffee football players, such as Carlos El Pibe Valderrama, it's time to say goodbye to the litter who for a time delighted for his good football to begin with the generational change that the team demands. Like Juan Guillermo, others who have already completed their cycle are William Tesillo, Oscar Murillo and Radamel Falcao García.

Wilmar Barrios, security quota in the containment zone of the Colombian team, was another of those who expressed on his social networks the pain of elimination. The difference with Cuadrado is that, due to his 28 years of age, he would have the opportunity to participate in another world championship cycle. The Cartagenero was called up for the senior team for the first time on March 20, 2015, when he played for Deportes Tolima, where he left for Boca Juniors after his performance.

“Today the sadness is deep, not only for me but for my teammates, but we will surely rise as a team and we will fight again in every game for this shirt. Having participated in a world cup and representing my country was the most beautiful experience so far as a football player, not achieving our goal of qualifying hurts a lot, we wanted to do it for you, for us, for our families,” he shared on his social networks.

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