Champion coach with tricolor striker of South American youth in 2019 believes that his former pupil “is going to evolve as a footballer.”
In the opinion of Jorge Célico, responsible for the youth divisions of the Ecuadorian Football Federation (FEF), “it should not be taken as a setback, but rather a ‘start over'” that the young Guayaquil striker Leonardo Campana has left the football of Europe to sign this month for Inter Miami, a North American MLS club.
“Leo found many obstacles (in Europe) and I think that in the MLS he will be able to develop. MLS should not be taken as a setback, but rather a ‘start over’ in a football that I usually watch and it is a fairly complicated tournament to play. There are many young players of a very high level”, declared Célico on the radio on Tuesday Sports area.
Campana (21 years old) migrated to European football in January 2020, after fifteen games in First A with Barcelona Sporting Club, his training institution. The striker won prominence as the top scorer (six goals) in the South American U-20 Championship in Chile 2019, where the youth Tri won the unprecedented title, at the beginning of that year. He was also the center forward of the National Team of that category in the World Cup in Poland, in mid-2019, an event in which Ecuador achieved a historic bronze medal. The strategist in charge was Célico.
England’s Wolverhampton Wanderers noticed the Guayaquil native and agreed a contract two years ago. However, more than a few flashes in training, he did not debut. In search of minutes, the transfer in September until the end of the season (June 2021) to the Portuguese Famalicao was imminent, but in Portuguese football he did not find a greater presence. In July 2021 he joined the Swiss Grasshopper.
Last Friday, Inter Miami, a club owned by former English soccer player David Beckham, announced the signing of Campana.
Campana is a new Inter Miami player
“For me (Campana) he is a great player, with important conditions, different from what we normally have in Ecuadorian soccer. To the extent that Leo plays, he will evolve as a footballerCelico added.
Inter Miami, founded in January 2018, did not qualify for the 2021 MLS postseason. Phil Neville has been the coach since January 2021. (D)
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