CURITIBA // Apparently, Chilean jerseys sporting No 10 are doing a roaring trade back in the UAE. A quick jaunt around Al Ain and the red and white of the modest South American country with ambitious aspirations at this World Cup is said to pop out from coffee shops and shisha cafes.
The phenomenon is easily explained: Jorge Valdivia, Chile’s gifted playmaker, spent two seasons at the Garden City club starting in 2008. From there, the seeds were sown to a lifelong allegiance.
[ Click here to visit The National’s World Cup 2014 landing page ]
Valdivia’s style – expert close control, imagination and set-piece precision – carried significant substance, too. “El Mago” (The Magician) in his time at Al Ain, he helped conjure a President’s Cup crown, and an Etisalat Cup success, as well.
A league title proved elusive, if only because in his final season, injuries to instrumental colleagues Jose Sand and Emerson stunted Al Ain’s challenge. Valdivia returned to Palmeiras with his reputation enhanced, though. He certainly left his mark.
“He was a great player and I was very fortunate to have played with him for two years,” said Waleed Salem, the Al Ain goalkeeper. “I had a feeling of joy while watching him score in Chile’s 3-1 win over Australia in their Group B opener.”
On Friday against the Australians, Valdivia – who played in three of Chile’s four games at the 2010 tournament – had provided a typically fine finish in the match at the Arena Pantanal. It was his side’s second goal, the sort of strike familiar to those who trained alongside him at Al Ain.
“He was not only an outstanding player, but a team man,” Salem said. “He helped others to improve their game and earned the respect of his teammates on the pitch.”
Admired by Al Ain’s foreign contingent and the club’s Emiratis, Valdivia had a particular influence on Omar Abdulrahman. Many of the tricks and flicks now employed by the UAE’s most naturally gifted football took root while Valdivia was there.
Having arrived at Al Ain in 2008 as a 24-year-old, Valdivia was a rare commodity: a talented foreign player moving toward his prime and not out of it. He made the most of his period in the UAE, embracing both the culture and an emergent professional era in its football.
Liam Weeks, Al Ain’s performance analyst during much of Valdivia’s time there, is unequivocal in his praise.
“He is the best player to have played in the UAE, without doubt,” Weeks said. “He was technically accomplished; the players all looked up to him. The strikers were lucky to have him in the side, and I’d say he was involved in about 80 per cent of the team’s goals. He made things look easy.”
Weeks expects to see Valdivia back at Al Ain at some point, such is the connection between the diminutive schemer and his former club.
Given Valdivia’s affection for the 11-time UAE champions, a return visit would only seem natural.
Should he move to another team in the Arabian Gulf League, a clause exists in his current contract with Palmeiras mandating that Al Ain pocket a sizeable compensation. A transfer back there would arguably prove more lucrative, in footballing terms at least.
For now, Valdivia is focused solely on guiding Chile as deep into this month’s World Cup as possible.
On Wednesday, Jorge Sampaoli’s men seek to take another step toward the knock-out stages when they take on Spain, the defending champions. Smarting from last week’s humiliation at the hands of the Netherlands, they will be intent on banishing memories of the Dutch debacle. Just like against Australia, Valdivia will be integral to Chile’s chances.
[ Read more: Spain approach legacy crossroads ahead of clash with younger Chile ]
Under Sampaoli, his remit is clear: control and create, interchange with Alexis Sanchez and Eduardo Vargas in attack and lift this impressive Chile long into the finals.
Celebrated in his own country, Valdivia will find encouragement thousands of miles away from Rio de Janeiro’s Maracana, in those coffee shops and shisha cafes dotted around his old haunt.
“I am a fan of Spanish football and Spain, but whenever Chile plays in the World Cup, my support is for them because of Valdivia’s presence,” said Ahmed Saeed, an Al Ain supporter.
“After the World Cup, I hope he returns to Al Ain.”
jmcauley@thenational.ae
Follow our sports coverage on twitter at @SprtNationalUAE
