Ronald García Nacho
Encyclopedia
Ronald Lázaro García Justiniano, nicknamed "Nacho" (born December 17, 1980 in Santa Cruz de la Sierra
) is a Bolivia
n footballer. He currently plays as a defensive midfielder for Aris Thessaloniki F.C.
in Greece
. He is considered as a fan favourite. He "graduated" from Bolivia's famous football academy called Tahuichi Aguilera located in Santa Cruz, which produced some popular Bolivian football stars, including Erwin "Platiní" Sanchez, Marco Antonio "El Diablo" Etcheverry, Jaime Moreno.
from La Paz
. From there, he moved to FC Alverca in Portugal
. He played for 3 years there and 2 stories about him are interesting:
First, at some point in his younger age, he was considered and positioned in the top 50 of world's football potentials.
Second, the story with him is related to his days in Benfica.
After his days in Portugal he returned once again to play in Bolivia
. During his second spell at Bolívar he reached the quarter finals of the Copa Libertadores, only to be defeated by Club América
on May 25, 2000. His notable performances earned him a second chance at his European dream and signed for, which at the time was in the second division, Aris Thessaloniki FC (apparent fee was 100,000 euros).
. As a result of a strong campaign from Aris, Nacho along with Aris were promoted to the first division after just 1 year.
In the big "roster sweeping" summer 2006, Aris Management gave him another chance and left him in the team for the 2006–2007 season. The first 2/3 of the season were more or less successful. However, his career continued to hampered with injuries. He was a regular starter under Guillermo Hoyos, the first coach of rebuilding 2006/07 Aris. Lost his starting 11 place to Ruben Palazuelos
under Enrique Hernandez (Hoyos' successor).
In mid-August 2008, after a lengthy series of negotiations, García finally signed a 5-year contract extension (up to 2013), earning 2 million euros, in total, for 5 years.
After a year he returned to Aris with less money in September 2011.His first unofficial appearance with the black and yellow shirt was in the friendly against Doxa Dramas on September,4 in which he had a notable performance.
He is the club's longest-serving non-Greek player ever and current squad's longest-serving player.
door and its starting 11. Finally in 2007, he was capped by the Bolivian National team playing for Copa America 2007 (equivalent to the Euro Cup). In 2007/08 season he finally became an essential, irreplaceable part and core of the Bolivian national team and Aris Thessaloniki. Now, Garcia is considered as one of Bolivia's and Aris FC's top and most consistent stars.
In the September round of the World Cup
qualifiers for South Africa
2010, he achieved a great performance leading his national team to a historic 0:0 draw at Brazil
, being one of the best men on the field as Bolivian and the "wider" media were reporting.
A month later, at the October pair of matches helped his national team improve their qualifying group position scoring a goal in a 3:0 win over Peru
at home and playing again decently in the 3-day later match with Uruguay
(2:2). Half a year later (on April 1), was again a participant in yet another historic result for his country as Bolivia thrashed Argentina
6:1, in La Paz
, noting an assist on his match stats account.
| 1. || June 18, 2008 || Estadio Hernando Siles
, La Paz
, Bolivia || || 2–0 || 4–2 || 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
|- style="background: #DFE7FF"
| 2. || October 11, 2008 || Estadio Hernando Siles
, La Paz
, Bolivia || || 3–0 || 3–0 || 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
|}
Santa Cruz de la Sierra
Santa Cruz de la Sierra, commonly known as Santa Cruz, is the capital of the Santa Cruz department in eastern Bolivia and the largest city in the country...
) is a Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
n footballer. He currently plays as a defensive midfielder for Aris Thessaloniki F.C.
Aris Thessaloniki F.C.
Aris Football Club , also known as God of war and the Yellows, is a Greek football club based in the city of Thessaloniki, Macedonia. Formed in 1914, the club was a founding member of Macedonian Football Clubs Association as well as the Hellenic Football Federation, they currently compete in...
in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. He is considered as a fan favourite. He "graduated" from Bolivia's famous football academy called Tahuichi Aguilera located in Santa Cruz, which produced some popular Bolivian football stars, including Erwin "Platiní" Sanchez, Marco Antonio "El Diablo" Etcheverry, Jaime Moreno.
Pre-Aris career
García's first professional Bolivian club was Club BolívarClub Bolívar
Club Bolívar, a football team from Bolivia, was founded in La Paz on April 12, 1925, with the name Atletico Bolívar Literario Musical later changed to "Club Atlético Bolívar"...
from La Paz
La Paz
Nuestra Señora de La Paz is the administrative capital of Bolivia, as well as the departmental capital of the La Paz Department, and the second largest city in the country after Santa Cruz de la Sierra...
. From there, he moved to FC Alverca in Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
. He played for 3 years there and 2 stories about him are interesting:
First, at some point in his younger age, he was considered and positioned in the top 50 of world's football potentials.
Second, the story with him is related to his days in Benfica.
After his days in Portugal he returned once again to play in Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
. During his second spell at Bolívar he reached the quarter finals of the Copa Libertadores, only to be defeated by Club América
Club América
Club América is a Mexican Professional football club based in Mexico City. It competes in the Primera División, the top professional league in the country. The team's nickname is Las Águilas ....
on May 25, 2000. His notable performances earned him a second chance at his European dream and signed for, which at the time was in the second division, Aris Thessaloniki FC (apparent fee was 100,000 euros).
Aris
In most of his first season with them he was plagued by several problems. First, his adapting process lasted longer than expected. Second, his from-time-to-time injuries and his longer recoveries, made it difficult for him to become a regular starter. Towards the end of the second division season he gradually started to gain confidence and trust by his coach Nikos AnastopoulosNikos Anastopoulos
Nikos Anastopoulos is a Greek former football player, one of the most prolific strikers in the Greek league during the late 1970s and the 1980s. With 29 goals he is the all time highest scorer for the Greek national football team. Since retiring as a player he has become a football manager...
. As a result of a strong campaign from Aris, Nacho along with Aris were promoted to the first division after just 1 year.
In the big "roster sweeping" summer 2006, Aris Management gave him another chance and left him in the team for the 2006–2007 season. The first 2/3 of the season were more or less successful. However, his career continued to hampered with injuries. He was a regular starter under Guillermo Hoyos, the first coach of rebuilding 2006/07 Aris. Lost his starting 11 place to Ruben Palazuelos
Rubén Palazuelos
Rubén Palazuelos García is a Spanish footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder.-Football career:Palazuelos began his career with hometown side Racing de Santander, but never made it past the reserves...
under Enrique Hernandez (Hoyos' successor).
In mid-August 2008, after a lengthy series of negotiations, García finally signed a 5-year contract extension (up to 2013), earning 2 million euros, in total, for 5 years.
After a year he returned to Aris with less money in September 2011.His first unofficial appearance with the black and yellow shirt was in the friendly against Doxa Dramas on September,4 in which he had a notable performance.
He is the club's longest-serving non-Greek player ever and current squad's longest-serving player.
Bolivia
In the period of his first season at Aris (and even earlier, but not that often) Nacho was always knocking on the Bolivian national team'sBolivia national football team
The Bolivia national football team is the national team of Bolivia and is controlled by the Federación Boliviana de Fútbol. After playing in the 1930 and 1950 World Cups, they qualified just once—in 1994...
door and its starting 11. Finally in 2007, he was capped by the Bolivian National team playing for Copa America 2007 (equivalent to the Euro Cup). In 2007/08 season he finally became an essential, irreplaceable part and core of the Bolivian national team and Aris Thessaloniki. Now, Garcia is considered as one of Bolivia's and Aris FC's top and most consistent stars.
In the September round of the World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
qualifiers for South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
2010, he achieved a great performance leading his national team to a historic 0:0 draw at Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, being one of the best men on the field as Bolivian and the "wider" media were reporting.
A month later, at the October pair of matches helped his national team improve their qualifying group position scoring a goal in a 3:0 win over Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
at home and playing again decently in the 3-day later match with Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
(2:2). Half a year later (on April 1), was again a participant in yet another historic result for his country as Bolivia thrashed Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
6:1, in La Paz
La Paz
Nuestra Señora de La Paz is the administrative capital of Bolivia, as well as the departmental capital of the La Paz Department, and the second largest city in the country after Santa Cruz de la Sierra...
, noting an assist on his match stats account.
International goals
|- style="background: #DFE7FF"| 1. || June 18, 2008 || Estadio Hernando Siles
Estadio Hernando Siles
Estadio Hernando Siles is a sports stadium in La Paz, Bolivia. It is the country's largest sports complex with a capacity of 42,000 seated spectators and is named after Hernando Siles Reyes, the 31st President of Bolivia...
, La Paz
La Paz
Nuestra Señora de La Paz is the administrative capital of Bolivia, as well as the departmental capital of the La Paz Department, and the second largest city in the country after Santa Cruz de la Sierra...
, Bolivia || || 2–0 || 4–2 || 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
2010 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONMEBOL)
The South American zone of 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification saw 10 teams competing for places in the finals which were held in South Africa. The format is identical to that used for the previous three World Cup qualification tournaments held by CONMEBOL...
|- style="background: #DFE7FF"
| 2. || October 11, 2008 || Estadio Hernando Siles
Estadio Hernando Siles
Estadio Hernando Siles is a sports stadium in La Paz, Bolivia. It is the country's largest sports complex with a capacity of 42,000 seated spectators and is named after Hernando Siles Reyes, the 31st President of Bolivia...
, La Paz
La Paz
Nuestra Señora de La Paz is the administrative capital of Bolivia, as well as the departmental capital of the La Paz Department, and the second largest city in the country after Santa Cruz de la Sierra...
, Bolivia || || 3–0 || 3–0 || 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
2010 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONMEBOL)
The South American zone of 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification saw 10 teams competing for places in the finals which were held in South Africa. The format is identical to that used for the previous three World Cup qualification tournaments held by CONMEBOL...
|}
External links
- Career details National-Football-Teams
- Ronald García stats Soccerway