MEXICO -- At some point in his career, goalkeeper Sebastián Fassi could have gone to play in Argentina, but he always put Mexican soccer first, starting with "I am Mexican, I am from Mexico City, I always say it". Today more than ever he does not regret his decision, although the wait to make the jump from the lower divisions to the Liga MX was long.
After six months in León, he was hired by Necaxa and has the opportunity to fight for the starting position in the Apertura 2020, alongside former Monarcas goalkeeper, Luis Malagón. Both have just been hired, they are outsiders, and they start from scratch.
Sebastián Fassi tells ESPN Digital that this opportunity "arrives at the best moment of my career, my life, and I assume it with a lot of responsibility because Necaxa is betting on me and another great goalkeeper like Luis Malagón".
He bluntly said that it won't be easy to compete with Luis Malagón, a goalkeeper for the National Team who has played several matches in the First Division, "he has that advantage", but he considers that "the possibility of playing is more accessible", since the previous starting goalkeeper [Hugo González] left, the second one [Yosgart Gutiérrez] retired, and in his case, Rodolfo Cota, "is a monster in goal", stayed in León.
"It's different to compete against a 23-year-old guy like me who is just starting out, than to compete against a Mexican soccer champion, a national team player like Cota. There is a bit more of an opportunity, but it is equally difficult to achieve it".
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VALUES HIS CAREER STARTING FROM THE BOTTOM
He knows what he wants at 27 years old and says that as a goalkeeper he is at the best age to continue developing, apart from having a long way to go.
He affirms that he had two and a half very good years in the Ascenso MX League, with Mineros de Zacatecas, a job that opened the doors for him to the Panzas Verdes, even though he was not able to debut, and today his illusion is to do it with the Rayos.
Sebastián Fassi arrives in Aguascalientes on loan for one year with an option to buy. His contract belongs to Pachuca, but he is not interested in that for now, instead he wants to "try to make the decision as difficult as possible for Poncho [Sosa, the coach]" by working as hard as he can and starting as the starter in the Apertura 2020.
Looking back, Sebastián Fassi values his development more, having started in the youth categories, playing over 60 matches in the Ascenso MX League, "a very complicated division that made me grow a lot. I became a two-time champion in the Second Premier Division and achieved an undefeated promotion. I had performances on the rise".
He believes that this path traveled should serve him well to excel in Necaxa. "I will give my all to make that happen, and then the decision of who plays will be up to the coaching staff. And if I have to wait and watch the game from the bench, I will also do it, always wishing the best for whoever gets to play".
MEXICAN SOCCER, ABOVE ARGENTINE SOCCER IN TERMS OF ORGANIZATION
When asked if his father's surname, Andrés Fassi, has ever weighed on him, he responded that he always knew how to handle the surname, although "when I was younger it affected me a bit to hear what people said, but now I take it from where it comes; but I know that the little I have achieved has been because of me".
As for not having gone to play in Argentina, the land of his parents, he is direct: "I was never interested in playing there, only in Mexico. I am Mexican. I am very happy in this country. I love Mexico and nowadays Mexican soccer is above Argentine soccer in many ways. Unless a very, very good offer came up, I wouldn't think about going to Argentina. I am very comfortable here".
He added that "the organization of the Mexican league is better, the teams, the infrastructure. There are clubs here with a lot of seriousness. Over there, things are handled differently, they are not corporations, they are mandates; there are clubs in ruins, bankrupt, terrible fields, tremendously damaged youth structures. Of course, the quality of players in Argentina is exceptional, I think it is the country that exports the most soccer players. The level in Argentina is tremendous, but not its organization".