Uruguayan Defender José María Giménez Almost Quit Football at 17 Due to Family Reasons

Uruguayan defender of Atletico Madrid, José María Giménez, said that at the age of 17 he was on the verge of quitting football due to family reasons, but his representatives convinced him to continue at the Uruguayan club Danubio, from where he made the leap to Atletico in 2013.

"When I was 17, almost 18, at Danubio I had a not-so-good experience, family-wise, and I was about to quit football. There I met with my representative, my friends, and they made me understand that I could dedicate myself to football. That day was the most important of my career, when I realized that's what I wanted, I wanted to fulfill my dream," he confessed in a club video.

Giménez, referring to the economic difficulties his family was experiencing at the time, replied to a fan's question through social media about what had been the most important day of his career and also revealed how he experienced his arrival at Atletico, with whom he signed in April 2013, at the age of 18.

"I traveled to Spain without knowing anything, they told me it was a trip, when I arrived in Madrid they told me that Atleti wanted to sign me. There were many mixed feelings, more joy than sadness. The sadness was for my family, I knew I was going to be away from them, but the joy of fulfilling one of the dreams of my life, going to a big team, one of the most important in the world," he recounted.

In his first season, 2013-14, he barely played one league match and two in the Copa del Rey, but he experienced his first title, the league championship.

"It was difficult to feel part of that team because I was almost never called up and had minutes, but I knew it was something very special, it was my first year in Europe, and seeing what the Spanish league was like, how it was played, what the club was like, I knew it was a very special title and highly valued by the people," he remembered.

Later, the Uruguayan defender won a Spanish Super Cup (2014), a Europa League (2018), and a European Super Cup (2018). "More involved in the group, playing, with more minutes, alternating, it was different, I already had more time at the club... When you win a title and experience firsthand what it takes, it's different, but without a doubt all the titles that I've had the chance to win, I've received with immense joy, because they are the result of a lot of hard work," he added.

Giménez remembered his goal against Italian Juventus last season in the first leg of the round of 16 (the first of the two that he and his compatriot Diego Godin scored in the last 10 minutes of the match) as the one that brings him the "fondest memories" and assured that the values ​​of Atletico make it one of the European clubs most similar to South American football.

"Because of the football we come from, a football of great determination, a lot of heart, it is very similar to South America in that sense. That was the most beautiful thing I found when I arrived at this club, that it plays very similarly to South American football, that when you step on the field, you have to give it your all," he explained.

The Uruguayan center-back is experiencing the COVID-19 confinement "with a lot of uncertainty" and "a desire for everything to return to normal," hoping that "it passes quickly" and training with the instructions sent by the Atletico coaching staff.

"We try to do things with the children, training with what the club sends us to do, playing with family," explained 'Josema' Giménez, who asked Atletico fans to "be patient" and cautious.

"We are experiencing a complicated situation and we must take all possible precautions for this to pass as quickly as possible. Patience, this will pass," he concluded.