Gijón , Zaragoza , Valencia , Barcelona , Madrid , Melbourne , New York and Kobe . The return to the world of David Villa (Tuilla, 1981) will come to an end when the football season in Japan ends. The J1 League ends this weekend, but the Spanish striker Vissel Kobe and Andres Iniesta are still alive in the Emperor Cup , whose semifinals will be played next day 21. After that, the striker will hang his boots forever, he will return Together with his family in Spain, he will focus on his football academy and start a new adventure as one of the owners of Queensboro FC, a football club that will arrive in Queens (New York) in 2021.

From Kobe, David, El Guaje , talk with EL MUNDO about the last episodes of his career, what he leaves behind, the cultures in which he has lived and the situation of a Spanish football he said goodbye in 2017 after a surprising call from Julen Lopetegui to go to the national team for the last time.

What was the first thing you thought when you announced your withdrawal? Relief? Rage? It really was not a moment's decision. It has been taken for months, I have been chewing and thinking and I decided not to announce it in case it was going backwards. But I had known for a long time that it was most likely that this was going to be my last year as a footballer. Was it a sporting decision or for living a vital experience to try on so many teams from other countries and continents? To begin with, it is about the body allowing it, and I have continued to score goals that have given me the possibility of signing new contracts. And then you must have a family context in which you want to live the experience. When I left Spain for the first time I wanted to leave the country, play in another league and live something different. And it was such a beautiful experience that when the issue of Japan came up I thought, "Why not?" I wanted to investigate another football and a different culture and, at the same time, it has been nice for my family. What is it like to return home to Asturias, after having lived so many years in cities as big as Madrid, Barcelona, ​​New York, Melbourne or Kobe - Proud of having had these opportunities, of sucking cultures and living experiences that he would never have lived had he not left Asturias. Also having given that same opportunity to my family and family members who have come to visit the different sites. It has been very nice, but precisely one of the reasons to return to Spain is to be able to be close to the family again.Now he has become an ambassador for the Eurocopa 2020 of booking.com, which will have a suite in Wembley to which they can Access some of the fans. Did you imagine something like that when you started your career? It's the evolution of football, marketing, everything. These are things that you previously thought could not exist. I wish I could be one of the lucky ones. And speaking of the European Championship, what do you think about the return of Luis Enrique and the possibilities of Spain in the European Championship? On a sentimental level, it is very good news for him after such a great misfortune. No one can imagine what could have happened and we are all glad that he was able to regain strength to return to his job. And on a sporting level, I think it's good. Luis Enrique has shown his talent when it comes to directing and leading a team, both in the national team and in the clubs, so everything that entails his return is positive. Do you think Spain has lost some weight in European football ? Not only at the level of selections, but also of clubs, winning is very difficult, and more at these levels. When you talk about World Cups, Eurocups, Champions ... Spain has done something that should be looked at in the newspaper library, but I think it had not been seen before in the history of this sport. I don't think there are precedents to be dominating so many years so many competitions. 15 years ago it was unthinkable to think about having that hegemony and one day it had to end. But I think that both the clubs and the national team are at the level of the big ones. Why is it difficult for Barça to work? It is another of the things that I will be grateful for with the withdrawal. Here the schedules ... (Laughter). The Champions League, which for you is for the day, here in Japan is at five in the morning. Sometimes, if anyone catches me a while earlier, I do stay up a little longer and see it, but it is almost impossible. Beyond that, from the experience I have, I think to talk about that you have to be inside and know what things happen. In recent years, Madrid, Barça and Atlético have a little more trouble because the rivals have shortened distances and there is not so much superiority, but Barça is the leader in the Champions League and the League. He would not speak of a bad moment. He is the owner of Queensboro FC, the new football team of New York City. What leads you to take that step? For three or four years I have been working on what will be David Villa after the withdrawal. Everything is prepared, not only for Queensboro, but also for soccer academies, which is something that makes me especially excited. This came up in the New York stage and I saw it well, as an opportunity and as something that deluded me beyond the soccer field. It will give me a lot of work, but when one door closes, another one opens. I will not sit on the sofa in my house to see them coming.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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  • Luis Enrique
  • Julen Lopetegui
  • Andres Iniesta
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  • soccer
  • Real Madrid
  • FC Barcelona
  • Atlético de Madrid

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