“Juanmi will not come to Betis. He has almost done it with Cádiz.” The words of Manuel Pellegrini, Betis coach, echoed in the Luis del Sol sports city. This January, the Chilean coach closed the return of Juanmi (Coín, Málaga; 30 years old) to his team. A decision that opened the doors of a Cádiz team that hosts Barcelona this Saturday with the striker in great shape (9:00 p.m., Movistar). In Cádiz, Juanmi has smiled again after an unsuccessful loan in Arab football. A few months later he has become, with three goals, the top scorer in 2024 for a Cádiz team that is seeking its umpteenth dribble to relegation.
“I wasn’t good there from the first day,” Juanmi told a Betis teammate about his stay at Al-Riyadh in the first part of this season. Money is not all that glitters in Saudi football. Midday training sessions, empty fields and a league in full construction undermined the mood of Juanmi, who played 17 games in Saudi and only scored one goal. Since his arrival in August he began sending messages seeking a ransom. He tried with Betis, where he has a contract until 2026 and had been a fundamental part of the team that won the Cup in 2022. However, some things had changed at the green and white club. Sergio Canales, his bosom friend, whom he met at Real, was no longer there.
Neither did Borja Iglesias, another member of his clan, who went to the Bundesliga to be champion with Leverkusen. And, above all, Pellegrini’s resounding no was on the table.
“Something happened between the two in the match in Elche last season,” say Betis sources. That day, in February, Pellegrini and Juanmi had a clash in the locker room after the footballer was substituted at half-time. Nothing was the same anymore, Juanmi, who had scored 20 goals in the 2021-2022 season, only started one of 10 games at the end of last season.
Without Pellegrini’s support, Juanmi decided to accept the Saudi offer. It was more of an escape than a planned stage of his future. And he hasn’t turned out well. Happy at Real Sociedad and Betis, he is now happy at Cádiz. Juanmi lives in Seville and every day he heads down the highway to train with his teammates. His family also resides in the capital of Andalusia. The 120 kilometers of distance mean nothing. He sees more of his children now than in Arabia. Manuel Vizcaíno, the president of Cádiz, fought hard to sign him and convince the Betis leaders.
And Barcelona arrives, a rival of whom he has good memories. Juanmi scored the winning goal for Málaga at the Camp Nou (0-1) in the 2014-2015 season. He also did the same in Betis’ last victory in the Catalan fiefdom (0-1) in the 2021-2022 season. Now he will look for the goal with the Cádiz shirt.
You can follow The USA Print in Facebook and xor sign up here to receive our weekly newsletter.
