There’s no doubt in anyone’s mind that Mexico’s Guillermo “Memo” Ochoa is one of the top goalkeepers in the world after his dazzling defense at the World Cup in Brazil. His performance against a seleção in group play earned him the nickname “The Fortress. “ However Ochoa decided to take his talents to La Liga’s Málaga this season instead of other higher profile clubs. Memo’s questionable decision to play for Málaga prompts the question: Did Memo make the right move?
Many Mexican fans whose memes of Memo after the Brazil game were some of the best the world has ever seen, were disappointed by their star goalies decision to join Málaga. After the 2014 FIFA World Cup ended in mid-July, Latino goalkeepers David Ospina (Colombia) and Keylor Navas (Costa Rica) signed with some the top clubs in the world in Arsenal and Real Madrid respectively. Many believed after those signings that Memo would undoubtedly sign with one of the top teams in the Premier League or the Spanish La Liga. Instead he chose to sign with a team that finished 11th place in La Liga last season and has been banned from competing in the UEFA Champions league competitions.
Málaga is owned by Qatar’s Sheikh Abdullah Al Thani and have never made the Copa del Rey finals in over 33 seasons. They gained respectability in the late 2000s, but have had many financial struggles in the past few years leading to a mass selloff players like Santi Cazorla, Isco, Nacho Monreal and Jeremy Toulalan in the past six months.
There’s no doubt that Málaga is a step up from Memo’s former club, Ajaccio. Ajaccio is part of the French Ligue 2, and is considered a minnow in the international pond of soccer clubs. Moving from Ligue 2 to Spanish La Liga is definitely a step up in class and talent, but was it the right move for Memo at this point in his career?
Most thought that Memo’s performance at the World Cup was the perfect time to capitalize both financially and in quality of play. His shot stopping ability was second to none in Brazil, and although at times his decision making was questionable especially when it came to leaving his line to charge shots, experts and fans alike believed Memo would still be able to catapult his performance in Brazil to a major job in either the European Champions League or Europa League.
What makes the move to Málaga even more questionable was that Memo himself was in control. He was a free transfer which is known in the United States as a free agent. He had the ability and choice to sign with whatever club he wanted. In other words, two teams did not have to agree on a transfer fee or trade in order to secure the services of “The Fortress”, merely an offer and a head nod would do.
Hopefully, Memo’s move to Málaga is merely a stepping stone to greater things and we will see the likes of “The Fortress” in years to come suiting up for the top clubs in the world. For now, he will have to prove himself amongst the super teams; Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid, and he will be responsible to stop superstars like Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Neymar, Luis Suarez, James Rodriguez and Mario Mandzukic.
Only time will tell if Memo’s move to Málaga was the right decision or not. He got off to a slow start in his first game against Qatar on Tuesday. Memo gave up a goal in the first five minutes of the match, but was able to settle down and keep the game scoreless thereafter as Málaga won 4-1. Personally, I believe Memo could have gone to a better team in a better situation than Málaga, but hopefully he will succeed in La Liga and get other opportunities within Europe.
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