Gonzalo Montiel, penalty kick thanks to Gallardo and Ariel for Ortega

Strong to his left hand and Gonzalo Montiel It awakens the euphoria of Argentina, of Lionel Messi, of Scaloni, of all of South America. Argentina is world champion after beating France on penalties with Montiel’s decisive shot.

“He is my firefighter player”, Marcelo Gallardo once said in River Plate when, at only 20 years old, Gonzalo became a figure in the millionaire team in the 2017 Copa Libertadores. He played as a libero, as a winger and he always delivered.

Gonzalo Montiel arrived at River Plate at the age of 10 after going through Huracán and Boca Juniors himself. But his growth was in the millionaire box playing first as a central midfielder and then as a central defender. He debuted first in 2016.

And now he is world champion. When he was a 7-year-old boy, he had to overcome a personal tragedy. His grandfather, Jerónimo, was killed by a woman who had just been released from prison. It was because of his grandfather who bears her name: “Put it Ariel Ortega,” Don Jerónimo wanted. Gonzalo Ariel is the name of the champion.

“My old lady told him he was crazy. I wanted to put ‘Gonzalo Ariel Ortega Montiel’ but they didn’t let it so Gonzalo Ariel Montiel was left”, the same player said in an interview.

And who better than him to sentence a series of penalties. Gonzalo Montiel scored the last shot for Argentina’s 4-2 final over France to win the Qatar 2022 World Cup.

And why him? Of 9 penalties executed, none had been missed in his history. Against France he reached 10 out of 10.

And it was Marcelo Gallardo who determined it that way. “While he is on the court, Montiel will be in charge of kicking the penalties. If not, I’ll decide who does it”, said the ‘Doll’ in December 2020. They were moments where the aim was not in Núñez. “It is not normal to miss so many penalties, but it is not normal to create so many actions so that they are charged,” Gallardo justified.

And so it appeared. Against the Netherlands he executed the third shot and sent it into the net. Against France he took charge of the fourth, the final one, and ended up celebrating.

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