Qatar 2022 will be very special for Ricardo Rodriguez. The Swiss left back is set to play in his third FIFA World Cup, but it has not been easy for him. He came from a 50% chance of living to becoming a superstar for Switzerland, a story of a true hero that is now one of the best players in his position.
Switzerland will have a tough path in Qatar 2022. They belong to Group G alongside Brazil, Serbia and Cameroon, but of course they will try to prove what they are capable of and advance to the next round.
One of the biggest stars in this group is Ricardo Rodriguez, Torino’s left back. The 30-year-old is set to participate in his third FIFA World Cup, but when he was young he had 50% chance of survival. A true recognizable and respectable story.
Ricardo Rodriguez, Switzerlandnational team’s miracle for Qatar 2022
Throughout history, there have been multiple cases of players that that turned into superstars after not having too many chances of becoming pros. Ricardo Rodriguez is one of them. The Swiss left back is nowadays one of the greatest players in the squad, but it is a miracle that he is alive.
Ricardo Ivan Rodriguez Araya was born in Zurich, Switzerland, in August 25, 1992. His father is Spanish, while his mother wasChilean. He had the opportunity to play for three different countries, but he decided to represent the nation in which he was born.
The left back is the youngest of the three Rodriguez brothers. Unfortunately, when he was born he didn’t have too many chances of living due to a medical problem that the doctors were really worried about.
When Ricardo was born, he was diagnosed witha diaphragmatic hernia. This means that his stomach, spleen, liver and intestine were not in the right place as they had migrated into the chest, which of course is not good at all.
The doctors gave Ricardo’s parents the bad news and the options they had ahead. This disease is very difficult to overcome and treat, which of course made them really scared.
Ricardo was immediately intervened and then they told the partents what was coming next: their son had 50% chances of living. He was monitored every six months for the first three years of his life to see if everything was still in the right place.
Fortunately for the whole family, Ricardo was very strong and survived the disease. Then, he followed his brothers’ steps and started playing soccer, but as a left back (his two brothers are midfielders).
Ricardo proved everybody what he was capable of, but mostly to his parents, whom he wanted to impress the more. Marcela Araya, his mother, was his biggest love, so when she died of cancer in 2015, the left back showed what she meant for him by changing the number of his jersey to 68, the year of her birth.
Now, Ricardo is one of the best players in Switerland’s history. He has had a great career in Europe and he is set to play his third FIFA World Cup. He is really a medical miracle that fulfilled the dreams of a child who was given 50% chances of surviving.
see also
Qatar 2022: The curse of the defending FIFA World Cup champion in the Group Stage
