Real Balompédica Linense Former football player Luis Alcalde guides Antequera to promotion to the First Federation

He Antequera CF He is one step away from promotion to the First Federation. The team from Malaga leads group IV of the Second RFEF cwith 17 rental points on the second classified, the big favourite, Recreational Huelva, when eight days remain (24 points to be disputed). Except capital surprise the category jump it’s just a matter of time for those from El Torcal, the logical thing is that they can celebrate it in the first weeks of the month of the imminent month of April. on the pitch the undisputed leader of the team is a former football player, Luis Alcalde, who is also, with nine targets, his best gunner. The footballer from Almería assumes that, despite the fact that he was part of the squad that promoted to the then First RFEF, in La Línea He did not offer his best version and who now enjoys a situation that has allowed him feel like a footballer again

Antequera CF is one of the modest football fashion clubs in all of Spain. Not in vain only Barcelona (68) in the First Division, Barakaldo and Aguilas (65) in the Third Federation add more points than those of El Maulí in the five categories of national football. And it is that they have only lost two games. The ascent is a matter of time and it is almost by surprise, because the template was not made with that objective. The triumph in the Colombino of last February 26 (0-2) It was the ultimate turning point. If it was necessary.

for this team -founded in 1992 and which achieved promotion to the Second RFEF in 2021- recovering the prestige that the extinct Antequerano once had has not been a bed of roses. The city barely has 42,000 inhabitantsand soccer has important rivals in the sports offer: the UMA Antequera militates in the highest category of futsal and last season he was nothing less than champion of the Copa del Rey; The Handball Club Los Dólmenes compite in the Silver Honor Division, the second in the ranking, behind Asobal.

One of the peculiarities of the entity is that just a few months ago two thirds of your property they were acquired by a tycoon from the Netherlands and his associates. Frans van Seumeren, a leading businessman and owner of Utrecht, a club in the first division of Dutch football, he kept 67% of the shareholding together with Bart Van den Bosch, who is the current owner. Antequera CF is currently in the process of becoming a Sports Public Limited Company (SAD).

In all that maelstrom a name stands by itself, that of Luis Alcalde, whom everyone points to as the sports guide. The attacker accumulates more than a hundred victories with that shirt (in its two stages in the entity), is the fourth highest scorer in the club’s history and the top scorer of the current squad with nine targets (five of them, penalties). Of course the ’10’ does not look by chance. It’s nice to see him play.

“If it is consumed, It will be wonderful to be able to achieve something so beautiful with Antequera” slides the footballer, with some reservations that are even excessive. “This is like my house. When I finished my youth stage I came to the club, I spent many years and very good ones and the truth is that when I returned last summer They welcomed me with such affection…”

“I also wanted to return, the desire to have a very good year but the truth is that thanks to all the work we are doing and that it is being reflected We have exceeded all expectations.” adds the attacker, who still maintains an image with the Balompedica shirt on his Twitter account.

“We must not forget that our main goal was permanence.” stresses. “We were very clear that we were obliged to fight in all the games, put the maximum enthusiasm, more desire than any rival to win, because to be frank: our goal was to spend as little trouble as possible to achieve salvation, but why are we going to fool ourselves, the numbers are there.”

Luis Alcalde gets off his horse for a moment from the brilliant news and looks back. “He came from several years that were not good on a personal level and that was reflected in my performance, so when I arrived in Antequera I had to do work, especially in the mental section”, he explains. “I was aware of where my shortcomings were and I focused on what I wanted to feel like a footballer again to have that desire to play and win and that has been key”.

“Now I feel very good on a personal level and that is reflected on the field“, Explain. “Every footballer, every person who is going through a bad time, projects it into his work. Football is the reflection of life and now it’s time to enjoy it”.

“The two years in La Línea also They had very beautiful moments such as the promotion, which is going to stay for me, forever ”, he defends. “It was a strange season, because of the competition system… because of everything. But in the end we got what we were looking for and That made me very happy.”

“I keep in touch with a lot of people from there and I follow the Balona march, of course,” he concludes. “In that category it is not easy, but in the end he will achieve permanence. Hopefully we can face each other next season, it will be a very good sign.”