River’s most successful player betting on farming: “He used to play football to buy fields”

Horseback riding, eating with his friends, family or contractors who went to work in his field. An image that while he was playing football as a professional was repeated despite the few free moments he had. Now that he has hung up his boots, after playing at Newell’s, Zaragoza (Spain) and River Plate, that image is reiterated more often in his club than he is located in the Santa Fe city of Las Rosas.

And that’s where it arrived Rural trumpet to chat with former River Plate captain Leonardo Ponzio, who retired from pro football in late 2021, being the most successful player on the millionaire team with 17 leagues. He is currently very busy managing his fields but has not left football and wants to continue to bond with the millionaire club.

family matter

The relationship between River’s idol and the camp has a long history. His paternal grandparents owned fields and his maternal grandparents were laborers. “When I was a kid, my holidays were to go to the countryside, but hey, when it came to investing, you had to have the resources. I always thought that and when I had the chance, I didn’t hesitate,” he described, referring to to the great support that was his father, Daniel, when he decided to enter this business.

The father worked in a bank and then, after a health problem, he went to work in the fields. “I knew I had someone who would take care of it and handle it as if it were mine.He noted.

To which he defined: “He used to play football to buy fields. The investments came from many places but I wanted to get involved in this (agricultural sector). So when I saved up, I told my dad so he could start looking for the fields. What gave me the most confidence and support is that I was investing in my future because that was instilled in me. The field has many investment possibilities. Many of us may be out, but we’re here for something“, I consider.

And that attraction he has for the countryside he wants to instill it in his 14-year-old daughter. “I tell you to be an agricultural engineer, to take care of this”, he launched with a knowing smile, adding that at the moment she is her daughter more attracted to photography.

Also, he wants his football friends to get involved and invest in the business tooor. One of those he insists on is Maxi Rodríguez, a former player for Newell, Liverpool and the national team. “I want to put them all. I was because I was blinded, but when you tell him everything, the truth is that you must like him a lot. He told Maxi that ‘if he bought it, he ran it or together with my old man’ “, he explained.

Retirement

After retiring from the millionaire squad at the end of 2021, he decided to play for Williams Kemmis, the club in his hometown of Santa Fe. But in the first game played he suffered a serious injury: a broken cruciate ligament in his right knee.

“Everything happens for a reason because it brought me back to a routine. Once I retired, it was like a summer vacation. I wanted to play for others again and not so much for myself, but when I broke down I said ‘this was not the time’. Once the surgery was done, I started with the recovery in Buenos Aires and there I started having a routine. For us footballers they make us the routine of the day, week and month. Now that I’m retired, I have to do it myself and it’s hard because you’re not used to it, “he acknowledged, adding that the recovery work is done with River kinesiologists who” opened the doors to him in a phenomenal way. “

In addition to being very involved in agricultural activity, Ponzio is currently also dedicated to the River Plate Institute. “I’m in River but nothing’s resolved. I go when they call me for some institutional club issues. Tomorrow I would like to join the club”, He assured.

With River’s shirt, Ponzio played 357 games between local and international competitions. During this period he scored 10 goals and won 17 titles.

In any case, he ensured that the focus is on farewell match to be held on 21 September at the Monumental stadium. “I am seduced to play again and to be on the River field. Then I’ll play another 1 or 2 games in the city club -Williams Kemmis- and then I’ll train just for fun, ”he continued.

Agricultural news

In the field, which is located very close to the city of Las Rosas, it produces second-class corn, soybeans, wheat-soybeans. “The last campaign went wellOh, can’t complain. I put what had to be put on it (for fertilizers), we spared no expense, ”she said.

He said he had initially invested in livestock at a plant further away from where he has most of the agricultural production. It had been 4 years but she indicated that she had not given her the same importance as agriculture. She had herd cows, but according to what she said it was “all half rustic” and when she wanted to modify the structure to make it more tidy, the investment was greater than what she could get.

So he decided to sell the animals and plant sorghum with very positive results. Now, in that same field, after planting corn, they will try sunflowers for the first time.

Regarding the technology implemented in the business, he said that “over time I was learning”, but acknowledged that he still needed to know a lot about this aspect. “At one point I denied I wanted to hire everything, I didn’t want to buy tools because I didn’t want the responsibility of having employees.” Although, later on, she changed her mind and decided to invest in technology.

In this case you have just purchased two New Holland tractors from the Comercial Borio dealership: T6.130 and T7.240. “Technology makes everything better. I give the value that technology has. I’m not so drenched yet, but in my head it’s to be incorporated as long as I can, “

This year he also wanted to buy a seeder but admitted to having other numbers and for now he will wait until next year to finalize the operation.

It also has a sprayer although it is currently stationary until they find a qualified person who can handle it.

“I’m bolder on the pitch than in my own life. I do not mind expenses, however, in my own life, I am more reserved, I look for more numbers. I don’t know why but I’m more risky on the pitch”, He compared.

In addition to producing food, Ponzio likes to stay in the countryside, especially on horseback with his daughter – he also plays polo – and barbecues with family and friends.

By the way, he highlighted the working group that qualifies him as very important in this work: He is currently surrounded by his father, his brother-in-law and an engineer. But he assured him that he manages the fields himself.

The relationship between football and the field

Something he learned from football and which led him to agriculture is the chance to lose and win. “So many years, when I lost in football, I was angry until Tuesday. When my daughter was born, I realized I couldn’t bring the club to my home. There I realized that we had to take another look, that there is the possibility of losing and winning, but on the pitch if you give more there are more chances of winning “, she explained.

To illustrate this, he related a recent experience with his father. In one batch she had more quintals (production) than Daniel, and it was produced on the same date and with the same inputs, but the only difference was the amount of fertilizer that had been applied.

“As in football, if you go ahead with a goal, you will surely reach it. In any case, very few people win. For me the last stop in River was very successful, because it went later. There was an effort. And what you have must be appreciated “, he pointed out.

The future

Thinking about what is to come, Ponzio said that while he was playing professional football, he had thought that when his career was over he would no longer invest. However, he assured that he is now more relaxed and willing to continue betting on the business. In this sense, his plan is to change the field of cattle – where he will plant sunflowers this year – for a closer field and, in turn, he would like quality breeding.

He also announced that he will continue to be linked to football, but this time not on one field, but “on the other side” in order to transfer everything he has learned in his career to other areas. In any case, he ruled out being a technical director because he “is a guillotine”. “After the pitch there will always be, this is very clear to me.

sports career

He started at Newell’s and played 90 games between 2000 and 2004. He then moved to Zaragoza, where he played from 2004 to 2006, winning two titles: the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup. In his second cycle he played from 2008 to 2011 and was promoted to the First Division in the 2008-09 season. In the club del Maño he managed to make history by being the foreign player with the most games played.

In River Plate he served in two stages, the first between 2007 and 2008 and the second from 2012 to 2021. In the Núñez club he obtained 17 titles; ten nationally (three local tournaments, three Argentine Cups, two Argentine Super Cups, a Championship Cup and a Champions’ Trophy) and seven internationally (two Copa Libertadores, one Copa Sudamericana, three Recopas Sudamericana and one Copa Suruga Bank). He is the player with the most titles in history in the millionaire institution.

In addition, he was part of the squad of champions of the 2001 Youth World Cup.