The cinematic life of the “other Antonella”: she escaped from a kidnapping, traveled the world and works alongside Messi in Miami

Lionel Messi’s arrival at Inter Miami changed many things around him. It changed the sporting life of the club, which won the first championship in its history with the League Cup, it changed the institutional life of the The Heronswho suddenly saw their popularity explode in the form of millions of followers on social networks and with international personalities from different sectors who followed one another on the stages of the Pursuit Stage to see the best footballer in the world up close.

And Leo’s arrival in US soccer It also changed the career and life of Antonella González Rosas, journalist who last year covered the pitch for Apple TV and now hosts the preview of the matches of the pink team, which this Saturday will play the classic against Orlando City.

“It has been difficult for me to realize everything that has happened to me these last few months. Since his presentation on July 16th my career has changed and especially after July 21st, when he debuted and when I had the opportunity to interview him,” tell Clarion the 35-year-old Venezuelan. The clear memory of each of those dates, imprinted in her emotional memory, denotes how important they are and will continue to be for her.

“Aside from all the media exposure that there is now in my career, this is something that makes me believe more in my work. Sometimes you say: ‘Maybe I can do this, may be I can interview that one.’ athlete?” And when you do that, and you achieve that dream, you give yourself that pat “You did it.”‘. And that continues to inspire you to achieve dreams and accomplish things that maybe you didn’t think you could,” she reflects.

Daughter of a Venezuelan mother, from Margarita Island, and a Spanish father (Tenerife), she was born in Caracas on 20 June 1988 and since she was little, sport has always been very present in her life. “You can find me wherever there is a ball”, defines himself. Today the future of her career finds her exactly where she has always dreamed of being.

“This is a dream come true. I come from Venezuela and many times I had to start from scratch”, he says and puts the emphasis there, on those starts from scratch. Stopping and starting again were common denominators in his life.

She studied a degree in Social Communication Sciences with a specialization in media and journalism between 2006 and 2011 at the Andrés Bello Catholic University of Caracas and after graduation she went to Spain to complete a Master’s degree which brought her closer to one of his great objectives: we breathe the same air as the great football stars.

“I did an internship at Telecinco when Cholo (Simeone) arrived at Atlético de Madrid, then I experienced a very nice stage in the restructuring of the club, which went from fighting relegation to being competitive and winning the Europa League . “It was a very nice stage of Spanish football, especially for me when I had to cover Aleti,” Remember.

Figures like Radamel Falcao García, Thibaut Courtois, Arda Turán OR Diego Godin They led a Colchonero team that was starting to regain respect, the respect it had lost in Europe.

It was a leap onto the big scene for Antonella González Rosas. However, she decided to return to Venezuela and start over, even knowing that the job opportunities would be fewer, and she began covering Venezuelan soccer, South American qualifiers, futsal and volleyball for DirecTV Sports. “I love my country”Explain.

She was finding her place in journalism and enjoyed what she did, but there came a time when her socioeconomic situation led her to change course again. It was no longer just the terrifying thing I saw on the news on television, but He had to experience the terror firsthand.

“I lived alone and often came back early in the morning after a match. Once, when they entered the parking lot of my building, they followed me to kidnap me and I had to step onto a curb and turn around. I didn’t see any armed men, but they intercepted me and I had to flee,” he says. A breaking point.

He had an offer to go and work at TV Max in Panama, but he refused to accept it. Until that day. The love she felt and still feels for Venezuela led her to delay the decision, but in the end he had to make it.

“Following that situation, which happened at 1 in the morning, I decided to pick up the phone and accept the offer to go to Panama. I loved what I did in my country very much, but well…”, he describes with great regret. And start again.

He has fond memories of the time spent in Panama, especially because his role as a correspondent allowed him to travel to France to cover the 2016 European Championships which crowned Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portuguese team, and also to participate in the coverage of the CONCACAF qualifiers and important events in other sports such as the Augusta Masters of golf. “Panama gave me quality of life and the opportunity to continue growing,” ensures.

And, on a personal level, It was there that she met her current partner, the Venezuelan singer Víctor Muñoz. “It’s very curious because in Venezuela we went to the same places, we had many friends in common and we never met. One day I had to host one of his concerts in Panama, which I don’t usually do. We met at behind the scenes and we started talking,” he says.

After six months of dating, already tired of traveling and traveling from Panama to Miami, where she lived, she made the risky decision to move. Without work and without documents, I start from scratch.

In the American city he enjoys the best moment of his career and his life. There she lives with her husband, with whom she has two children, and With Apple TV, the dream of closely following the revolution that Messi generates in every step he takes in the United States comes true.