Born in the big Colombian city of Medellín in 1993, it didn’t take long for Juan Quintero to discover his love for football. He joint up with the youth side of Envigado at 9-years-old after impressing the club’s scouts during a tournament in Colombia.
After honing his skills and progressing through the academy, Envigado couldn’t resist but give a 16-year-old Quintero his first senior appearance in the Colombian top flight, the fresh exuberance that oozed from Quintero proved too much for opposition defences and Quintero kept his place in the team and he started the next 11 games in the league.
A leg break halted his development, but upon regaining fitness, Atlético Nacional became aware of his contributions and brought him to the biggest club in Colombia. The upgrade would not only allow Quintero to compete for the League but would also allow him to play in South-America’s most coveted competition, the Copa Libertadores.
The 2012 season benefitted both parties since Quintero’s move from Envigado. Juan Fernando’s rise as one of the most promising youngsters on the continent was now apparent due to the performances from Atletico Nacional in the Copa Libertadores. As expected, the European scouts came calling and the progress was not only being tracked by South-American clubs, but the interest began to seep through to Europe.
Newly promoted Italians, Pescara, were the ones who showed the most concrete interest and he chose the Stadio Adriatico based outfit as the ideal stepping stone for his development.
Known their Gun-Ho style under the experienced Zdeněk Zeman (who moved to Roma), Quintero would be allowed the freedom to express himself in the famous Trequartista role and was the one responsible for initiating attacks especially with the departure of Marco Verratti to PSG.
The 2012-13 season was disastrous for the newly club despite the glimpses of brilliance shown by Quintero. They finished bottom of the league and after constant changes to the managerial position, it became obvious that Quintero would seek a move away.
Genoa, Juventus, Inter and Manchester United were talked about in the press but he chose Portuguese champions FC Porto as his new club. Porto President Jorge Pinto da Costa eyes lit up at the prospect of Juan Fernando playing for Porto. He would enhance the team and fill the void left by compatriot James Rodriguez.
However, his time in Portugal was a miserable one for Quintero and for Porto. Despite impressing in pre-season, once again injuries prevented him from playing and when he was fit, Jorge Fonseca rarely trusted Quintero to orchestrate things in midfield and was reduced to a bit-part role as rivals Benfica ran away with the title.
A substitute role in Colombia’s impressive world cup has reassured his confidence, but Quintero is ready to play for a manager who is willing to trust him and compliment his attributes. Arsenal and Arsène Wenger would be able to do that for him.
Standing at 5”6’, Quintero definitely fits the mould of a diminutive playmaker – a term in football that has become so fashionable with the success of Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona. His best position is definitely in the “number 10” role and is a typical South-American in that respect.
His small, squat stature makes him hard to mark and he uses his low centre of gravity to get himself in between the pockets in between the defence and the attack. He isn’t, shall we say, “Walcott-quick”, but the young Colombian is quick over the first 15 yards, with and without the ball giving him an advantage over defenders.
As we have become accustomed to, we like to monopolise the ball at the Emirates and while Quintero is at his best taking on defenders, he’s able to receive the ball in deeper areas and orchestrate attacks closer to half way line. Having said that, you would want him a lot closer to 18-yard box in order to utilise his demon of a left foot on the opposition goal.
Like the majority of young players learning their trade, Quintero is guilty of sometimes holding on to the ball for too long or trying the difficult pass when he should play it simple, but there is a plus side to this. We’ve seen Arsenal midfielders pass the ball aimlessly between each other when opposition defences are frustrating Arsenal. Particularly in big games, Arsenal have become predictable, well Quintero can change that with his fantastic skill and penchant for the spectacular.
Also, he is a dead ball specialist and isn’t shy to rifle a shot anywhere within 30-yards (something that Argentinian Under-20 goalkeeper Andrés Mehring can testify to). He can be too left-footed at times, but is definitely capable of winning a match with a piece of skill, a long range shot or a killer pass.
He’s not known for his defensive side to the game so could only be used at part of the three players behind the striker in Wenger’s preferred 4-2-3-1 formation.
