Salomon Rondon paid tribute to his late father after scoring in Venezuela's friendly win over United Arab Emirates yesterday evening.
Currently away on international duty, the Everton forward endured a 1-0 defeat to Iceland last Thursday but was among the goals on Tuesday as his home country recorded a comfortable 4-0 victory. On target in the 25th minute of the match, Rondon was understandably emotional as he pointed to the skies before being hugged by team-mates.
His father Jose Rafael, referred to by the player himself as Bigoton (big moustache) sadly passed away last Tuesday while Rondon was preparing for Thursday's meeting with Iceland. The 33-year-old chose to remain with his compatriots, however, and rather fittingly got on the scoresheet.
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Sharing a heartfelt message for his dad on social media, Rondon wrote: "Daddy... my superhero without a cape, the one who never played football but lived it as if he played. My old man, one of the two reasons why I am a footballer today, one of the two people who always bet on me, the one who taught me to hit him with my left foot when he never kicked a ball.
"My daddy, any line I write falls short of telling you how much I love you and will love you for all eternity. Everything we experienced will remain forever in my memory. Thank you for teaching me to be a good son, a good brother, a good father and a good husband.
"Bigotón, it is thanks to you I played in Europe. I remember when I didn't want to leave home because I was going alone and was scared at just 17, but you said to me: 'You go ahead and we'll join you later'. My mum told you: 'Rafa, if he doesn't want to go, he doesn't have to'. And you replied: 'Maita, Salomón is going and that's that'.
"I recall a deafening silence in the car on the way to the airport, but you broke it as you started crying because I was leaving. You were the chemistry teacher who was carrying out an experiment on me. You didn't get it wrong. You'll always be my eternal idol, dad. I could write a thousand other things, but I'll keep them to myself."
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