Ricky Villa was no Maradona. He wasn’t a football genius. His life didn’t nose dive into a spiral of cocaine, sex and mafia scandals. Ricky Villa, one of the two Argentine footballers signed by Tottenham Hotspurs, was an Argentine peasant who got lucky.
Following Argentina’s world cup victory in 1978, as Ricky explains in his recently published book, Spurs manager Keith Birkinshaw had his sights on wizardly mid-fielder Osvaldo Ardiles and managed to convince him to sign within minutes. “It was only then that I became involved in the transfer. Keith liked the idea of signing a second Argentinian to help Ossie acclimatise to life in a new country, and Ossie suggested me. Keith contacted Tottenham, they gave him the go-ahead, and negotiations began.”
Despite this, and Ricky’s far-from-consistant performances during his first three years at Spurs (whilst his Argentine team mate delivered on expectations), the name still sung by Spurs fans in the stadium today is not Ossie but…”There’s only One Ricky Villa, there’s only One Ricky Villa…” (especially when they play Man City)
This is the thing. There are great footballers, who have scored lots of goals, played a lot of great games, but it only takes ONE brilliant goal, in the RIGHT match to implant you in the minds of millions, for generations.
And there was THAT goal. 1981. The FA cup final between Manchester City and Spurs, who, since the signing of Ricky and Ossie, had been rescucitated from the Second Division and the lowest point in the club’s history. Consistently performing Ozzie was about to have his contract extended while Ricky, on the eve of that FA Cup, had learnt that he was about to be dropped. He had struggled to find his footing in English football, his lyrical game constantly battling against long balls and the sluggish muddy pitches. And then it happened…
That game was Ricky Villa’s game. It was his moment to shine. And THAT game took Spurs from 2-2 to 3-2 in that FA Cup Final replay, thus reigniting the pride of one of London’s most traditional football clubs. Without that goal, Ricky himself admits, nobody would be interested in this story. But what a great story it is.
Talking to LatnoLife, Ricky describes the cultural shock, pre-globalisation era, of arriving on the other side of the world.
“It was very difficult for me. Living in England was a struggle because I was not used to your customs or ways of life. Not because the club treated me badly – they were always brilliant – but I used to miss my friends and family a lot. Argentina and England are very different countries with very distinct ways of life.”
Unlike Ossie, Ricky never really managed to break the language barrier. In his book he describes how he would be stuck permanently to Ossie’s hip and tell him “Don’t leave me, someone might talk to me!” There was no translator in the dressing room and most of the time, Ricky says, he had no idea what was going on or what the manager was talking about. “Keith was very expressive and would punch the air a lot, I honestly thought at the beginning that he was telling us to go out on the pitch and thump the other team’s players!”
Ricky describes several funny incidents, for example when him and Ossie wanted to take their wives to the famous shop called Harrods. “’Arro’, Arro’,” they told the Taxi driver. No problem. So they were driving for ages and ages, until they arrived at a place which looked nothing as grand as they had imagined Harrods to be. “Didn’t you want to go to Harrow?” said the cab driver.
Sometimes, Ricky says, the language confusion got so bad that he thought he was losing the plot altogether, like the time when Spurs were playing Aston Villa, and having got used to pricking up his ears whenever his name was mentioned in the dressing room, he started getting confused and wondering who this guy Aston was that they were talking about. It sounds crazy, but when you get into the context, you can well imagine how this could have happened.
A number of clearly talented players from South America have struggled to adapt to life in England. Why do you think it is easier for them to play in Spain or Italy?
“In South America we share more similarities with these countries because our families come from Spain and Italy. Most of us are descendents of Spanish or Italian immigrants, so the customs of these countries are closer to ours. England has less in common with us, but it is a great country, with the best league in the world today. But when you’re not playing football sometimes you miss home. Not everyone can adapt to it; some manage it but others cannot.”
Carlos Tevez’ problems spring to mind. On the surface it would seem things are easier now; email and video skyping have made communications so much easier. Back then, Ricky’s family didn’t even have a phone line at home. And then there’s the money. “I’ve been told that when he gets lonely Tevez flies a group of friends over from Argentina to hang out with him for a while,” says Villa. That would have been inconceivable when footballers earned their solid but nonetheless ‘normal’ wages.
On the other hand, the much lower levels of money, pressure, glamour and glitz perhaps gave Ricky and Ossie a more liberating experience than foreign players of today; less expectations on all sides, which meant they could enjoy the experience more.
“When we were offered a career in England we didn’t have many options. Like all South American footballers we wanted to play in Europe, and Tottenham came knocking. We didn’t know much about Tottenham, but we liked the club and it felt like an adventure. It turned out well in the end, the club always treated us very well and we were happy we made this decision. We didn’t really know what the English league was like back then, but it was a beautiful adventure.”
An adventure, exactly. Talking to Ricky and reading his book takes you back to a time of innocence. There is a mixture of humility, naivété and wonderment about Ricky, but at the same time macho pride and acknowledgement of his achievment and what he means to Spurs, which in turn has made him grateful and loyal to the club for life.
Is there any advice you would offer to young players from South America coming to play in England?
"I think they have to go, because the league is very good. They should try to live like an Englishman, because you cannot try to change the customs of a country. They must try to adapt to the English way of life, which is very pleasant and respectful."
Was the style of football in England very different to what you were used to in Argentina? Many people say it’s faster and more physical here.
"Today, I think the English league has lost a little of its style, because there are so many foreigners players now. But when we arrived, it was very, very English. It was very distinct from the football we used to play in Argentina. The English style of football involves long balls up to the centre forward, which has its positive and negative aspects, just as our style does here. But now, English football is more international. It used to be more English, and I often think it’s a shame when a country loses its style of football like this. On the other hand, you have the finest league in the world, and everyone wants to prove themselves by playing in an important league. But I don’t like it when certain clubs don’t field a single English player in their starting line-up. I think they need to have at least five or six English players in each team."
It’s clear that Villa has become nostalgic for the ‘English way’, even when that way became such an obstacle for his quintessential Argentine approach - attractive, beautiful if exasperating in its risk-taking. Up until that Cup Final Villa had infuriated his English bosses and team mates; he was super talented and lyrical, he loved the ball – could run with it attached to his feet through players - but hated to train. A country boy, a Gaucho who had gone to school by horse; he learnt football by dribbling through the dry Pampa Eucalyptus woods. Poetical. Great, if you’re not his manager. As such he was unreliable, enigmatic (enhanced by his incapacity for the English language), relaxed and easy going to the point that infuriated those around him, even Ossie.
“I could tell within a few minutes of starting a match together whether Ricky was about to play well or not. That’s all it took." remembers Ossie."He was an incredibly talented footballer but so wildly inconsistent. There were occasions when I saw him produce performances of which Diego Maradona would have been proud; on other days he was so bad that if I hadn’t known him and someone had told me ‘that guy is a professional footballer’ then I would have said ‘No chance!’ There was no middle ground.”
And yet, despite Ricky’s inconsistency, was it this approach, this unadulterated love for the ball, the lyricism and poetry over the competition that enabled him to play so freely in the big moments? Was it coincidence, even luck that Ricky performed in that moment? Or was it just… Ricky? Garth Crook recently told Match of the Day that despite the previous match, the first Cup Final, being one of the worst matches that Ricky ever played for Spurs, they begged the manager to play him in the Cup Final replay. “We all knew that of anyone of us, Ricky was a big match player.” We all know what bottlers a bunch of English players can be in the big moments. It was a gamble that paid off. Or as Ricky puts it "An Argentine goal in English football."
Ricky’s flaw was also his glory, the glory that ultimately defined him. So how was it for you Ricky, THAT goal?
“It made me really happy because I could repay the confidence that the club had showed in me and Ossie. They had bought two foreigners and it was a risky decision at the time. I felt happy to win something with the club because I had always found it difficult playing in England. This was my big moment.”
You decided not to play in the 1982 FA Cup final because of the Falklands War. That must have been a very difficult decision to make?
"Yes. If I remember correctly it was a joint decision made with the club. It was a good decision because the conflict had reached a highpoint. With all its history I think the FA Cup is like a part of England. It was a very difficult time and it saddened me that these political situations sometimes enter the world of sport. It should be politics on one side and sport on the other, but occasionally they come together. I think that ultimately it was the right decision. I don’t regret it. It hurt a lot, and it upset me, but I think that everyone accepted my decision."
Now, Villa has returned to his old Gaucho life in his home town of Roque Pérez, about 100 km from Buenos Aires. He herds his cattle, receives visitors from his old life in English football and now and again has time to watch football and play manager and pundit from his couch.
With the players they have, do you think Argentina can challenge Spain to become the best team in the world?
Spain play in a very similar style to Barcelona and today they have a very strong team. In Argentina we still haven’t found this identity but I think we have the best player in the world at this moment and this is worth a lot.
What did you make of Argentina’s performance in the World Cup under Maradona?
I think that Maradona lacked experience, and as I’ve said before, I think that Diego is a better manager now than he was before the World Cup. But the Argentine FA didn’t support him and this was a very tough blow for him.
Will they fare better under Sergio Batista?
Batista doesn’t have much more experience than Diego, so we can only hope that it goes well.
Who was the best footballer you ever played with?
Diego Maradona. I did not play with him for long, but he was the best. In England, Glenn Hoddle was a fantastic player. He was in a different class.
Ricky also keeps an eye on his old English team and comes back to London every year to visit his old friends, and of course Ossie, who stayed in England and went on to manage Spurs. Ricky clearly still loves Spurs, and is still held as a hero in London. This is the strongest Tottenham team in years. How does it compare to when you played there?
“They are worse than when I was there! Haha! No, seriously this team has a great attitude, great players, they play good football and I think that they could make club history. But I don’t like to make comparisons; I just like to think that this is another great Tottenham side that can go down in history like the team I played in.”
Despite being a former World Cup winning Argentine team of 1978, Ricky says he gets recognised more often when he’s in England than when he is in Argentina. “My life no longer revolves around football here,“ Ricky says, adding. “My son occasionally puts th ’81 Cup Final on when his friends are at the house. I never join them in front of the television. I’ve got other things to do. Like stand in the doorway at the back of the room and discreetly glance at the screen from there instead. Just to make sure the little boy from the campo really did score that winning goal.”
Ricky’s autobiography, And Still Ricky Villa, is available now in all good bookstores.
