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Childhood
Carlos Valderrama was born on September 2, 1961 in Santa Marta, son of Carlos Valderrama and Juana Palacios, his father was a professional player of (Union Magdalena) -
Childhood
Carlos Valderrama was nicknamed "el pibe valderra", a nickname that was given to him by an Argentine friend of his father -
Youth
"The Pibe" graduated from high school "Liceo de Celedon" in 1979, where he made the decision to become a professional soccer player. -
Beginning
In 1981 "the Pibe Valderrama" was debutant of the first division of Union Magdalena the team of his heart. -
Colombia National Team (Youth)
He was integrated to the Colombian Youth team directed by Eduardo Retat -
Millionaire and Deportivo Cali
Carlos Valderrama was a millionaire player and a year later he joined Deportivo Cali, with whom he gained wide national recognition thanks to the duo formed with Bernardo in the 1980s. -
International projection
Together with Bernardo, he commanded the national soccer team that participated in the Copa America occupying position 3 in the tournament and was hired by the European club "Montpellier" -
The best player of the tournament
He was chosen as the best player of the tournament over Diego Armando Maradona -
Soccer world cup
In 1990 he debuted in his first soccer world cup (Italy 90), he was captain and helped the national team to get a 1-1 draw against the finally champion team (Germany) and to qualify until the last 16 -
Return
He returned to Colombia in 1992 to play in DIM and in 1993 he was acquired by Junior de Barranquilla -
Fired
His farewell match was in February 2004 with unforgettable players such as Diego Maradona and Francescoli in the metropolitan stadium of Barranquilla. In this way, a golden age of South American football goes by for "Pibe Valderrama" the best Colombian footballer of all time.
