World Cup stories: Carlos Bacca - from fish seller to footballer | OneFootball

Many of the finest footballers on the planet will be heading to Russia for this summer’s World Cup, but very few of them will have experienced a journey quite like Carlos Bacca’s.

Cristiano Ronaldo grew up in Madeira’s poorest neighbourhood, while Lionel Messi hails from a working-class family in Argentina. Many big stars work their way up from humble backgrounds and being talented with a ball at your feet can be totally life-changing.

Homesickness, hormonal injections and bullying are often just some of the obstacles that players have to overcome on their way to professional football. Many fail on the way, but for some, the dream becomes reality.

Carlos Bacca started from the bottom and now he’s here. The Colombian striker might not be the greatest player in the world, but he’s proven himself to be more than capable at a number of Europe’s big clubs and his success is in many ways an against-all-odds fairytale.

By the age of 23, Messi had already won the Ballon d’Or twice, whereas Ronaldo had already scored 100 professional goals. And Bacca? At 23, Bacca was working several jobs to support a family.

Much of his life was lived below the poverty line and though he always dreamed of making it as a professional footballer, he had mouths to feed. While waiting for his big break to come, Bacca sold fish or drove a bus and during the many hours out at sea or behind the wheel, his mind would wander to thoughts of scoring goals and the crowd chanting his name.

“At 20, I lived in my village, Puerto Colombia, and worked as an assistant to the bus driver. Life was anything but easy,” he told Spanish outlet Marca in 2013.

“After that I had to work as a controller because I came from a poor family and had to earn some money to help them out. The doors of football had been closed for a while and at that age it was not something I expected. But that year, I went to trial rehearsals with Junior and, thank goodness, they took me.”

The trial with his local club – Colombian first division side Atlético Junior – was a success and Bacca was offered a contract. However, he found playing time hard to come by in the early stages of his career and he was sent out on loan – not just for one season, but for three.

His path took him from second division Barranquilla to Minervén in Venezuela and then back to Barranquilla. The changes of scenery and exposure to different styles of football would prove to be the making of him.

Atlético Junior kept a close eye on young Bacca’s progress and eventually he was recalled from loan. At the age of 23, he finally made his debut in Colombia’s top division, and from there he would go on to establish himself as a first-team regular.

In 2010, his goals propelled Junior towards the Categoría Primera A title and his performances drew admiring glances from clubs in Europe, with the likes of Chievo and Lokomotiv Moscow expressing an interest in the Colombian.

But it was Club Brugge who put their money where their mouth was and, at the age of 26, Bacca moved to Belgium in deal worth €1.5m. Those dreams of playing in Europe during those days out on the fishing trawler had finally become a reality.

He went on to become the Belgian Pro League’s top scorer and soon moved to Sevilla, where he would win back-to-back Europa Leagues. Then, in 2015, AC Milan paid €30m to sign him.

Sadly, Bacca’s time in Milan proved to be something of a disappointment and in August 2017 he moved to Villarreal on an initial loan, and he has so far netted 18 goals in 43 appearances for the Yellow Submarine.

But this summer, he will be heading to Russia with the dreams of a nation on his shoulders. Can Carlos Bacca become a world champion with Colombia? It’s unlikely, but for a man who was still selling fish at the age of 23, nothing must seem impossible.