Ulloa interview in the Times today re LCFC v Brighton

[JohnnieFoxWalker]

here is one player for whom the notion that Alisson, the Liverpool goalkeeper, might have made mistakes with his distribution in Sunday’s defeat by Manchester City because his feet were cold, is eminently plausible.

When Leonardo Ulloa arrived from Spain to join Brighton in January 2013 he thought he had made a mistake. There was no way, the striker concluded, that he could possibly play properly if he could not feel his feet.

“I remember coming to Brighton because I was playing for Almeria in Spain and with plenty of degrees in January,” the 34-year-old says. “I landed and there was snow and not too many degrees.

Ulloa celebrates scoring for Brighton against Hull in 2014

TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER BRADLEY ORMESHER

“I was training in Spain with sun every day but in Brighton it was cold. I remember after the first day of training I go to the training room and I could not feel my feet. I asked the other [overseas] players, how can you play with this because for me it is impossible to pass the ball or shoot. I feel pain in my feet. They said it was a good idea to come to play in England, but I say I don’t know.

“Always I watched English football and always thought I had to play there but after one week I start to think, I don’t think it was a good idea to play here but after one month I was so, so happy. I wore hot cream, and it was ok.”

Ulloa is speaking to me from his home in Madrid, in the final phase of recovery from a cruciate ligament injury. He hopes to be back in action for Rayo Vallecano within the month with the same attitude he exhibited in his time at Brighton and then at Leicester. His two English teams face each other in the fifth round of the FA Cup on Wednesday.

He chuckles when I tell him we immediately thought of him when the draw was made.

“But a nice thing, no?”

And it is a nice thing. Ulloa’s passion for the two clubs is palpable and he says he misses the fans here, having not been back since 2018, and dreams of a packed stadium where he can wave his thanks for their love.

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“I would like to go back to the UK,” he says, “my heart is with them, I want to see the people.”

He became something of a cult figure after joining Leicester from Brighton for a then club-record fee of £8 million in July 2014 (he briefly returned to the coast on loan in 2018). Because he scored on his debut, against Everton, the Leicester supporters devised an infamous song about him. I did worry I might have to remind him of the lyrics, but he interrupts me to recite the lines immediately.

“Yes, they make a song: Leonardo, he wears number 23, yes he cost a f***ing fortune, but he scores goals, so it doesn’t bother me.

“That was a little pressure on me. In the papers they write I was the most expensive player, but that pressure was good for me because I scored and in the second game I score again.

“They soon forgot the price after one year because they bought other players who cost more than me.”

He is also fondly remembered in the east Midlands for scoring what became known as the “earthquake goal”. A seismometer measured the response to his last-minute winning strike against Norwich in February 2016 as Leicester continued their march to the Premier League title. The crowd inside the King Power were so relieved they created a minor tremor.

“Yes, that game was crazy,” he recalls. “Normally, with Claudio Ranieri [the manager], I was the sub, and I came onto the pitch in the 78th minute. I was ready to play. That game was difficult for us. I never seen anything like this with any other goal. It was crazy and unbelievable.

 

Ulloa with the Premier League trophy after Leicester’s famous win in 2016

SHAUN BOTTERILL/GETTY IMAGES

“Ranieri told me it was my role in the group, that I would play more as a sub but always I try to be ready to score for the team, that was my mentality then and my mentality today. I always play to help even if it is for five minutes. The important thing is that your mentality is ready for that moment. Always I am watching from the bench for how the defenders move, how they play, always analyse the centre backs and full backs, how strong they are, how fast they are. I use that for my performance.”

Ulloa grew up in General Roca, Patagonia in northern Argentina.

“We played in the streets with friends,” he says, “and when the car comes, we have to go to one side and wait for the car to go by.”

The first person to tell him he could be a professional player was his big brother, Damien, who organised trials for him. The manager at his first club said he had “different qualities, at 13 I was tall and could head the ball and I was physical. I could play with my left and right foot. But most of all when the cross came in, I could score a goal.”

He has watched both Leicester and Brighton from afar and is impressed with their evolution.

“I really like how Leicester play now,” he says. “They keep possession of the ball, they pass and pass and look for a good pass and that is different to us, when we won the title, when we defend many times and play on the counterattack. If they have some luck then they can win the title again.

“Brighton try to change like Leicester, but more slowly. They have similar philosophies. They need more time than Leicester. But both clubs are so good.”

Who, then, will win the cup tie?

He guffaws.

“Leicester,” he says, “will win the game, 1-0.”

FA Cup Fifth Round
Leicester v Brighton
Wednesday, 7.45pm
TV: BT Sport 2, 7pm

[Collymore]

I presume hot cream is something like 'deep heat', not double cream heated in a saucepan before a game! 

Edited 10 February 2021 by Collymore

[ealingfox]

1 minute ago, Collymore said:

I presume hot cream is something like 'deep heat', not double cream heated in a saucepan before a game! 

 

You've never microwaved a pot of Extra Thick Double and poured it down your socks?

[Dr The Singh]

17 minutes ago, Collymore said:

I presume hot cream is something like 'deep heat', not double cream heated in a saucepan before a game! 

That's what the lady's call me......

[AKCJ]

Must admit I really resented him for that interview he did outside Belvior Drive where he was trying to force a move when we were short of strikers as it was.

 

But I suppose it just shows how time is a great healer. Some great memories of him in a City shirt.

[NewquayFox]

Decent player for us, not the most mobile but a great header of the ball, could do with him back in a City shirt, we might actually score from a corner and defend them better...

Up the City...

[Wasyls Pec Deck]

I think we got him just at his peak but only for a year, possibly 2. After that his legs went completely. Scored some vital vital goals in the greatest escape and title winning season.

[South Shire Fox]

Top man is old Leonardo, loved him when he was here and scored some vital goals. Rather someone like him that wants to be out playing then someone happy to sit on the bench earning 50k a week

[The whole world smiles]

Brilliant article loved the part about him being as ready as possible to impact the game when he's on the bench. Watching how defenders move and patterns of play, even if he's only coming on for 5 minutes. 

 

Great professional, great bloke, fantastic contribution to the history of this club! 

 

Edited 10 February 2021 by The whole world smiles

[Freeman's Wharfer]

Spent a fortune on Slimani when Ulloa was arguably better.

[foxile5]

9 minutes ago, Freeman's Wharfer said:

Spent a fortune on Slimani when Ulloa was arguably better.

Slimani looked better in theory (let's not gloss over his amazing track record at Sporting - he looked a sensible singing) but Ulloa was twice the player in practice. The way Ulloa moved and the issues he gave defenders was fantastic.

 

I remember my old man talking about it during the title winning season - the defenders would have to deal with a fast, niggling vardy for 65 minutes and just when they thought they'd get a break an entirely different physical challenge presented itself coming off the bench.

[KFS]

Love the big guy

[Simonb]

exactly what we're missing nowadays, a reliable back up centre forward who we have confidence in to grab a goal

 

His performance against Swansea when Vardy was suspended calmed a lot of nerves..... all these conspiracies about the FA trying to stop us winning the league by banning Vards, and people saying the race was over for us as our Talisman was out so where would the goals come from.... 

 

Yea, it was annoying at the end how he was going about forcing a move, but I get it. 1st Season your goals keep us up, then you're demoted to the bench for a player that scored half the goals you did (which was the right move by Claudio) but you still score important goals to contribute towards the title, which is then rewarded by moving further down the pecking order to another striker whose come in on double your salary... must've been somewhat annoying. The lad moved to play football, Respect him for that, wasn't like he went to China for the big money ... Not saying the club did anything wrong, if you want to progress you have to upset a few people... at least he never refused to play

[Incognito]

Loved Ulloa.

 

One of the best near post defenders of opposition set pieces I've ever seen. A lot of people talk about his goals, and rightly so - he's a striker, but his defending was also very important to us.

 

In fact, during the title winning season, I was so unconcerned by opposition set pieces that it bordered on the arrogant, and it was only worse when Ulloa was on the pitch. It was like we were unpenetrable.

 

Plus, who can forget THAT penalty against West Ham. Talk about cojones!!

[Out Foxed]

going by his twitter he loves leicester

 

integral to our league win. such vital goals at key moments.

[OadbyBlue]

Without him, we wouldn’t have been in the premier league in 15/16 to even win it, not even mentioning his crucial goals that season too

[teblin]

1 hour ago, Freeman's Wharfer said:

Spent a fortune on Slimani when Ulloa was arguably better.

I don’t know if he was better, but certainly a better fit in the group.

[urban fox]

Top bloke. Never complained about lack of starts during title season, knew he would get on around the hour mark and that he had an important role to play when he did, backed up by his comments here. Exactly how a squad should function. JV and Shinji run defenders ragged for an hour, get a lead, then big Leo comes on, holds the ball up, provides a different type of threat and when really needed steps up with vital goals. Not many can say they caused an earthquake 

As for the peno against WHU, plenty would have bottled that. Balls of steel.

loving how he liked the song too. Seriously don’t hold it against him for his little spat either. Don’t blame him after being shut out like he was after all he had done for us and sounds like he still has fond memories of his time here despite that.

will always be one of the legends

[TJB-fox]

Fvck me he could head a ball couldn’t he. What a legend 

[CosbehFox]

4 hours ago, AKCJ said:

Must admit I really resented him for that interview he did outside Belvior Drive where he was trying to force a move when we were short of strikers as it was.

 

But I suppose it just shows how time is a great healer. Some great memories of him in a City shirt.

Depends if you believe Ranieri was a total unfair cnut to him.
 

What Ranieri did to Leo in particular with the game against Porto where he wouldn’t field him as a starter to have a strikeforce of Shinji and Musa. Then admit his error bringing him

on 3-0 was very disrespectful for a bloke who stayed around to play in the Champions League rather than play first choice football.
 

Footballers just want to know where they stand, they can accept honesty and move on. Sadly one of Claudio’s few weak points with his time at Leicester - Moore another example. 

[Spudulike]

Not sure that we'll ever have anymore moments like Leo's Earthquake goal thanks to VAR. I nearly went headfirst over the seat in front. 

 

Unforgettable. 

[Freeman's Wharfer]

2 hours ago, Cardiff_Fox said:

Depends if you believe Ranieri was a total unfair cnut to him.
 

What Ranieri did to Leo in particular with the game against Porto where he wouldn’t field him as a starter to have a strikeforce of Shinji and Musa. Then admit his error bringing him

on 3-0 was very disrespectful for a bloke who stayed around to play in the Champions League rather than play first choice football.
 

Footballers just want to know where they stand, they can accept honesty and move on. Sadly one of Claudio’s few weak points with his time at Leicester - Moore another example. 

Using that word on here about Ranieri should result in a lifetime ban!

[Clever Fox]

4 hours ago, teblin said:

I don’t know if he was better, but certainly a better fit in the group.

Oh, He was definitely better, For a big man he had a terrific touch and he knew how to roll and play a defender.

[Lambert09]

5 hours ago, foxile5 said:

Slimani looked better in theory (let's not gloss over his amazing track record at Sporting - he looked a sensible singing) but Ulloa was twice the player in practice. The way Ulloa moved and the issues he gave defenders was fantastic.

 

I remember my old man talking about it during the title winning season - the defenders would have to deal with a fast, niggling vardy for 65 minutes and just when they thought they'd get a break an entirely different physical challenge presented itself coming off the bench.

Slimani didnt fit the Leicester ethos, Ulloa did. 
 

I honestly think it’s as simple as that. If Slimani had the right attitude he may have been a success. 
 

I genuinely think he thought he would be the main man. When he realised he wasn’t he downed tools 

Edited 10 February 2021 by Lambert09

[Stadt]

Proper cult hero. 

 

18 goals in 39 league starts.