Remember the time in school when homework wasn’t handed in on time and excuses ranged from ‘the dog ate it’ to ‘it must’ve fallen out of my bag…’
We’ve all done it, though not likely in a professional setting for the simple reason that no one would believe it.
Imagine Jorge Sampaoli’s face then when one of his players excused himself for being late to training by suggesting that he’d been abducted by aliens.
As reasons go for non-attendance, that has to be right up there at the very top, and it was one that Guillermo Marino used during his time at Universidad de Chile.
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“He says that he arrived late to one training because he was abducted by aliens. He gave us the entire explanation of what he felt and the rest of it,” Marino’s former team-mate, Gustavo Lorenzetti, cited by ESPN.
“There are cases where the player says: ‘I left and I came back two days later because I was kidnapped by aliens.’ But Guille is not that kind of player. Guille was a very proper guy. Everyone knows Guille Marino.
“He started to explain that he was suddenly lost and abducted by aliens. He explained that they take out your soul, analyse it and all the while on the journey they are looking after you. He said something like that.
“Honestly, I believe in aliens. He gave a great explanation and we will have to believe him. I don’t know other types of channels will have to call him so he can tell it better. But in any case: he was abducted by aliens.
“I believed in him because he tells you that way and if you know him, you realise that he is a serious person. He [is the kind of person who] will not be late anywhere, he is very correct.”
One can’t help but be super impressed by Marino’s ingenuity and brass neck.
To deliver such a top-notch excuse, and in all seriousness too, is Oscar-worthy.
It isn’t clear how Sampaoli reacted upon hearing the news, but was probably just grateful his player was still able to train normally.