The season for Cuban footballer Luis Javier Paradela Díaz could not have been better, which he confirmed with two awards on Monday night at the Unafut Awards gala (Union of First Division Football Clubs), which recognized the best in Costa Rican football in the Opening and Closing Tournaments.
Paradela was recognized as the Best Player and Best Foreign Player of the Clausura 2024 Tournament in Costa Rican football.
"I can't be with you, but I want to thank the fans and my teammates, who helped me become the best foreign player of the Clausura 2024. Winning it is difficult, because in Costa Rica there are very good foreigners, and many of them are in Saprissa," Luis Paradela expressed through a video that was projected at the gala.
The Cuban, who is on loan for a year at the University of Craiova in Romania, also said he felt grateful "to all the club teammates for helping me make this award a reality."
In the Clausura tournament, the Cuban player managed to score nine goals and provide three assists while playing for the Deportivo Saprissa club.
In the 2023 Promerica League Apertura, Paradela scored four goals and provided two assists in 17 games played.
Paradela was the first native of the island to enter the United States football without losing his residency rights in Cuba.
In 2019, he signed with Reno 1868 FC of the United Soccer League (USL), a championship that serves as the 2nd division of American soccer. Reno FC is a subsidiary of the San Jose Earthquakes, a team in the MLS.
That same year, the player from Matanzas was called up by the Cuban national team to play two friendly matches in the Dominican Republic, before participating in the Concacaf Nations League.
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