The 29-year-old ex-Everton striker didn’t wait long to make an impact on his first appearance for Santa Fe.
It’s fair to say Denis Stracqualursi has probably written more headlines after one game in the Colombian first division than during an entire season at Goodison Park.
The Argentine striker may have earned the admiration of Everton supporters thanks to his commendable work rate, if not his rather wild finishing, but he is exactly what the term ‘cult hero’ was made for.
He did score a dramatic winner against Chelsea, after all, although accounting for one of just three goals in 27 appearances for the Merseyside club during a season-long loan in 2010/11.
Somewhat inevitably, Stracqualursi’s miserly goal record did little to convince Everton chiefs that he was worth signing on a permanent transfer and, since departing English shores, the tub-thumping centre-forward has embarked on a one-man tour of South America, eventually rocking up at Colombian outfit Sante Fe last month.
And talk about making an impact. Not long after giving his latest club the lead midway through the second half, Stracqualursi saw red by every sense of the phrase.
Punching an opponent is frowned upon even in the hostile environment of domestic South American football and, thus, a red card arrived less than half an hour after his debut strike.
But, hey, you can’t question his passion.
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