‘Beast’ has not dodged his duties
SALOMON RONDON admits he enjoys being called by his nickname “The Beast”.
“I like it,” he says. “This is what I try to be on the pitch. I open my arms, look big, get my body in the way and try to control the ball for my team.”
Off the pitch, he is easygoing and gentle. He has spent an hour playing dodgeball with primary school kids, including tying the lace of a child in danger of tripping.
Away from St James’ Park he plays with his own kids and walks his dog, a breed that complements his stature as Newcastle’s latest big No9.
“I’ve got a Great Dane called Rusa,” he says. “He’s also a beast… er, and also a chihuahua, Truffa. Well, really it’s my wife’s!”
Rondon takes a moment to contemplate his long journey from Venezuela to Tyneside.
“People now see the famous person. They never see what led to it,” he says. “It all makes you stronger and to overcome hurdles as you go.”
He was born in Catia in the west of Caracas. His dad worked 12 hours a day as a chemistry lecturer at three schools but spotted his son’s footballing potential early.
“It was a hobby, just to be healthy, but my dad saw something. He knew. He never BEAUTY AND
THE BEAST: On the pitch he is tough, but dog lover Rondon showed his softer side in a dodgeball session at Collingwood Primary School played football but helped me shoot with the left and right and play, play, play kicking the ball off a wall,” says Rondon.
By 16 he was leaving home for Tenerife and a career that has taken in Malaga, Rubin Kazan, Zenit St Petersburg and
West Brom.
“Leaving my family was the hardest thing. But
I wanted to play in Europe. My mum was crying. I cried, of course. I was 16. I knew nothing – how to clean my clothes, how to cook. I was on Skype saying, ‘Mum, how can I cook the pasta’?” It was at Malaga that his nickname emerged. “We played with two towers up front. My job was to battle, but also to score,” he says. In Russia, his goals ratio remained high. But at Zenit, where the fans wanted local players, he suffered racial abuse chants of “monkey”.
“It’s horrible but they are not intelligent,” he says. “I stayed focused. This is my colour, my skin. I’m from South America. All people are equal.”
Now at Newcastle, he wants to be a huge part of the building job Rafa Benitez is undertaking.
“Football is unpredictable. You can rise again,” he says. “We had a bad start this season but we are on the way.”
● Rondon launched the third year of Tesco Bank Junior Players at Collingwood Primary School in North Tyneside. and By MANUEL PELLEGRINI has told Michail Antonio: I need more goals from you. The 28-year-old has only scored once for West Ham this season, in the 8-0 win over Macclesfield.
Last week he blew the chance to make a fight of it in the 4-0 home defeat by Manchester City, leaving Pellegrini frustrated. And the Hammers manager now wants Antonio, below, to make amends at Newcastle this afternoon. “If you have two or three clear chances you must score,” he said. “It’s not just to demonstrate you can do it, you must score. “Maybe the two chances he had, if he had scored, it would have changed the game. So on one side you are happy because of the way he is playing, and on the other he is not scoring and he must score. “But we must remember also he is coming back from a long injury and is working very well every day.” West Ham are looking for only their second win in eight games, facing a Newcastle side in a rich vein of form after three wins on the bounce. Pellegrini is set to bring back club captain Mark Noble, who has not played since he was sent off against Leicester at the end of October. He said: “Mark had a three-game ban and in those three games the team played very well. We won and we drew so it was logical to continue with the same players. Mark will always be a very important player for our team.” AFC Telford v Bradford P A, Brackley v Altrincham, Chester FC v Darlington, Chorley v Boston Utd, Hereford FC v Alfreton Tn, Nuneaton Borough v Blyth Spartans, Spennymoor Tn v Kidderminster, York v FC United of Manchester. Billericay v Oxford City, Chelmsford v Gloucester, Chippenham v Weston-S-Mare, Concord Rangers v Hemel Hempstead, Dulwich v Torquay, Hampton & Richmond v East Thurrock, Truro City v St Albans, Wealdstone v Eastbourne Borough, Welling v Hungerford Tn.