Juan Fernando Quintero is one of the biggest Soccer stars in the world. Some observers have compared him and his style of play to Argentinian soccer superstar Lionel Messi.
Quintero's personal history has been marked by loss and tragedy. A recent appointment in his native Colombia has put a spotlight on this. And Quintero has made it know that he wants answers to long-standing questions.
Quintero wants answers about his father
In 1995, Quintero's father, Jaime, was serving in the National Army of Colombia. At the time, he was stationed at a base in Carepa, located in northwestern Colombia. Jaime Quintero went missing that year. And as ABC documents, his disappearance remains a mystery. He was one of more than 80,000 people to disappear in Colombia dating from 1958 to 2015.
At the time of the elder Quintero's disappearance, the base in Carepa was commanded by Eduardo Zapateiro. Zapateiro has remained in the National Army of Colombia since then and has risen through the ranks. Recently, he was appointed to the Army's top spot.
He is now the highest-ranking officer in Colombia's largest military branch.
The appointment has also brought fresh scrutiny to the case involving Jaime Quintero. Not only because Zapateiro was in charge of the base at the time. But because he and Quintero apparently had tensions between them. Zapateiro and Quintero reportedly had a falling out due to the latter's undisciplined behavior. It apparently got to the point that Zapateiro wanted Quintero to be transferred to a different base.
Juan Fernando Quintero recently took to Twitter after Zapateiro's appointment. He wrote that he had a right to know what happened to his father. Furthermore, he wrote that he wanted to meet with Zapateiro to talk about what happened.
For his part, Zapaterio said that he would meet with Quintero and his family, as per TIME. He also called Quintero Colombia's 'football idol.'
Juan Fernando Quintero is a member of Colombia's national team
Quintero has been a member of the Colombian national team since 2012. After that, he would also become a member of the country's under-20 and under-23 teams. His tenure with the main national team has included the FIFA World Cups of 2014 and 2018. He also participated in the 2013 U-20 FIFA World Cup.
Additionally, Quintero is currently a member of the Argentinian club River Plate, based out of Buenos Aires. He has also played for clubs based out of Colombia, Italy, Portugal, and France
Career highlights for Quintero include helping Colombia's under-20 team win the Souther American Youth Championship in 2013. He was named the MVP of the tournament. That year, he was also credited with the 'best goal' of the FIFA U-20 World Cup.