source: master303.com
For Indonesian football fans, the name Gustavo Fabian Lopez is no stranger. The Argentine midfielder spent 4 years of his footballing career in the archipelago nation, where he made a name of himself. Playing for Persela for 3 seasons in 2 different occasions, he became a fan favorite in Lamongan.
On his second stint with Persela from 2011 to 2013, he made a prolific tandem with Mario Alejandro Costas, a fellow Argentinian. In 2 seasons, Lopez and Costas produced up to 34 goals for Persela. Sadly, in 2014, the duo had to leave Persela. While Costas chose Persija, Lopez moved South East bound from Lamongan to Malang.
source: goal.com
With a very strong Arema side, Lopez teamed up with Cristian Gonzales and Alberto Goncalves up front. Local Indonesian media paired the trio with Barcelona’s Messi-Suarez-Neymar, as both trios consist of players from the same countries: Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil. The three players produced more than half of Arema’s total goal tally in the 2014 Indonesia Super League (ISL).
Lopez possesses a set of required skills to be a productive playmaker. His statistics during the 2014 ISL show it all. Let alone scoring 8 goals, Lopez was also involved in another 8 by providing the assist. His remarkable ball keeping and dribbling techniques indicate his Latino characteristic. In average, Lopez successfully made 1.3 dribbles per game.
Lopez appeared in 23 matches with 1,903 minutes played during the 2014 ISL. Averagely, he made 59.5 successful passes and 2.2 successful crosses per game. He fired 1.1 shots on goal per game in average with 40.7% accuracy. His free-kick taking ability completes his attributes as a quality player.
source: bolaskor.com
Arema’s journey ended by Persib in the semifinal. Lopez was subbed out in the 2nd half of normal time due to injury. Without his wizardry creativity, Arema’s attack fell short to score more goals in the extra time. In the other hand, Persib managed to score twice and eventually claimed the crown by beating Persipura in the final.
Lopez decided not to extend his involvement with Arema in 2015. He decided to move abroad to Malaysia without winning any major trophy during his career in Indonesia. He joined Terengganu FA for the 2015 Malaysia Super League, and teams up with Paulo Rangel upfront, who won the competition’s Golden Boot Award in the previous season.
With the Argentine Wizard on board, Terengganu can now aim for a better outcome.
Selamat datang, Wizard Terengganu!