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BOGOTA, Jan. 14 (Xinhua) — Colombian playmaker Juan Fernando Quintero outlined his intention to return to former club River Plate on Friday following his departure from Shenzhen FC.
The 28-year-old is set to rejoin the reigning Argentine Primera Division champions as a free agent next week, less than a month after parting ways with the Chinese Super League club by mutual consent.
“Hopefully my return to River Plate will be confirmed in the next few hours,” Quintero told reporters ahead of Colombia’s friendly against Honduras in the U.S. city of Fort Lauderdale on Sunday.
The former Porto player earned icon status at River after scoring the decisive goal in his team’s extra-time victory over rivals Boca Juniors in the 2018 Copa Libertadores final.
Quintero has represented the Buenos Aires outfit 61 times across all competitions and scored 12 goals.
“They are my team and my preference,” he said. “From the beginning, my intention was to return to River. The club always fights for titles and that’s why I made the decision to come back.”
Quintero, who made 21 appearances for Shenzhen after joining the club in February, lavished praise on the quality of the Chinese Super League.
“I had the opportunity to grow a lot in China. I had a lot of responsibility and gained a lot of experience,” he added.
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