Where are they now? Faustino Asprilla: Horses, guns and condoms
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He was the original silky-skilled corner flag-dressing cult hero, but whatever happened to the man they nicknamed ‘The Octopus’?
In the first of our Where are they now? series we are going to take a look at what Newcastle icon Faustino Asprilla has been getting up to since hanging up his boots.
The Colombian only netted 18 times in his two-and-a-half-year spell at St James’ Park, but ask Toon fans who their player of the 90s is and ‘Tino will surely be up there.
One thing is for sure is that he hasn’t been putting his feet up and fading into the shadows since leaving his final club in 2004.
Horses look to have taken up much of the 45-year-old’s time in recent years, with his very own nag Lucas making numerous appearances in the press.
First there was this striking shot with Asprilla mounted upon his trusty steed by his swimming pool.
If you weren’t already a fan of Faustino Asprilla, you probably will be after seeing this https://t.co/JdqWyGAbSv pic.twitter.com/dQbiGeZwYv
— Indy Football (@IndyFootball) March 17, 2015
Then it became clear that Lucas had a penchant for modelling hats….
Anyone want to see a photo of ex-Newcastle striker Faustino Asprilla with a horse? Oh, and the horse is wearing a hat. pic.twitter.com/mS9RXlQY — The Football Bar (@TheFootballBar) May 18, 2012
But it hasn’t all been good for the former striker when it comes to his pride and joy.
He put up a £1,090 reward when Lucas went missing after he lent it to a friend to ride at the Buga Fair just outside his home town.
Turns out his chum had one or two too many rums and ‘misplaced’ the £44,000 beast.
Luckily this story has a happy ending though, with Lucas being discovered four months later in a stable in the town of Florida, some 80km away, after it emerged he had simply been ‘given away’ by Tino’s inebriated friend.
That hasn’t been the only moment of controversy for the 54-capped Cafetero.
He was reportedly forced to flee his home town of Tulca in 2008 when threats were made to the safety of both his family and himself by extortionists after a cut of Asprilla’s fortune.
Faustino’s not always been on the right side of the law though.
He was arrested just a year later after spraying a private security checkpoint near his farm with machine gun fire, resulting in him being placed under house arrest on charges of weapon possession and criminal damage.
Away from horses and guns it seems the ladies have taken centre stage in Asprilla’s post-football life.
It was reported that he was offered a part in an ‘adult’ film by an Italian production company in 2009, but he turned it down.
Ever the astute business man Asprilla went on to become a partner in his very own company last year.
The product? A range of assorted flavoured condoms.
“I’ll recommend the guava flavour. When I was growing up, we had a guava tree in our garden and that’s a flavour and aroma that’s very good for romancing,” he’s quoted as saying.
If you say so, Tino.
Whatever he’s up to in his retirement, the legend of Faustino Asprilla shows no signs of fading into obscurity.
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