OSCAR ESTUPINAN would love to follow in the footsteps of his Colombian hero Hugo Rodallega by playing in the Premier League.
The Hull striker grew up getting up early on Saturday to watch Rodallega in his pomp at Wigan and Fulham – as well as enjoying all the other top-flight English games.
And now the 25-year-old ace is hoping to get there with Hull.
He has got off a flying start in English football — plundering seven goals already after just NINE games after signing from Portuguese club Vitoria.
Estupinan told SunSport: “Hugo Rodallega was an inspiration and played in the Premier League.
“I had the honour of playing alongside him at Denizlispor in Turkey when I was on loan there a couple of years ago.
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“He is a great ambassador for Colombian football and I look up to him a lot.
“It’s a dream come true to now be in England myself because, as a kid, I watched the Premier League. I used to wake up quite early on a Saturday because of the time difference between Colombia and the UK.
“I was always so excited because it was the best thing to do after a whole week at school.
“It’s now a privilege to be playing in this country too.
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“My intention is to work hard for Hull and get them into the Premier League. Like every player, it would be a dream to play in that division.”
His superb form won him the SkyBet Championship player-of-the-month award for August.
Even Estupinan himself has been surprised by how well he has hit the ground running since moving to England.
But he said: “The help of my team-mates has been crucial and the manager as well. I’m getting to know them much better now, and they’re getting to know me too.
“It all helps. It helps become more natural for us to flow together.
“The season has started well. I wasn’t expecting it. The hard work has always been there so this has just been the result of it.”
Estupinan has been impressed by the standard of English football’s second tier.
And he said: “For me the Championship is strong. For the first few games, it was hard because it’s a physical league.
“The pace of the games are incredible. You must to be fit to be able to maintain your rhythm in all the games. The players are good, the teams are very competitive.
“You must work hard to be able to perform each weekend. The games are challenging. Every team in this league is tough. I’m impressed.”
Estupinan says Hull were one of the teams he liked watching play in the Premier League so was fully aware of the club and its history before joining.
He said: “I watched many games of Hull when I was a kid. When I heard about their interest, I was already familiar with the club and know that some South Americans have played for this club in the past.
“I was so excited to come here and although I’m having to get used to a new country and culture the football routine is the same. You train, you go home and rest. That is the same everywhere so I haven’t had to get used to anything new there.”
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Estupinan believes the Tigers have enough talent in their squad to compete for a promotion spot but understands that it will be a challenge. After a good start, Hull go into today’s clash at Swansea on the back of three straight defeats.
He added: “We must improve slowly but surely but our ambition is to get into the Premier League, that must be our aim.”
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