Hernán Encina is 43 years old and has the calloused hands of two different lives.
For 20 years, he was a professional footballer in Argentina. He made his debut for Rosario Central in 2001, played 366 matches, scored 28 goals, and won two Primera B Nacional titles.
He shared a dressing room with a youngster named Paulo Dybala at Instituto de Córdoba. He played for multiple teams in South America, including Ecuador, Mexico, and Paraguay.
Today he is a bricklayer in Argentina, where he was born, wielding the shovel and trowel alongside his father. No posing or complaints. “We’re doing this for a living and I like it”, and that phrase sums it all up.
Between one job site and the next, he still plays with friends in “The Usual Ones” and coaches neighborhood children to keep them away from the streets.