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Leonel Sánchez

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Leonel Sánchez
Sánchez in 1959
Personal information
Full name Leonel Guillermo Sánchez Lineros
Date of birth (1936-04-25)25 April 1936
Place of birth Santiago, Chile
Date of death 2 April 2022(2022-04-02) (aged 85)
Place of death Santiago, Chile
Height 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s) Left forward
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1953–1969 Universidad de Chile 386 (159)
1963 → AC Milan (loan) 0 (0)
1969–1970 Colo-Colo 31 (2)
1971–1972 Palestino 15 (10)
1972–1973 Ferroviarios 11 (7)
Total 443 (178)
International career
1955–1968 Chile 85 (24)
Managerial career
1985–1986 Universidad de Chile
1987 Universidad de Chile
Medal record
Men's football
Representing  Chile
FIFA World Cup
Third place 1962 Chile
Copa América
Runner-up 1956 Uruguay
Third place 1967 Uruguay
*Club domestic league appearances and goals
40 years after the Ballet Azul, Universidad de Chile supporters still idolize him

Leonel Guillermo Sánchez Lineros (25 April 1936 – 2 April 2022) was a Chilean professional footballer who played as a striker or on the left wing.

He is recognized as one of the Best South American Footballers of the 20th Century and one of the great forwards in the history of the FIFA World Cup.[1] He was the top goalscorer of the 1962 FIFA World Cup where Chile achieved a historic third-place finish. He was also part of the team of the tournament of the World Cup and was awarded the Golden Boot and the Bronze Ball from FIFA.[2] He was also included in the top 100 players of the history of the World Cups by FIFA.[3] At the continental level he was part of the team of the tournament of the 1956 South American Championship, where Chile was the runner-up.[4] In addition, Conmebol included him among the best specialists of free kicks in the history of South America.[5]

Considered one of the best Chilean players in history and one of the club's greatest idols for the club Universidad de Chile, he was one of the leaders of the Blue Ballet era (1959–1969). is remembered for having been the leader of the Chile national team that placed third in the 1962 FIFA World Cup and was one of the prominent participants in the infamous match against Italy. In that match Sanchez had a number of scuffles with Mario David the Italian defender who was eventually sent off for a head high tackle on Sanchez. In La Roja, Leonel Sánchez is the seventh all-time top scorer with a total of 24 goals and 13 assists.[6][7]

His performances both at the Universidad of Chile and in the national team made him recognized by the IFFHS as the 40th Best South American Footballer of the 20th Century, surpassing several international players such as his compatriot Iván Zamorano, Brazilians Domingos da Guia and Ademir Marques de Menezes, Uruguayan José Pedro Cea and Argentine Raimundo Orsi.

Career

[edit]

He played at left midfield for over 20 years between 1953 and 1973. 17 of those 20 years were for Universidad de Chile, where he was the icon of the Ballet Azul (Blue Ballet), a team that won 6 national championships between 1959 and 1969.

Four of his 24 international goals were at the 1962 World Cup on home soil, where he was the top scorer along with five other players as Chile finished the tournament in third place. In that World Cup he is also remembered for his disputes with several Italian players in the infamous Chile – Italy match in the first round: he knocked out the Italian player Mario David with a punch in an altercation after being fouled, and was subsequently kicked in the head by David a few minutes later, resulting in the Italian defender's sending off. Sánchez later also broke Humberto Maschio's nose with a left hook; Chile won the match 2–0.[8][9] Because of his role in the match, later dubbed the "Battle of Santiago", in 2007, The Times placed Sánchez at number 6 in their list of the 50 hardest footballers in history.[10]

Sánchez remained at Universidad de Chile, although he received numerous offers from well known European clubs such as Real Madrid, Juventus and AC Milan. However, he played on loan for AC Milan, previous to a possible signing, in the Torneo Città di Milano (Milan City Tournament) in June 1963 against both Inter Milan and Santos, where they became champions. He coincided with Mario David, with whom he had quarreled a year before in the Battle of Santiago.[11][12][13] In 1969, after a contract rule was settled, Universidad de Chile was forced to sell him. He finished his career playing for Chilean clubs Colo-Colo, Palestino and Ferroviarios.[14]

Career statistics

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Club

[edit]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Cup Continental Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Universidad de Chile 1953 Chilean Primera División 4 1 – – 4 1
1954 5 3 – – 5 3
1955 33 14 – – 33 14
1956 22 10 – – 22 10
1957 21 14 – – 21 14
1958 25 9 2 1 – 27 10
1959 26 22 6 4 – 32 26
1960 23 10 – 2 0 25 10
1961 24 6 2 0 – 26 6
1962 32 19 – – 32 19
1963 27 11 – 3 0 30 11
1964 24 5 – – 24 5
1965 30 15 – 4 0 34 15
1966 19 8 – 5 2 24 10
1967 34 6 – – 34 6
1968 27 6 – 1 0 28 6
1969 10 0 1 1 – 11 1
Total 386 159 11 6 15 2 412 167
Colo Colo 1970 Chilean Primera División 31 2 – – 31 2
Total 417 161 11 6 15 2 443 169

International

[edit]
Appearances and goals by national team and year[15]
National team Year Apps Goals
Chile 1955 2 0
1956 9 2
1957 7 0
1958 0 0
1959 9 3
1960 10 2
1961 8 6
1962 7 4
1963 1 5
1964 2 0
1965 10 0
1966 12 0
1967 5 1
1968 3 1
Total 85 24
Scores and results list Chile's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Sánchez goal.
List of international goals scored by Leonel Sánchez[16]
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 24 January 1956 Montevideo, Uruguay  Brazil 4–1 1956 South American Championship
2 9 February 1956 Montevideo, Uruguay  Peru 4–3 1956 South American Championship
3 11 March 1959 Buenos Aires, Argentina  Paraguay 1–2 1959 South American Championship (Argentina)
4 26 March 1959 Buenos Aires, Argentina  Bolivia 5–2 1959 South American Championship (Argentina)
5 18 November 1959 Santiago, Chile  Argentina 4–2 Friendly match
6 5 June 1960 Montevideo, Uruguay  Uruguay 2–2 Friendly
7
8 19 March 1961 Santiago, Chile  Peru 5–2 Friendly
9
10 26 March 1961 Santiago, Chile  West Germany 3–1 Friendly
11
12 9 December 1961 Santiago, Chile  Hungary 5–1 Friendly
13
14 30 May 1962 Santiago, Chile   Switzerland 3–1 1962 FIFA World Cup
15
16 10 June 1962 Arica, Chile  Soviet Union 2–1 1962 FIFA World Cup
17 13 June 1962 Santiago, Chile  Brazil 2–4 1962 FIFA World Cup
18 16 May 1965 Montevideo, Uruguay  Uruguay 1–1 Copa Juan Pinto Durán
19 21 July 1965 Santiago, Chile  Argentina 1–1 Copa Carlos Dittborn
20 1 August 1965 Santiago, Chile  Colombia 7–2 1966 FIFA World Cup qualification
21 22 August 1965 Santiago, Chile  Ecuador 3–1 1966 FIFA World Cup qualification
22 12 October 1965 Lima, Perú  Ecuador 2–1 1966 FIFA World Cup qualification
23 13 December 1967 Santiago, Chile  Hungary 4–5 Friendly
24 27 August 1968 Ciudad de México, México  Mexico 1-3 Friendly

Personal life

[edit]

Leonel Sanchez was the son of a professional boxer.[17]

Sanchez studied at República Argentina, a prestigious public primary school of Santiago; and at Manuel Barros Borgoño, a traditional public secondary school of the capital.

Honours

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Universidad de Chile

  • Chilean League: 1959, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1967, 1969
  • Metropolitan Tournament of Chile: 1968, 1969
  • Copa Francisco Candelori: 1969

AC Milan

  • Torneo Città di Milano: 1963[12]

Colo-Colo

Chile

Individual

References

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  1. ^ es.fifa.com, ed. (25 April 2016). "Leonel Sánchez". Archived from the original on 3 August 2019. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  2. ^ es.fifa.com, ed. (29 June 2010). "Boot of Adidas Gold - FIFA World Cup". Archived from the original on 29 June 2010. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  3. ^ fifa.com, ed. (28 April 2019). "100 days, 100 players: Leonel Sánchez". Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  4. ^ Estadio Magazine, publication N⁰ 688 of 2 March 1956
  5. ^ msn.com (ed.). "Leon el Sánchez, Miguel Ángel Brindisi, José Dirceu Guimarães and Rivelino, the specialists of free kicks in South America". Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  6. ^ "Leonel Sánchez - International Appearances". partidosdelaroja.com. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
  7. ^ Chile.as.com, ed. (30 March 2016). "More goal passes in the history of La Roja". Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  8. ^ Murray, Scott (6 November 2003). "The Knowledge (November 6, 2003)". Guardian Online (UK). London. Retrieved 26 June 2006.
  9. ^ Heffernan, Conor (18 October 2014). "The Battle of Santiago at World Cup 1962". These Football Times. Retrieved 20 December 2022.
  10. ^ "Top 50 Hardest Footballers". empireonline.com. The Times. 13 August 2007. Archived from the original on 19 October 2015. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
  11. ^ "Partite Amichevoli e Tornei Vari". www.magliarossonera.it (in Italian). Retrieved 12 February 2024.
  12. ^ a b Garin, Erik (17 August 2001). "Torneo Città di Milano". RSSSF. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
  13. ^ "Leonel Sánchez se vistió con la camiseta del AC Milán antes que Matías Fernández". ADN Radio (in Spanish). 2 September 2016. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
  14. ^ Line, Sur On. "BDFA Argentina-Futbol Argentino-Clubes-Jugadores-Torneos de Ascenso-Servicios".
  15. ^ "Leonel Sánchez - International Appearances".
  16. ^ "Leonel Sanchez".
  17. ^ "Login". Archived from the original on 21 August 2008.
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