Minutes of silence, prayers and the memory of his name on shirts. Brazilian football paid tribute to Uruguayan Juan Izquierdo, the Nacional defender who died on Tuesday after suffering a heart attack five days earlier during the Copa Libertadores match against São Paulo in Brazil.
The most emotional tribute took place at the stadium where it all happened, the Morumbi. The home team’s players wore shirts with the left surname instead of their own in the first leg of the Copa do Brasil quarter-finals, which ended with a victory for Atlético Mineiro thanks to a late goal from Rodrigo Battaglia.
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Gabriel Milito’s team, meanwhile, wore a black armband with the legend “mourning.” Before the match began, the squads of both teams met in the center circle to observe a minute of silence, while the stadium screens showed images of Izquierdo.
Em memória de Juan Izquierdo. 🤍
📸 Rubens Chiri / São Paulo FC pic.twitter.com/BWYXb8P86f
— São Paulo FC (@SaoPauloFC) August 29, 2024
The minute of silence was also observed in the other Copa do Brasil match, between Bahia and Flamengo. That match ended 1-0 in Tite’s favour thanks to a goal from Bruno Henrique five minutes into the second half.
A similar tribute was held at the two Brasileirão matches that were postponed at the time and were played last night. Players from Cruzeiro and Internacional de Porto Alegre (who also wore a black armband), and from Criciúma and Bragantino, also observed a minute of silence, a reminder that this was also repeated in the Brazilian women’s championship.
Izquierdo, 27, who came up through Cerro and played for Peñarol, died at the Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein in the city of São Paulo. He was rushed there after collapsing due to arrhythmia and then suffering cardiac arrest in the ambulance that took him to the hospital.
