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The argentine national team and of Peru They will meet again to close the phase of the Group A of the America Cup that takes place in the United States. The Albiceleste is already classified for the quarterfinals, while the Bicolor is forced to add three and hope that Canada does not beat Chile in the other match in the area to continue advancing in the continental tournament.
“When Peru plays against big teams, they look good, because they gain confidence and play better; they play good games. But when they face teams of the same level or of lesser hierarchy, they become overconfident and things don’t go their way,” he analyses. Hector Chumpitazone of the top representatives of the Inca team.
The history between both teams shows that there were 74 matches, of which four were won by Peru and 35 by Argentina. The most remembered of all was the 6-0 in the 78 World Cup, which dates back to June 21 of that year at the Rosario Central stadium. The Albiceleste team needed to score four goals, but scored six to avoid being eliminated from the Cup, which raised suspicions.
“What’s the point that they doubted us? How could they think that we let ourselves be defeated to give the other team opportunities. That’s what happened and they still haven’t forgiven us for that painful defeat. It hurts a lot that they judge us that way,” says the former defender who also played in the Mexico 70 World Cup.
The popularly known Captain of America is 80 years old and has a prodigious memory. In his 21-year career as a footballer, he wore the jerseys of Unidad Vecinal 3, Deportivo Municipal, Universitario de Deportes and Sporting Cristal in his country, and had a two-season stint with Atlas of Mexico, before becoming a football coach. With his boots on, he faced Pelé’s Santos, Johan Cruyff’s Clockwork Orange and Diego Armando Maradona’s Argentinos Juniors. In addition, he was part of the Peruvian team that was crowned champion of the Copa América 75 and finished third in the 1979 edition.
“They have all been great players, but The best was Pelé. It was more complete. In addition, he was quiet when playing and received just as many kicks as Maradona and Lionel Messi.”, he remarks in dialogue with Infobae.
-What about your life, Héctor?
– I’m watching a lot of football on television and visiting the training sessions at the Universidad de Deportes, too. I’m watching the Euro Cup and the Copa América a lot. I was about to travel to the United States to follow Peru, but I couldn’t go.
– Because?
– For my health. I am undergoing therapy because I suffer from pain in my knees, which are damaged by football. I wanted to go to the United States while I was well to watch all the games. After leaving football, you suffer a bit physically. I have several teammates who are in the same situation as me, and others who have passed away.
– What do you see about the development of the Copa América?
– There are teams that have progressed and others that remain as always. Venezuela is preparing well, Paraguay too, with young players, and the Uruguayans are acclimatizing to the idea of Marcelo Bielsa. We know Uruguayan football is strong, right? Argentina has many new figures who are replacing the older ones.
– And Peru?
– Peru hasn’t changed at all. It has players who are too old to be in the national team and it needs replacements. Besides, there are new players, but they are not getting the chance to show their skills. Players are made by adding minutes in games to gain experience and settle into their position. The more you play, the more experience you gain. The coach of the Peruvian national team is giving too many opportunities to players who should already be retiring.
– As which?
– Paolo Guerrero, who is no longer as strong, has already completed his cycle; Cristian Cueva, who has been injured and is only now recovering; and André Carrillo, who is in Saudi Arabia but is not a starter. Today it is not like in our time when you had to be in good health and play for the national team while being a starter for your club. On the other hand, Argentina has very experienced players who are leaving their places to the new generations. For example, Lionel Messi is dropping his level and is running less with each game. A while ago, when he got the ball in midfield he had a lot of power to reach the opponent’s goal, but now he walks along the sides of the field and it is logical because the years are taking their toll; we all have our limits. He no longer collides with the opponents as much as he did before.
– Are you satisfied with Jorge Fosatti as coach of the Peruvian national team?
– He had a good campaign with the University club, but sometimes managing a team is different from commanding a team. Suddenly he needs to know the players a little more in order to have a safer plan. When a coach leaves and another arrives, the possibilities change because the newcomer likes one player more than another. Both coaches are different, since they have another vision and that is where the training varies a little. But it will be a long process and will take time for Fosatti.
– You just mentioned the previous coach. What did you think of the process carried out by Ricardo Gareca?
– In the end it left a bitter taste because he accepted many things that he shouldn’t have accepted. When we played, we never traveled with the family to tournaments because we had to go to work. But in Gareca’s last stage, they traveled with their children, and you saw them running around the hotels. I remember that for the 1970 World Cup we spent months away from the family and they visited us twice a month. On the other hand, before the play-off against Australia for Qatar 22, they traveled with their families and that affected their behavior a little. They thought they were going to qualify without problems. They even celebrated birthdays there and left aside what was at stake. They were very confident, and said they were already qualified for the World Cup. Gareca was too confident, he went to see Australia, a match before the play-off, left the rest of the team in the hotel, there was no care and all that ended up harming them. That was a big problem.
– What analysis do you do prior to the confrontation between Argentina and Peru?
– When Peru plays against big teams, it looks good because it gains confidence and plays better; he plays good games. But when he faces teams at the same level or lower in the hierarchy, he becomes very confident and things don’t turn out in the best way. Against Argentina, things should go well because they are the world champions and could play a good game. In any case, the game is very difficult. I hope things go well to qualify for the quarterfinals.
– What memories do you have of that 78 World Cup?
– I played it from start to finish. Against Argentina we lost by a landslide (6-0) and it went down in history. I have a bad memory because we didn’t play a good game and they accused us of favoring Argentina, and that wasn’t the case. It happened that we had not had the habit of playing games very closely and it physically killed us. Likewise, we arrived well to play that match, prepared to do things well, but fatigue played tricks on us. When we were physically fit, we created several goal situations and one of them hit the post, and there was another that was saved by goalkeeper Ubaldo Fillol. If we had scored several goals from the start, the result would have been different. But then Argentina showed themselves better physically and made a difference, they were very strong and arrived with a lot of confidence.
– After the World Cup, were you summoned to testify in your country due to the “controversial” result against the home team?
– Yes, we had to go to the Ministry of Education to testify about what had happened in that match. I went to speak and explained clearly what had happened to us. I said that “Argentina was in its best form, playing well and they got ahead by two goals. We made two mistakes and from then on, we fell emotionally.” Who would want to play against their country? What they thought hadn’t happened. How could they possibly have doubted us? How could they think that we let ourselves be defeated to give the other team opportunities? That was what happened and they still haven’t forgiven us for that painful defeat. It hurts a lot that they judge us in that way.
– Is it true that months before Spain 82 you received a visit from Diego Maradona when he was undergoing surgery for a ruptured Achilles tendon?
– Yes, I still have the cast signed by him. The signature is somewhat blurred, but still readable. I remember that Maradona and Boca traveled to Lima for a match. Diego found out that he was hospitalized and came to visit me through a mutual friend. There is a photo of the three of us and you can see Diego signing my cast. He talked a lot about me in interviews and I had him as an idol. He was a star that Argentine football had. I had played against him when he came to Peru with Argentinos Juniors a few years before.
– You also faced another world figure in your career. Did you have to mark Pelé in the 1970 World Cup?
– Yes, also when he came to Lima to play friendly matches with Santos. What’s more, I took photos with him when he was captain of the Brazilian team, and he gave me a shirt with the number 10 on it.
– Who surprised you more of the two?
– Pelé has a little advantage over Maradona, since he was a little taller and stronger. In addition, he was very good from above and kicked with both legs, he was ambidextrous, something that did not happen as much with Diego. Besides, Pelé was quiet when playing and received just as many kicks as Maradona and Lionel Messi. He was a person who did not like to complain about his way of being. They have all been great players, but the best was Pelé. And they are both waiting for us in heaven when it is our turn to leave.
