Juan Izquierdo

Uruguayan footballer (1997–2024)

Juan Izquierdo
Izquierdo with Nacional
Personal information
Full name Juan Manuel Izquierdo Viana
Date of birth (1997-07-04)4 July 1997
Place of birth Montevideo, Uruguay
Date of death 27 August 2024(2024-08-27) (aged 27)
Place of death São Paulo, Brazil
Position(s) Centre-back
Youth career
Cerro
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2018 Cerro 28 (1)
2019 Peñarol 5 (0)
2020 Montevideo Wanderers 16 (2)
2021 Atlético San Luis 4 (0)
2021 Montevideo Wanderers 14 (0)
2022 Nacional Montevideo 1 (0)
2023 Liverpool Montevideo 31 (3)
2024 Nacional Montevideo 16 (1)
Total 115 (7)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Juan Manuel Izquierdo Viana (4 July 1997 – 27 August 2024) was a Uruguayan professional footballer who played as a centre-back.

He made 111 Uruguayan Primera División appearances for Cerro, Peñarol, Montevideo Wanderers, Liverpool and Nacional, winning the league in 2022 and 2023 for the last two clubs, respectively. He also briefly played in Mexico's Liga MX for Atlético San Luis in 2021.

Izquierdo died at age 27, having collapsed due to cardiac arrhythmia during a Copa Libertadores match at São Paulo.

Career

Born in Montevideo on 4 July 1997,[1] Izquierdo made his professional debut for Cerro on 20 February 2018, starting in a goalless draw away to Sport Rosario of Peru in the Copa Sudamericana. Five days later he made his Uruguayan Primera División debut as a 41st-minute substitute for Jonathan Barboza in a 4–0 loss away to Nacional.[1] He played 28 games in his first season and scored once in a 5–2 home win over Progresso on 25 August.[2]

In February 2019, Izquierdo transferred to Peñarol.[3] Eleven months later, having played just five times in a runner-up season, he signed for Montevideo Wanderers.[4] On 30 November, he scored his only goals for the "Bohemians" in a 3–2 win away to Liverpool in the same city.[5]

Izquierdo moved abroad for the first time in February 2021, joining Atlético San Luis of the Mexican Liga MX.[6] Having made only four appearances, and confronted fans in the stands in April, he returned to Wanderers in August.[7] He moved to Nacional for 2022, playing just 13 minutes as a substitute against Rentistas on 13 February in a league-winning season due to a tibia stress fracture.[8]

For 2023, Izquierdo moved to Liverpool in the same league. On 29 January, he debuted as a 66th-minute substitute in a 1–0 win over his previous club in the 2023 Supercopa Uruguaya.[9]

He scored three goals in 31 games as they won the league for the first time in their history of over a century.[10] The defender was one of Liverpool’s best players in the campaign.[10]

After not renewing his contract, he was brought back to Nacional by manager Álvaro Recoba in January 2024 to deal with a shortage of defenders.[8] He scored his first goal for the Tricolor on 3 May in a 4–2 home win over Racing Club de Montevideo.[11]

Death

On 22 August 2024, Izquierdo collapsed on the pitch and was rushed to the Albert Einstein Hospital in São Paulo with a case of cardiac arrhythmia during the second half of the match against São Paulo FC in the round of 16 of the Copa Libertadores.[12] Uruguay’s first and second division football leagues were postponed on the weekend over concerns for his health.[10] Sāo Paulo FC players wore a jersey in support before the team’s 2–1 Brazilian league win against Vitória on 25 August.[10]

He died on 27 August.[13] The cause of death was "cardiorespiratory arrest associated with his cardiac arrhythmia".[13] Izquierdo was not known to have a heart condition until his collapse.[14]

Nacional posted a statement on social media saying Izquierdo’s death is felt “in deep pain and impact in our hearts” and “Nacional are in grief for their irreplaceable loss.”[13][10] Sāo Paulo FC said they were deeply saddened by the news, calling it a “sad day for football”.[10]

Izquierdo's death was mourned by Gianni Infantino, the president of FIFA.[14] Alejandro Domínguez, the president of CONMEBOL, also extended his condolences to Izquierdo’s family and friends and said that "South American football is in mourning”.[10] Other federations, including Uruguay, Brazil and Argentina, also expressed their condolences.[13]

Izquierdo was married and had two children, one of whom was born ten days before his death.[14]

Honours

Nacional

Liverpool

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Debutante de la 4a fecha" [Debutant on the 4th matchday] (in Spanish). Uruguayan Football Association. 2 March 2018. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  2. ^ "Cerro goleó 5-2 a Progreso" [Cerro thrashed Progresso 5-2] (in Spanish). La Red 21. 25 August 2018. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  3. ^ "Izquierdo: "Es un orgullo jugar en Peñarol"" [Izquierdo: "It's an honour to play for Peñarol"] (in Spanish). Sport 890. 6 February 2019. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  4. ^ "Juan Izquierdo, el ex Peñarol al "bohemio"" [Juan Izquierdo, ex-Peñarol player at the "Bohemians"] (in Spanish). Tenfield. 20 January 2020. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  5. ^ "Con doblete de Juan Izquierdo, Wanderers derrotó a Liverpool (U)" [With Juan Izquierdo brace, Wanderers defeated Liverpool (U)] (in Spanish). TyC Sports. 30 November 2020. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  6. ^ Cozza, Marcelo (3 February 2021). "Juan Izquierdo a Atlético de San Luis Potosí" [Juan Izquierdo at Atlético de San Luis Potosí] (in Spanish). Tenfield. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  7. ^ "Wanderers anunció el regreso de Juan Izquierdo" [Wanderers announced the return of Juan Izquierdo] (in Spanish). ESPN. 25 August 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  8. ^ a b c d "Juan Izquierdo no renovó con Liverpool y vuelve a Nacional tras accidentado pasaje en 2022" [Juan Izquierdo did not renew with Liverpool and returns to Nacional after an eventful time during 2022] (in Spanish). Montevideo.com.uy. 19 January 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  9. ^ a b "Liverpool 1-0 Nacional: a pesar de jugar 54' con 10, el negriazul ganó y obtuvo su segunda Supercopa Uruguaya" [Liverpool 1-0 Nacional: despite playing 54 minutes with ten men, the Black-and-Blues won and obtained their second Uruguayan Supercup]. El País (Uruguay) (in Spanish). 29 January 2023. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g Guardian sport with agencies (28 August 2024), "Juan Izquierdo, Uruguayan footballer, dies aged 27 after collapsing on pitch", The Guardian, retrieved 28 August 2024
  11. ^ "Nacional 4-2 Racing: el tricolor hizo su trabajo y sumó tres puntos para arrimarse a la cima del Apertura" [Nacional 4-2 Racing: The Tricolors did their job and gained three points to get closer to the top of the table]. El País (Uruguay) (in Spanish). 3 May 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  12. ^ "Jogador do Nacional que passou mal durante partida contra o São Paulo teve parada cardíaca ao chegar ao hospital, diz boletim" [National player who was taken ill during match against São Paulo had cardiac arrest upon arriving at hospital, says announcement]. G1 (in Portuguese). 24 August 2024. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
  13. ^ a b c d Associated Press (27 August 2024). "Uruguayan soccer player dies days after collapsing during a game in Brazil". CNN.
  14. ^ a b c "Nacional's Izquierdo dies aged 27 after collapse". BBC Sport. 28 August 2024. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
  • Juan Izquierdo at Soccerway
  • Juan Izquierdo at WorldFootball.net
  • Juan Izquierdo at playmakerstats.com