Argentine footballer
In this
Spanish name
, the first or paternal
surname
is
Funes
and the second or maternal family name is
Baldovino
.
Juan Gilberto Funes
Funes during his tenure on River Plate in 1986
|
|
Full name
|
Juan Gilberto Funes Baldovino
|
---|
Date of birth
|
(
1963-03-08
)
8 March 1963
|
---|
Place of birth
|
San Luis
, Argentina
|
---|
Date of death
|
11 January 1992
(1992-01-11)
(aged 28)
|
---|
Place of death
|
Buenos Aires
, Argentina
|
---|
Position(s)
|
Striker
|
---|
|
Years
|
Team
|
Apps
|
(
Gls
)
|
---|
1981
|
Huracan de San Luis
|
|
|
---|
1982
|
Sarmiento de Junin
|
|
|
---|
1983
|
Jorge Newbery
|
|
|
---|
1983?1984
|
Gimnasia y Esgrima (M)
|
9
|
(1)
|
---|
1984?1986
|
Millonarios
|
85
|
(45)
|
---|
1986?1988
|
River Plate
|
84
|
(47)
|
---|
1988?1989
|
Olympiacos
|
29
|
(10)
|
---|
1989?1990
|
Velez Sarsfield
|
25
|
(12)
|
---|
|
1987
|
Argentina
|
4
|
(0)
|
---|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals
|
Juan Gilberto Funes Baldovino
(8 March 1963 ? 11 January 1992), nicknamed "
El Bufalo
" (The Buffalo), was an Argentine professional
footballer
who played as a
striker
, known for his physical style of play.
Biography
[
edit
]
He first played football for local club Huracan de San Luis, then
Estudiantes de La Plata
,
Sarmiento de Junin
, Jorge Newbery and
Gimnasia y Esgrima de Mendoza
, and then for Colombian
Millonarios FC
in 1984. In that year, his team became runner-up of
Colombian Primera A
, and the following year he achieved a record 33 goals in a single season. Nowadays, he is one of the most iconic idols of the club.
Funes was a key player in the
River Plate
team that won the
1986 Copa Libertadores
for the first time, in which he scored a goal in the first match in
Cali
, which River won by the score of 2?1 and at home in
Buenos Aires
, for the 1?0 victory against
America de Cali
.
[1]
Ironically, this was not the first time Colombian teams and fans saw his moves; in the glory days of the Colombian league in the 1980s, Funes played for Millonarios, the team with the most championships in Colombia, where he simply "schooled" other forwards with his opportunistic technique and his attitude.
After his tenure on River Plate, Funes moved to Greece where he played for
Olympiacos
. With the
Piraeus
club Funes scored some very important goals (2 goals in the 1988
Greek Cup
semifinal against
OFI FC
, scoring 10 goals in 29 appearances).
He returned to his homeland for a second time, being about to play for
Boca Juniors
but he finally could not debut with the team due to a heart failure detected by the doctors.
[2]
Despite that, Funes did not end his professional career, joining
Velez Sarsfield
. However, his health forced him to retire shortly afterwards. He died of a
heart attack
on January 11, 1992. The Estadio Provincial in San Luis was named "Juan Gilberto Funes" in his honour, in 2003.
[3]
He is considered today one of the great legends of
Millonarios de Bogota
, and the River Plate fans remember his goals in the
1986 Copa Libertadores Finals
. Millonarios has one group of fans called
Barra del Bufalo
in honour of the idol of the club.
Funes was capped four times by the
Argentina National Team
.
Honours
[
edit
]
- Gimnasia y Esgrima
- Liga Mendocina de Futbol: 1983
- Millonarios F.C.
- River Plate
References
[
edit
]
External links
[
edit
]