False destiny: the day Juan Reynoso, Peru’s coach, was saved from the Alianza Lima tragedy thanks to an injury

On December 8, 1987, the intimate team returned to Lima after beating Deportivo Pucallpa. The flight ended abruptly.

December 8, 1987 is an indelible date for Peruvian and world football. On that fateful day, the plane bringing Alianza Lima back to the Peruvian capital, after winning a match in the local competition, crashed and generated one of the worst tragedies in world football memory: 43 people linked to the club They died in the accident. The emergency would later have a link with Chile: Colo Colo transferred players José Letelier, Parko Quiroz, Francisco Huerta and René Pinto to the Peruvian club, which gave birth to a brotherhood that continues to this day. .

There is a player who escaped the fateful fate and who will be at the Monumental stadium today. This is Juan Reynoso, the manager of the Inca team which, like Chile, is seeking a place in the World Cup. which will be jointly hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada.

An emerging figure

Reynoso was 17 years old at the time. . With his natural conditions, he more than hid his lack of experience and became a valid alternative for coach Marcos Calderón. However, for the duel between Los Íntimos and Deportivo Pucallpa, which they ended up winning by the minimum score, he was not available: a muscular discomfort prevented him from joining the delegation. . Today, with certainty, he is grateful for this mishap.

The Lima team won with the minimum score, which allowed them to stay at the top of the Decentralized Championship, which allowed them to win the competition title. No one suspected what would happen when the Fokker F-27, registered AE-560, fell into the Ventanilla Sea, shortly after arriving at Jorge Chávez Airport. .

A training from Alianza Lima.  Above, Reynoso is fourth from left to right.
A training from Alianza Lima. Above, Reynoso is fourth from left to right.

The accident occupied pages and minutes of journalistic coverage around the world. Initially, it was reported that there had been a communications breakdown between the pilot and the terminal control tower. It was not until 2006 that it was determined that technical failures of the plane and the driver’s inexperience had triggered the accident. .

Four more

Juan Reynoso is not the only one to have avoided death. César Espino, suspended for the expulsion he received in the previous match, also did so. Both were joined by three other elements who remained at home due to a technical decision: Benjamín Rodríguez, Juan Illescas and Arturo Guadalupe. .

The current Peruvian strategist remained at the club until 1990. He celebrated two decentralized titles and a metropolitan title. Of course, he also celebrated with the jersey of the La Victoria team’s great rival: Universitario. He had not reached an agreement to renew his contract with his former club. “I am very grateful to Alianza. What I am as a footballer is for Alianza . I grew up in this locker room. I understand, because I had to go through Alianza, the U and Cristal, what is the essence in which they make us grow at that time. If I blame myself for anything at 52, it’s for not daring to say what happened at that time. I was a prisoner of my silence so as not to want to provoke controversy or try to avoid morbidity,” he explained last year.

After dedicating himself with the cream team, led by Sergio Markarian, who in Chile was champion with the U continued his career in Mexican football: He played for Cruz Azul and Necaxa .

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Source: Latercera

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