Teofilo Kubiljas: Peruvian Pele and love for the red and white jersey

Jaime Ramos turned to the bare wall next to him, as if it was the same wall from which Teofilo Cubillas had been smiling at him for years, and if he's not on that wall, he'll be on the other one, in his old office, but he'll be there, as a memory to the years that won't come back and to every time he changed offices and moved up in business. The poster was losing its colors, now it was just a blue-white-grayish spot stuck on the wall, Kubiljas with his hands raised, with a smile on his face because he had just scored a goal. (Far from Manaus - Francisco José Viegas)

In the 1975s, football in Peru was in full swing. The national team was a frequent participant in the global football competition, and in XNUMX Peru won the title of the best national team on the South American continent. The symbol of that Peru and the man who was an active participant in all those events is Teofilo Kubillas, the best Peruvian soccer player of all time.

Born in Puente Piedra, a suburb of Lima, in 1949, Kubiljas started running after the ball as a boy, dreaming of the red and white jersey of the national team. From the local streets, the road took him to Huracan Boise. There is little information about his stay in Bojsi. After one friendly match, he left the team and in 1966, at the age of 16, he went to Alianza from Lima, the oldest and most successful club in Peru, where one of the most beautiful stories of Peruvian football began.

Coming to a new, big club did not disturb Kubiljas. El Nene (the boy), as his new teammates called him because of his age and childlike smile, quickly fits into the new environment - already in the first season he becomes the top scorer of the championship with 19 goals in 23 games. He repeated the same success in 1970, when he entered the list of scorers 22 times in 27 games.

"He went out on the field to have fun," teammates said of El Nene.

Along with the club, Kubiljas also wrote a fairy tale at the representative level.

The Peruvian national team has not recorded notable results for years. Apart from participating in the first World Cup in 1930 and winning the South American Championship in 1939, Peru did not achieve any notable results at the representative level.

The Peruvians got the opportunity to achieve something more in 1970 in Mexico. The road to the championship was not easy. They had to go through the group that included Argentina and Bolivia in the qualifiers.

August 31, 1969 – "Bombonjera" stadium in Buenos Aires. The players of Peru need a point against their big rival. The Argentinians need a victory for the trip to Mexico (a victory at that time brought two points). The red and white team with a player less able to resist the great rival (2:2). A 40-year fast was broken, led from the bench by the legendary Didi, Kubiljas and his teammates secured participation in the World Cup. Days will follow that will promote the young Kubiljas into a national hero.

The 1970 World Cup in Mexico - the first live television broadcasts, the famous fan waves, the best Brazil of all time and Peru coming to show their best.

With the duel between Mexico and the Soviet Union on May 31, the championship officially began. There are two days left until the meeting between Peru and Bulgaria. Around 15:30 p.m. on that last day of May, the biggest natural disaster in Peru's history happened. An earthquake measuring 7,9 on the Richter scale shook the country. About 70.000 people died, a huge number were left homeless. In Peru, sadness and grief, in Mexico, disbelief among the players and the question of whether to participate in the World Cup. The match with the Bulgarians was close, it was decided that there would be no withdrawal from the championship.

If even before the tournament there was doubt about Kubiljas' skills, the match with the Bulgarians removed any dilemma. By scoring the third, decisive goal in Peru's triumph (3:2), Kubiljas hinted that he will be one of the stars of the championship. El Nene scores two goals in the victory over Morocco (3:0) and a goal in the defeat of West Germany (1:3). A passage to the quarterfinals and a duel with the best team in Brazil - Pele's team - was secured.

In the quarter-finals, the Peruvians could not offer much - Pele, Clodoaldo, Tostao, Zairzinho, Rivelinho, Luis Alberto and company were an insurmountable obstacle. Peru ended the participation, Brazil continued on its way to the title.

With five goals scored in the tournament, Kubiljas was declared the best young player, he was included in the ideal lineup, and the biggest recognition came from Pele. Asked after the tournament if he would participate in the next World Cup in Germany in 1974, Pele gave an answer that is still quoted in Peru today.

“No, but don't worry. I have an heir. It's Teofilo Kubillas," Pele said briefly.

Kubiljas proved his potential even after Mexico. In 1972, he was the top scorer of the Copa Libertadores with six goals, but this did not help Alianza pass the group stage. He was named the best South American soccer player that year. This was followed by a trip to Europe in 1973 for a humanitarian match of the best South American and European players organized by UNICEF. After the penalty kick, the South American team won 3:2 (4:4 in the regular part). Kubljas scored a goal. After this match, the Peruvian moved to Basel, Switzerland. There was a possibility that Kubiljas would wear the Barcelona shirt, but the team from Catalonia decided at the last moment for his representative colleague Ugo Sotil.

Kubiljas stays in Basel for only half a year. Far away from Peru, in cold Switzerland, El Nene is not doing well. Porto took advantage of such a situation and in the second half of 1973, Kubiljas left Basel and went to warmer regions. In the Porto jersey until 1976, he scored 65 goals in 129 games.

In the meantime, the Peruvian national team misses the championship in West Germany in 1974. Markos Calderon replaces Didja on the bench. In 1975, he won the South American Championship with Calderon Peru. Chile and Bolivia in the group were easy opponents. Brazil was defeated in the semi-final, while in the final Kubillas and his friends were better than Colombia.

After the European odyssey, Kubiljas decides that it is time to return home, to Alijanac.

El Nene's return to the Alliance also had an effective effect on the Peruvian national team. Placement to the World Championship was won again. This time Argentina was the host, and Kubillas once again delighted the football public.

In Argentina in 1978, in the first stage, the Peruvians played in a group with Scotland, the Netherlands and Iran, and the match with the Scots and the masterful role of Kubillas are still recounted.

At the Cordoba Stadium, the Scots first took the lead in the 19th minute through Jordan. Cueto equalized two minutes before going to the break, and the draw, with a missed penalty by Scotland, remained in force until the 70th minute when Peru's 17 once again charmed the football world - with a powerful shot from about twenty meters, Kubillas brings the right outside of the foot Peru takes the lead. And then, six minutes later, magic. Free kick for Peru from about 18, XNUMX meters. Scotland goalkeeper Alan Rog set up a living wall. Munjante skipped the ball, Kubiljas ran in and passed the ball past the living wall into the net.

"When I saw Kubillas taking free kicks, I wanted to do the same," once said the Paraguayan goalkeeper Jose Luis Chilavert, who himself was known for not shying away from taking free kicks during his career.

"Didi is the most responsible for my free kick technique," said Kubiljas.

After the initial success against Scotland, Peru drew with the Dutch (0:0) and then easily defeated Iran (4:1). Against the Iranians, Kubiljas scored a hat-trick. Placement to the next stage of the competition is guaranteed.

In the second phase, Peru did not have as much success. In the newly formed group, Argentina, Brazil and Poland were better, and the match against Argentina is still considered controversial. Namely, Argentina had to defeat Peru with a four-goal margin in order to advance to the finals ahead of Brazil, as the first place in the group. The "Gauchos" won 6:0, and some still believe that the Argentine military junta of General Videl played a major role in that match. An inglorious end to the competition for Kubiljas and his friends.

After the performance in Argenitna, Kubiljas changed club colors and went to the USA, where he performed for Fort Lauderdale. Gerd Müller and George Best played in the same team.

This was followed by a trip to the third World Cup. The only remaining member of the generation that played in Mexico in 1970, he led the team in Spain in 1982. However, the Peru competition ends unsuccessfully. Draws with Cameroon and Italy, along with a loss to Poland marked the end of the adventure.

Kubiljas spent the last years of his career on the USA-Peru route, and his last return to Alijanca in 1987 was linked to a plane crash.

On December 1987, 27, the Alianza team, at that time the championship leader, was returning from a match against Deportivo Pucallpa when the Fokker F-XNUMX plane carrying the players crashed into the Pacific, six miles from its destination. All passengers and crew members, except the pilot, died in the accident.

In that situation, Kubiljas showed how great he is and in 1987, at the age of 37, he agreed to join the Alliance without compensation. He played 13 matches and scored three goals. The hero of the fans, the player who took the first serious football steps in that team, returned and helped his second family in the recovery process.

He ended his career in 1989. Peruvian Pele, participant of three World Cups, winner of the Copa America, actor of the greatest successes of Peruvian football in 2008, was included in the best team of South America in the last 50 years. The International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS) listed him among the 50 greatest players of all time. He was Peru's top scorer for a long time, but he was recently overtaken by the hero of younger generations, Paolo Guerrero.

"If I were born again and could choose, I would choose to play football again. I would choose Peru for my people, Puente Piedra as my district and Alianza as my club", said the great Teofilo Cubillas.