Estudiantes de La Plata

Estudiantes
Full name	Estudiantes de La Plata
Nickname(s)	Los Pincharratas , El León
Founded	4 August 1905
Ground	Jorge Luis Hirschi Stadium, 1, 55 y 57, La Plata
Capacity	23,000
Chairman	Eduardo Abadie
Manager	Diego Simeone
League	Argentine Primera División
2006 Clausura	11th
Home colours 　 Away colours

Estudiantes de La Plata is a sports club in La Plata, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, with a history of achievement in professional football.

The current club badge has eight stars for the five international and three local titles achieved.

History

The club was founded on 4 August 1905 by university students who felt left out by the management of Gimnasia y Esgrima de La Plata, which favored indoor games over football. Its jersey had red and white vertical stripes honoring the Alumni team that dominated Argentine football in those years, with black pants and gray or black socks. In the early days, the team wore a blue blazer on top of the jersey when entering the pitch.

The stadium on 1st Avenue opened on 25 December 1907 (it has undergone several rounds of upgrading). Before the advent of professionalism, Estudiantes won the 1913 league title.

When professionalism was adopted in Argentina on 1931, Estudiantes had a famous offensive lineup: Lauri-Scopelli-Zozaya-Ferreyra-Guayta, known as Los Profesores (The Professors), and still regarded as one of Argentina's all-time finest. Guayta and Scopelli played for the Italy national team that conquered the 1934 World Cup. The Sbarra brothers (Raúl and Roberto) and Armando Nery were feared defensive players. Alberto Zozaya scored the first goal of professional football in Argentina and was the top goalscorer of the first professional tournament.

In 1937, a pioneering lighting system was installed, allowing night games.

The 1950s saw the rise of Ogando, Garcerón, Bouché, Urriolabeitia, Infante, Antonio, and striker Manuel Pellegrina, who is the all-time top scorer with 221 goals.

In the 1960s, Miguel Ignomiriello coached the under-19 team known as La Tercera que Mata (The Killer Juveniles), which would evolve (together with a few acquisitions) into the team coached by Osvaldo Zubeldía that won the 1967 Metropolitano championship (Starting in 1967, Argentina holds two championships each season).

With that title, Estudiantes became the first club outside of the "five greats" (Boca Juniors, River Plate, Racing Club, Independiente, and San Lorenzo) to obtain professional titles. This opened the gates; other "small" clubs, starting with Chacarita Juniors and Vélez Sarsfield, followed suit.

Celebrations of the 1969 Libertadores Cup, El Gráfico magazine

Estudiantes went on to secure the Copa Libertadores de América for three times in a row (1968 to 1970), and the 1968 Intercontinental Cup against the powerful Manchester United. It lost the series against A.C. Milan (1969) and Feyenoord (1970). In 1969 the club also won the Interamerican Cup.

The last part of the Zubeldía era was marred by the antics of some players. Following a very violent Intercontinental match against Milan, the entire team was arrested on orders from Argentine President Juan Carlos Onganía; in an unprecedented step, goalkeeper Poletti was suspended for life (he was later pardoned), and hatchet-man Aguirre Suárez was also singled out for punishment. Because of several such events, it became a cliché to refer to Zubeldía's football as el antifútbol.

The Zubeldía team was maybe the only successful professional side ever to count two physicians among its stars: captain Carlos Salvador Bilardo and teammate Raúl Madero graduated from the University of Buenos Aires Faculty of Medicine during their playing days.

Juan Ramón Verón was the most gifted player on that team. He profited from the no-nonsense playing of Conigliaro, Echecopar, and Madero, and the tactical guidance provided by Bilardo. Right-back Manera was a very talented player, but suffered from repeated injuries and did not realize his full potential.

During the 1970 season, Bilardo retired from play and got involved in his family's furniture business. Soon he started to coach, alternating between Estudiantes and Colombian teams. He coached Estudiantes in 1982, when the team won the Metropolitano championship. Under his successor Eduardo Luján Manera, also a member of the Zubeldía team, Estudiantes won the 1983 Nacional tournament as well. Both wins were at the expense of a star-studded Independiente.

Those championship teams were anchored by a solid defense (Camino on the right and Herrera on the left were also fearsome attackers, and Brown provided security as a sweeper), and also had three creative mid-fielders (Ponce, Sabella, Trobbiani, with Russo to guard their backs) and two top-notch strikers (Gottardi, Trama).

Bilardo went on to coach the Argentine national team that won the 1986 World Cup (the captain of the 1982 champions, José Luis Brown, scored the opening goal in the final against West Germany). The national team also reached the final of the 1990 edition. Madero was team physician on both events.

Estudiantes was relegated in 1994, only to return to the top division on the very next season. Its performances ever since have been uneven; the club became more known as the breeding ground for such players as Juan Sebastián Verón, Martín Palermo, Luciano Galletti, Bernardo Romeo, and Ernesto Farias.

In 2004-2005, under coach Reinaldo Merlo, Estudiantes became a contender again, finishing both the Apertura and the Clausura tournaments in the fourth place. Mariano Pavone was top goalscorer of the 2005 Clausura. On 17 April 2005, Estudiantes de La Plata became the sixth team in Argentina to win 1,000 professional games when it came back from behind to defeat Newell's Old Boys 3-2.

Merlo resigned on August 2005, the day after the main event of the centennial celebrations, and was promptly replaced with Bilardo alum Jorge Burruchaga, who was fresh from a successful tenure with Arsenal de Sarandí. The team made history when it came from behind (0-3 in midtime) to win 4-3 against Peru's Sporting Cristal in a Libertadores match played on 21 February, 2006. In this edition of the tournament, Estudiantes reached the quarterfinals.

Burruchaga quit on May 18, 2006 and was promptly replaced with another former Argentine great, Diego Simeone [1]. Simeone has built the team around Verón (who returned to Estudiantes after 11 years) as the anchor of the team. The Simeone team was eliminated by São Paulo in a penalty shoot-out in the quarter-finals of the 2006 Copa Libertadores, but is a strong contender in the local league; Estudiantes defeated Gimnasia by an unprecedented 7-0 score in the derby played October 15 2006 as part of the Apertura tournament.

Stadium and Training Grounds

Project of the new Estudiantes' Stadium

Jorge Luis Hirschi Stadium is located on 1st Avenue, between 55th and 57th Streets, in central La Plata. In its previous incarnation, it had room for 23,000. The cheaper stands behind the goal-lines were standing-room only, and the western side was sitting-room, separated from the avenue by a row of tile trees. The Eastern side was roofed and had the best seating arrangements. The noisiest fans used to occupy the northern (55th Street) popular, while visiting fans were welcome in the southern popular (on 57th Street, opposite a technical school which was often named as the culprit for the small size of the pitch).

For international games, Estudiantes has traditionally used the Boca Juniors field (La Bombonera).

When a modern stadium was built for the city of La Plata in the 1990s, both Estudiantes and Gimnasia decided initially relocating their home games. Specifically, Estudiantes was denied permission for upgrading its stadium, which was closed down in September 2005 because of new safety regulations that forbid standing-only wooden stands. Even though a restraining order exempted Estudiantes from the prohibition, the city government refused to comply, which strained relations between the club and City Hall.

As a stopgap measure, for the 2005 Apertura Estudiantes played its home games in the nearby Gimnasia stadium, and after that to the Quilmes field. There, Estudiantes made history with a come-from-behind 4-3 win against Sporting Cristal).

On April 2006 a new judicial decree allowed the re-opening of 1 y 57, but mayor Alak intervened again to avoid this from happening. [2]. Estudiantes contemplated the erection of a new stadium in the port town of Ensenada, a few kilometers east of La Plata. In August 2006, it was reported [3] that an agreement to rebuild the stands to allow a capacity of 18,000 is in the works, so that Estudiantes can return to its home field at some point in the future. The city stadium will be used for games exceeding the new capacity.

On October 20 2006, it was reported that Estudiantes (after the historic 7-0 win over Gimnasia) will use the new stadium for its home games, given that Coprosede (the football security authority) has indicated that it will grant no more security clearance for Estudiantes in the Quilmes field [4].

The training grounds are in the Country Club premises in City Bell, a few kilometres north of La Plata. The facilities have been upgraded through a donation that Juan Sebastián Verón made while he played in Lazio. Verón was also instrumental in the new stadium agreement, and Argentine journalists have indicated that he is building his reputation towards a future bid for the club presidency [5].

Fan Base

Estudiantes' badge

Following its international successes in the 1960s, Estudiantes gained more followers in all of Argentina. They have remained true to its colors in good times and bad, giving the club a country-wide fan base, widely known as one of the most loyal in Argentina.

Within the La Plata area, Estudiantes is regarded as the club of the middle class, while rival side Gimnasia y Esgrima is identified with the working class. Statistics are inconclusive as to which club has the larger following in the city.

During the 1950s, a cadre of fans from Buenos Aires (los porteños) led the fan base. A noted fan since the 1970s is el pelapapas ("the potato peeler"), famous for lighting small bonfires during games.

In the 1983 presidential election, Estudiantes fans were, together with their peers from Vélez Sarsfield, the first to voice their support for eventual winner Raúl Alfonsín in his bid against the Peronistas. The friendship with Vélez supporters has since vanished, especially after an Estudiantes win denied Vélez the 2003 championship.

Estudiantes fans are on friendly terms with most clubs from the South side of Greater Buenos Aires who make it to the top divisions. This was especially true of Quilmes and Temperley.

Platense, from the North side of Greater Buenos Aires, held a special place in the hearts of Estudiantes fans, as it cemented Gimnasia's relegation in 1979. Platense has since been relegated and currently plays in the promotional divisions.

On an international note, Estudiantes is friendly with the Uruguayan fan base of Peñarol.

Author Ernesto Sabato is an Estudiantes sympathizer. Even though his interest in football is limited, the club has honored Sabato with a ceremony in which he was given a No. 10 jersey.

Nicknames

The nickname pincharratas (rat-stabbers), often shortened to pinchas, is generally attributed to the laboratory work done by the many Medicine students among the club's early members. This nickname extends to the fans.

It has been posited that the name comes from the nickname of one Felipe Montedónica, a bodyguard of the team in the 1910s, who was known as "el pincharratas".

A third version claims that the early training fields were infested with rats, and the players spent much time and effort chasing after them, hence the nickname.

Fans also call the team el león (the lion), orgullo de la ciudad (pride of the city), los capos de La Plata (the bosses of La Plata), and Tricampeón (three-time champion) because of its Libertadores three-peat.

List of Famous Players

This list follows a rough chronological sequence

• Los Profesores
  • Miguel Lauri
  • Alejandro "Conejo" Scopelli
  • Alberto "Don Padilla" Zozaya (top goalscorer of the 1931 championship)
  • Manuel "El Piloto Olímpico" Ferreyra
  • Enrique Guayta
• Armando "El Nene" Nery
• Saúl "Toro" Calandra
• Roberto Sbarra
• Raúl Sbarra
• Héctor "El Manco" Castro
• Juan José "Pichón" Negri
• Alberto Bouché
• Gabriel Ogando
• Ricardo Infante
• Fello Meza Ivankovich (El Maestro)
• Walter Garcerón
• Juan Urriolabeitia
• Héctor "El Cochero" Antonio
• Manuel "Payo" Pellegrina (team top striker ever with 221 goals)
• Zubeldía's team
  • Alberto Poletti
  • Ramón Aguirre Suárez
  • Eduardo Luján Manera
  • Eduardo Bocha Flores
  • Marcos Conigliaro
  • Juan Echecopar
  • Oscar Cacho Malbernat
  • Dr. Carlos Salvador Bilardo
  • Dr. Raúl Madero
  • Carlos Pachamé
  • Juan Ramón Verón (la bruja)
• Vicente Pernía
• Ignacio Peña (top goalscorer of 1973 tournament)
• Rubén Oscar Pagnanini
• Rubén Horacio Galletti
• Franco Frasoldatti
• Alfredo Letanú (top goalscorer - 1977 Nacional tournament)
• Sergio Fortunato (top goalscorer - 1979 Metropolitano tournament)
• Patricio Hernández
• Bilardo's champions
  • Abel Ernesto Herrera (team record for most appearances: 467)
  • José Luis Brown (el tata)
  • Miguel Angel Russo
  • Julián Camino
  • Néstor Craviotto
  • Alejandro Sabella
  • Hugo Ernesto Gottardi
  • Guillermo Trama
  • Marcelo Antonio Trobbiani
  • José Daniel Ponce
• Rubén Capria (el mago)(1989~1995)
• Martín Palermo (el loco)(1991~1997)
• José Luis Calderón (top goalscorer - 1995 Apertura tournament)(1992~1995, 2005~)
• Carlos Bossio
• Juan Sebastián Verón (la brujita)(1994~1995, 2006~)
• Luciano Galletti(1998~2000)
• Lionel Scaloni
• Edgardo Prátola (el ruso)
• Ernesto Tecla Farías (top goalscorer - 2003 Clausura tournament)(1998~2004)
• José Sosa
• Juan Ángel Krupoviesa
• Marcelo Carrusca
• Mariano Pavone (top goalscorer - 2005 Clausura tournament)(2002~)
• Diego Galván

Current roster

• Martín Horacio Herrera (gk)
• Mariano Andujar (gk)
• Damián Gonzalo Albil (gk)
• Josemir Mosquera (Colombia)
• Mauricio Casierra (Colombia)
• Marcos Alberto Angeleri
• Agustín Alayes
• Pablo Alvarez
• Ezequiel Britez
• Fernando Ortiz
• Rodrigo Braña
• Leandro Benitez
• Gabriel Saucedo
• Juan Augusto Huerta
• José Ernesto Sosa
• Juan Cominges (Peru)
• Juan Sebastián Verón
• Diego Galván
• José Luis Calderón
• Diego Caballero
• Hugo Mariano Pavone
• Pablo Lugüercio
• Ezequiel Maggiolo

External links

• Official Web Site
• Estudiantes at AFA
• Blog on the 7-0 result in the 2006 derby

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