Roberto Meléndez

Biography

Roberto Meléndez Roberto Meléndez Lara, nicknamed El Flaco, (born in Barranquilla, 31 March 1912 - died 20 May 2000) was a Colombian football player and coach who played in the 1930s and 1940s, in the amateur era of the sport. As a player, Melendez played primarily as a forward. He was a player for Barranquilla Juventud Junior who, in large part due to his efforts, became the most powerful amateur club in Colombia during that period. He was the first Colombian player to play for a foreign team in 1939 when was hired by the team 'Hispano Centro Gallego' in Cuba. When playing, he was considered the best Colombian footballer of his era. Meléndez was also head coach of the Colombia national team and coached them to a fifth-place finish in the Copa América 1945 and in 1947 to an 8th-place finish. He was also head...

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