Manuel Suárez (Peruvian footballer)
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Manuel Antonio Suárez Paz | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 10 February 1940 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Piura, Peru | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of death | 10 January 2012 (aged 71) | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of death | Piura, Peru | ||||||||||||||||
| Position | Forward | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| Estrella Roja | |||||||||||||||||
| 1957 | Municipal Buenos Aires | ||||||||||||||||
| 1958–1959 | Alfonso Ugarte Barrio Sur | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 1960–1966 | Atlético Grau | ||||||||||||||||
| 1967 | Alfonso Ugarte (Chiclín) | ||||||||||||||||
| 1968 | GASA Cruz de Chalpón | ||||||||||||||||
| 1969 | Mariscal Castilla (Sullana) | ||||||||||||||||
| 1970–1986 | Atlético Grau | ||||||||||||||||
| Managerial career | |||||||||||||||||
| 1986–? | Atlético Grau | ||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||
Manuel Antonio Suárez Paz (10 February 1940 – 10 January 2012) was a Peruvian manager and former player.
Nicknamed Meleque,[1] he is considered the most influential player for Atlético Grau of his hometown of Piura, where he also served as coach in the 1980s.[1]
His nephew, Fidel Suárez, was a Peruvian international footballer.
Biography
He joined Atlético Grau in 1960 and participated in the first decentralized Peruvian championship in 1966 (a championship open to provincial teams).[2] However, disagreements with the club forced him to seek a change of scenery, and he joined Alfonso Ugarte de Chiclín, with whom he won the inaugural Copa Perú in 1967.[2] This allowed him to participate in the first division championship that same year.
He returned to Atlético Grau in 1970 and remained there ever since. He won a second Copa Perú in 1972,[2] which allowed the club to return to the first division. In 1981, he took on the role of player-manager. He ended his playing career in 1986 but immediately became the head coach of Atlético Grau.
Manuel Suárez never received a call-up to the Peruvian national team. Nevertheless, he participated in the 1961 Bolivarian Games in Barranquilla with the Peruvian amateur team – coached by Dan Georgiadis – and won the gold medal.[2]
Having retired from football, he died in Piura on 10 January 2012.[3]
Honours
Alfonso Ugarte de Chiclín
Atlético Grau
Peru (amateur)
- Bolivarian Games: 1961[2]
References
- ^ a b Raúl Behr (15 June 2012). "Manuel Suárez: La figura de Piura" [Manuel Suárez: The figure of Piura]. De Chalaca (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 December 2025.
- ^ a b c d e f g Roberto Castro (4 June 2009). "Manuel Suárez: 'Meleque' al alba" [Manuel Suárez: 'Meleque' at dawn]. De Chalaca (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 December 2025.
- ^ "Falleció exfutbolista 'Meleque' Suárez" [Former footballer 'Meleque' Suárez has died]. Correo (in Spanish). 10 January 2012. Retrieved 27 December 2025.