2024-04-15 10:22:21
The beginning was the Jorge Fossati era. The former coach of Universitario de Deportes took on the difficult challenge of leading the Peruvian team with the aim of having a good Copa América and reversing the poor results in the 2026 Qualifiers, which is why he agreed to two international friendlies: one against Nicaragua and the other against Dominican Republic. For now, the Bicolor got a passing grade by winning 2-0 against the first rival in Matute.
The victory left a lot for analysis because of the system that Fossati used, but more than anything because of the players he put on the field. Of all those who were in the field and several debutants, the Bicolor coach included a total of five soccer players who were not born in Peru and one of these does not have Peruvian blood. Something that seemed to be unthinkable in the national team and that coaches from other countries also put into practice to expand their universe of athletes.
Who are the 5 foreign players that Jorge Fossati used in the Peruvian team?
Before the games, Jorge Fossati He was asked if he was going to use players who were not born in Peru for these friendly matches and he made his position very clear that if they were players who could be useful to his scheme, they would be called up. He explained that it would be of no use to him to give in to the clamor of the people if in the end he was not going to be able to use them for the benefit of the team.
In that sense, the strategist called up five footballers who were not born in Peru: Gianluca Lapadula (Italy), Carlos Ascues (Venezuela), Oliver Sonne (Denmark), Erick Noriega (Japan) and Franco Zanelatto (Paraguay). The first four have Peruvian ancestry, either through a close or distant relative; However, the forward of Lima Alliance He does not have Peruvian blood nor does he share a lineage with any Peruvian ancestor, but he is eligible because he decided to become a nationalized player so as not to occupy a foreign place on the Victorian team.
The five ‘foreigners’ that Fossati used. Photo: ‘X’/De Sangre Peruana
It should be noted that Zanelatto He had already debuted with the Peruvian team, as he was used by Juan Reynoso in the 2026 Qualifiers. In the case of Gianluca Lapadula y Carlos Ascues, both already have quite a journey through the Bicolor. Likewise, Oliver Sonne and Erick Noriega added their first minutes defending the colors of the national team.
The Danish soccer player, who shares Peruvian ancestry through his mother, entered in the second half and starred in some plays for the team and even had a run-in with a Nicaraguan player. For his part, Erick Noriega, who had already had a good performance in the U-23 Pre-Olympic, entered due to Ascues’ injury. It is necessary to highlight that the latter was born in Japan, where he came to play professionally with Shimizu S-Pulse, and even participated in the U-19 of that country, but finally ended up choosing Bicolor.
When does Peru play vs. Dominican Republic?
After the victory against Nicaragua, Peru will face the Dominican Republic for the FIFA international date. The match is scheduled for this Tuesday, March 26, starting at 8.30 pm at the Monumental Stadium, with transmission by Movistar Deportes and América TV.