Who was Juan Izquierdo, the Uruguayan footballer who died after collapsing during a Copa Libertadores match?

The world of football is mourning the sad loss of Juan Izquierdo. The Uruguayan defender was a player for Nacional and, after collapse in a Copa Libertadores match at the Murumbi Stadium, Izquierdo died this Tuesday 27th due to “brain death following cardiorespiratory arrest.”

Juan Izquierdo suffered a cardiac arrhythmia during a match against Sao Paulo. The defender came off the bench in a match corresponding to the round of 16 of the Copa Libertadores. Izquierdo collapsed on the grass and He was immediately taken to the nearest hospital.

The Nacional player went into cardiac arrest and was resuscitated with a defibrillator. From Tuesday, August 22, until Tuesday, August 27, Izquierdo was fighting for his life in intensive care. But the footballer was affected by a “progression of the brain damage and an increase in blood pressure.”

“The Albert Einstein Israelite Hospital sadly announces the death of Mr. Juan Manuel Izquierdo, who passed away on Tuesday, August 27, at 9:38 p.m. (local time), as a result of brain death following cardiorespiratory arrest associated with arrhythmia“, the health entity explained in a bulletin.

Since 2017, Defender Juan Izquierdo spent his entire professional career in Uruguayan football. Izquierdo had the opportunity to play for the biggest clubs in the South American country and even had the initiative to play some matches in Mexican soccer.

Since the Under-16 category, Juan Izquierdo demonstrated his talent at Cerro. It was at this club where he was able to make his debut in the First Division of Uruguayan football in 2018 under the technical direction of Fernando Correa. A year later he was transferred to Peñarol.

The Carbonero team is one of the biggest in Uruguay. However, Juan Izquierdo had few opportunities to show his potential, because he was only able to play five games with the club.

This panorama made Juan Izquierdo leave Montevideo WanderersThe Uruguayan defender regained his playing rhythm and level. He was under the technical direction of Mauricio Larriera and Daniel Carreño.

He quickly left the Prado complex to live his first international experience with Atlético San LuisBut Izquierdo did not have much success in Mexican football, as he alternated between the lower divisions and the first Mexican team.

In 2022, already wearing the Nacional de Uruguay jersey, Juan Izquierdo suffered his first major blow in his careerThe “Charrúa” defender made his debut in February of that year, but the club reported that he suffered a fracture of his left tibia due to stress. This injury kept him off the field until September.

This made Izquierdo change his surroundings again and he ended up going to Liverpool to play in 2023The Uruguayan recovered his level and was an important piece in the first Uruguayan Championship in the history of this club.

His good level made Nacional trust in his abilities again. In January of this year, Juan Izquierdo returned to Nacional, club where he had intentions to clean up his image that was tarnished by injuriesBut unfortunately, the unfortunate accident occurred a week ago, which has plunged the entire world of football into mourning.

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