Obdulio Varela

Obdulio Varela

Personal information
Full name	Obdulio Jacinto Muiños Varela
Date of birth	September 20, 1917(1917-09-20)
Place of birth	Paysandú, Uruguay
Date of death	August 2, 1996(1996-08-02) (aged 78)
Height	1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[1]
Playing position	Holding Midfielder, Centre back
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1936–1938	Deportivo Juventud
1938–1943	Montevideo Wanderers
1943–1955	Peñarol
National team
1939–1954	Uruguay	45	(9)
Teams managed
1955	Peñarol
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

This name uses Spanish naming customs; the first or paternal family name is Muiños and the second or maternal family name is Varela.

Obdulio Jacinto Muiños Varela (September 20, 1917 — August 2, 1996) was a Uruguayan football player. He was the captain of the Uruguayan national team that won the 1950 World Cup after beating Brazil in the decisive final round match popularly known as the Maracanazo. He was nicknamed "El Negro Jefe" (The Black Chief) because of his dark skin (he was of Afro-Uruguayan ancestry) and the influence he had on the pitch, and especially after the unlikely victory over Brazil. People^[who?] recall Varela as one of the greatest classic holding midfielders, adept in defence as well as in creating scoring chances.

Club career

Varela, born in Paysandú, emerged as a centre half and senior player at Deportivo Juventud, club which he joined in 1936. He debuted in first division with Montevideo Wanderers in 1938.^[2]

In 1943, he joined C.A. Peñarol, club for which he would play until his professional retirement in 1955.

International career

Varela's international debut came in a 3-2 win against Chile in the 1939 Copa America in Lima, Peru. Varela entered the match as a substitute.

He played 45 international matches for Uruguay from 1939 to 1954, in which he scored nine goals.^[3]

He's most remembered as the captain of the Uruguay team that won 1950 FIFA World Cup, in which he played a vital role. The decisive match was against the big favorite and host Brazil, who were celebrating in advance, Uruguay needed to win, but Brazil could win the Cup on a draw. That day, in the morning, Varela came out of his hotel room and saw the newspaper that had in the front 'Today Brazil wins the World Cup', then Varela bought the newspaper as many as he could so he and his teammates urinated on them. Then when the team were on the dressing room, Juan López, the coach of the Uruguayan team told his players that the best way they could get a chance against Brazil was if they adopted a defensive style, then he left the room and Varela told his teammates 'Juan is a good man, but if we do defend ourselves then we will suffer the same fate of Sweden and Spain' (they lost by a large margin against Brazil), and then said 'the game is played on the pitch, when you come out to the pitch, don't look to the crowd, those on the outside are of wood'. The speech played a vital role on his teammates, who played without fear getting a 0-0 draw on the halftime. 5 minutes in the second half, Brazil scored, and Varela took scene, when he intentionally walked slowly to his goal, picked up the ball and then argue with the English referee George Reader about an innexistent offside, with the intention of delaying the restart of the game so the crowd cooled off. After that he said to his teammates 'Now it's time to win' and the brazilians in the crowd were in a silent mood. Uruguay scored with a goal of Schiaffino and then, 9 minutes before the finish, with a very nervous Brazil team, Alcides Ghiggia scored the 2-1 for Uruguay, winning the world cup.

He also played on the 1954 FIFA World Cup with Uruguay defending his 1950 title, but this time, Varela got injured before the semifinals against Hungary, Uruguay lost 4-2 at extra time. When Varela was present, Uruguay never lost a World Cup game.

Post-playing career

His last match was on June 19, 1955 with Peñarol against América. Varela, one of the team's coaches along with Roque Maspoli,^[4] came off the bench for the second half but when he realized he couldn't continue, he decided to end his career.^[2]

Varela died on August 2, 1996.

Honours

With Uruguay:

• FIFA World Cup winner in 1950
• Copa América winner en 1942
• Copa Baron de Rio Branco winner against Brasil in 1940, 1946, 1948
• Copa Escobar Gerona winner in 1943

With Peñarol:

• Uruguayan first division league champion in 1944, 1945, 1949, 1951, 1953 and 1954
• Torneo de Honor winner in 1944, 1945, 1947, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952 and 1953
• Competencia tourney winner in 1943, 1946, 1947, 1949, 1951 1953

Varela was among the 13 best South American players of the 20th century according to the IFFHS' Century Elections.^[5]

References and notes

1. ^ "World Cup History page"
2. ^ ^{a b} (Spanish) Obdulio Jacinto Varela 1917-1996
3. ^ Uruguay - Record International Players by RSSSF.
4. ^ http://girasolweb.tripod.com/tecnicos.htm
5. ^ IFFHS' Century Elections - RSSSF

External links

• (Spanish) Obdulio Jacinto Varela 1917-1996 - career information and an interview with Varela
• (Portuguese) Varela at the Brazilian Museo dos Esportes (Museum of Sports)

Persondata
Name	Varela, Obdulio
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	September 20, 1917
Place of birth	Paysandú, Uruguay
Date of death	August 2, 1996
Place of death