Half a century after the great Huracan hero Metropolitano 73

(By Walter Vargas) During the 92 seasons of professional football in Argentina, few teams have enjoyed the level of admiration quite to match the Huracán who, with the help of Rosario’s compatriot Cesar Luis Menotti, one afternoon 50 years ago celebrated the conquest of the capital’s championship.

Rarely have fans of the team that just lost celebrated so much, since the match ended 1-2 at the hands of Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata, on Sunday, September 16, 1973, and the defeat was redeemed by the same scoreline. Which Boca suffered from with Velez Sarsfield.

It is true that the splendor of the hurricane in question was fleeting and without international spread, but it will be no less true that the brightest days of the 1973 Metropolitan Championship champion continued and continue in the symbolic box established by the famous Swiss psychologist Carl Gustav Jung defines as the “collective unconscious.”

As he admitted in more than one interview, Menotti viewed it as a kind of ideological victory: Argentina had just been eliminated from the World Cup in Mexico, and the most outstanding team of the late 1960s and early 1970s was Juan Racing. The team of Osvaldo Zubeldia Estudiantes de la Plata (both Intercontinental Cup winners against opponents from the United Kingdom) and San Lorenzo’s Juan Carlos “Toto” Lorenzo, double national champions in 1972.

Despite differences in edges and nuances, none of the three teams mentioned had a clear connection with the tiki-tiki vernacular that Menotti had championed since his days as a footballer.

Founded in 1908, Huracan excelled in the amateur era, winning four titles, three national cups and three more professionally (between 1942), but they have yet to win a regular competition like the traditional Big Five club, Estudiantes. La Plata in 1967 and Chacarita Juniors in 1969.

After the erratic passing of Osvaldo Zubeldia in 1971, a year later the 33-year-old rookie Menotti took over, who arrived with a bombastic speech, described as “romantic” and an implicit promise of fluid play and open attack.

1972 was a great season for San Lorenzo de Almagro, yet Huracan had the luxury of beating them 3-0 and completing two very good seasons: third place in the Metropolitano and one step away from the semi-finals in the Nacional.

As if that wasn’t enough, the combined total for Metro and Nacional reached 92 goals.

In the summer of 1973, with the withdrawal of Roberto Sicilia Cabral from Córdoba, Daniel Wellington from Córdoba and the Brazilian Marcos Pereira Martins, “Globo” was already among the main favorites to win the Metropolitano and in the event of the arrival of a lanky young man came. One of the most prominent characters in the movie Defenders of Belgrano: Rene Orlando Hausmann.

Sooner or later, the son of Santiago from La Banda, who will turn 20 in July, is in a good mood, making the number 7 shirt his own and like a cardboard filled with one of the strikers that comes out of memory best, with Miguel Ángel Brindisi, Roque Avalay, Carlos Babington and Omar LaRosa.

Brindisi was already one of the best, if not the best, midfielders in Argentine football, Avalay refined his rushing vices, Babington represented the touch, pass and precise left-footed strike of an all-in-place number 10 and Larossa were those footballers who do little All and all well.

Sweat and order in midfield was provided by Francisco Russo, “Fatija”, from Platense and in defense two world champions with Racing De Pizzuti ensuring the hierarchy (Uruguayan Nelson Pedro Chapay and Alfio “Coco” Basile), and more Jorge Carrascosa who arrived from Rosario Central On the left side, in addition to Alberto Vanesi, who alternated as the first center back with one of the sons of the house: Daniele Buglioni.

In goal, two others trained stoically on the field: Hector Rugante and Miguel Ángel Leys.

The first six dates of Metro 73 expressed the declaration of the Huracán champion’s principles from beginning to end, with many victories being achieved: in their first appearance they beat Argentinos 6-1 in Doco, and in their second they beat Newell’s 2-0. In Gigante de Arroito, in the third they crushed Atalanta 5-2, in the fourth they defeated Colon in Santa Fe (3-1), then they beat Racing (5-0) and in the sixth they beat them 1-0. To Velez at the Estadio José Amalfitani thanks to a wonderful goal scored by Hausmann a few minutes before the end of the match.

He lost only one point in the seventh game (3-3 in Parque Patricios against the rocky Estudiantes led by Carlos Salvador Bilardo), in the eighth he was free and a week later he lost 1-0 at the hands of River, in a match with such a strange result that Brindisi took two penalty kicks and saved them. José “Perico” Pérez, the specialist at the time.

After scoring five goals with Central in Rosario and leaving the field amid thunderous applause from the local fans, in addition to another five goals with Ferro in Patricius, another defeat, 1-4 with Boca in the 17th round, did not prevent them from making steady steps, Huracan reached the end The first round with huge numbers: 11 wins, 3 draws, 2 losses, 46 goals, 20 goals against Independiente and River with two points.

The second part of the tournament was more complicated, to the point that the qualifiers for the World Cup in Germany 74 coexisted with the official competition and the starting base was destroyed due to the recall of the national team of Brindisi, Avalay, Babington and others.

However, the level of the substitutes was that despite the low percentage of goals scored (16 compared to 40 in the first round) and they could not beat Boca, River or San Lorenzo, they played several important matches. A century ago, Parque Patricius’ balloon announced victory.

In addition to the eleven who played most of the tournament’s matches, in addition to Leys and Vanesi, the team included Alfonso Dante Roma, Edgardo Cantú, Carlos León, Rubén Ríos, Eduardo Quiroga, José Daniel Scalez, Francisco Leonidas del Valle, Julio Tello, and Ángel Tolisano. Adolfo Kirikian and Luis Ceballos.

This glorious day was celebrated on site by three of Huracán’s most prominent fans: the legendary Norberto “Tocho” Méndez, the boxer Oscar Bonavena, and the actor Alfredo Barbieri. (Telam)