Freddy Rincón and other footballers who died in car accidents

Since the accident occurred, every medical report anticipated the worst. For something different to happen was more a matter of faith. Freddy Eusebio Rincón died on April 13 and the football world is in mourning. The clubs where he played have manifested themselves, as well as the Colombian Football Federation and several of his teammates in the national team. Journalists, celebrities and social media users have spoken about it. The message went from “Strength, Freddy” to “Eternal, Freddy”. The shock can't be bigger.

Earlier on Monday, the former footballer suffered a serious accident when he was in his van and hit a bus, in the city of Cali. His condition was very critical from the first minutes, after being taken to the Imbanaco Clinic. He was found to have severe head trauma and underwent surgery. After five reports, between Monday and Wednesday, it was announced that 'The Colossu' could not recover and died. He was 55 years old.

Along with him, there are already several football players who have died as a result of car accidents. Here are some of the most remembered:

Georgy Asparuhov (1971)

One of the most remembered football players in Bulgarian football. He died, the victim of an accident, along with his partner and friend Nikola Kotkov. He was 28 years old. More than 500,000 people were present at his funeral. The Levski Sofia stadium is named after him.

Everaldo (1974)

He played as a left back and forward. He was part of the Esporte Clube Juventude in 1965, and the Guild, between 1966 and 1974. He was world champion with Brazil in 1970. He died four years later in Porto Alegre, when he hit a truck. He was in his car with his wife, sister and daughter. Everyone on board died.

Marino Klinger (1975)

He was a Colombian footballer who wore the shirts of Millonarios and Independiente Santa Fe. He was part of the Colombia National Team at the 62 World Cup in Chile, in which he scored the historic goal that gave the Tricolor draw against the Soviet Union, a match that ended up equalized to four goals. Already retired from football, he died of drowning aboard his Renault 4, when he fell into the Cali River, in the early morning of May 19, 1975.

Heraldo Bezerra (1977)

He was a famous Brazilian footballer who played for several years in the Argentine league and shone in Spain. He wore the shirts of Newell's Old Boys, Boca Juniors and Atlético de Madrid. He became Spanish nationalized and won five titles with the colchoneros. He died in the passenger seat of the car that his companion Rubén Favret was driving, on his way to the city of Rosario. Favret was unharmed, while Bezerra died at the age of 31.

Peter Houseman (1977)

Remembered among Chelsea fans, he was an English striker who played for the Blues between 1963 and 1975, winning three titles. He left for Oxford and played there until 1977, when he died in a car accident due to the recklessness of the driver of the car he collided with. He was traveling with his wife, back home, between Oxford and London.

Lutz Eigendorf (1983)

Nicknamed “The Beckenbauer of the East”, he was a celebrated defender and midfielder of German football. After a match between Eintracht Braunschweig and Vfl Bochum, he went to a bar in the city and after leaving there, on board his vehicle, he lost control around a bend and ended up crashing into a tree. The accident is still a mystery, as many details don't quite fit together. Eigendorf was transferred in critical condition to a nearby hospital and died two days later. He was 26 years old. He was buried in the Kaiserslautern cemetery.

Laurie Cunningham (1989)

Known as 'The Black Pearl', Cunningham was a British footballer who played for teams such as Manchester United, Olympique de Marseille and Real Madrid. He was the only striker of the merengues to have been cheered by the Barcelona fans, at Camp Nou. Playing for Rayo Vallecano, in 1989, being one of the team's star signings, he had an accident aboard his gold-colored Seat Ibiza. It was July 15, in the morning. He was returning from a party and for reasons that are still unknown, Cunningham lost control of the car and crashed into a protective fence. The vehicle ended up tipping over and he was fired out of the front window. He was found, still alive, by a police patrol, 10 meters from the original site. He was transferred to the Hospital Clínico de Madrid where he died. His death shocked Spanish football. He was 33 years old.

Juan Gomez (1992)

Better known as Juanito, he is one of the legends of Real Madrid. He was part of 'La Quinta del Vulture' and won ten titles with the meringues. He died in a car accident in Toledo's Calzada de Oropesa town. He had already retired from football by that time. He was 37 years old.

Rommel Fernandez (1993)

Panamanian striker for Albacete, in the Spanish league, died at the age of 27 when he went off the road on a long straight: he crashed into a tree. He had played for Valencia and Tenerife. He was international with his selection. The stadium of the Panamanian Football Federation is named after him.

Diego Barisone (2015)

At the age of 26, the Argentine central defender crashed his car into a truck on the Rosario-Santa Fe Highway in the morning. He wore the shirts of Union de Santa Fe, Argentinos Juniors and Lanús.

Jose Antonio Reyes (2019)

'La Perla' was probably one of the most popular Spanish players outside his country in recent years. He wore the shirts of Sevilla, Real Madrid, Atlético de Madrid and Benfica. He was part of Wenger's Arsenal, alongside Thierry Henry, Denis Berhkamp and Robert Pires. He was international with the Spanish National Team at the 2006 World Cup in Germany. He died at the age of 35 after crashing his Mercedes on the highway that connects Seville to Utrera.

KEEP READING: