Marinho Peres, who wore the Seleçao armband at the 74 World Cup in Germany, played for Barça between 1974 and 1976
The former central defender, who was 76 years old, shared a dressing room with Pelé and Cruyff and, when he hung up his boots, had a long career as a coach
Marinho Peres Ulibarri died this Monday in his hometown, Sorocaba, (in the interior of the state of Sao Paulo) at the age of 76, due to complications caused by pneumonia. The former Barça centre-back, between 1974 and 1976, had been hospitalized for a month in a hospital and, as his wife reported on social media, he spent the last eight days of his life intubated. His health had been very weakened since July 2019 when he suffered a stroke.
Center back with exquisite control of the ball and great leadership capacity, he arrived at Barça at the zenith of his career, at the age of 27, after having played in the 74 World Cup in Germany. as captain of the Seleçao, which was the current champion. He could not lift the title because he was defeated by the Dutch ‘A Clockwork Orange’, Rinus Michels and Johan Cruyff(2-0) in a very tough semi-final match that has gone down in history as the ‘Battle of Dortmund’,
He came from Santos FC where he had played alongside Pelé (who was facing the final stretch of his career before leaving for the New York Cosmos) and other legendary footballers such as Carlos Alberto Torres, Edu either Pepe.
A footballer of Spanish origin
Barça managed to register Marinho Peres because he did not occupy a foreign position since he had dual nationality because his mother was Spanish. He played 29 official matches with the Blaugrana shirt between the 1974-75 and 1975-76 seasons and scored four goals; He also played another 10 friendly matches in which he scored two goals.
At the Camp Nou, where he was coached by Rinus Michels, he met Johan Cruyffwhich made him one of the few footballers on the planet to have the privilege of having shared a team with two of the greatest stars in history: ‘O King’ and the Dutch genius.
When he returned to Brazil, he joined one of the most remembered teams in the history of Internacional, from Porto Alegre, with whom he won the 1976 Brasileirao. There he formed a central ‘dupe’ with the Chilean Figueroa and there were also footballers of the caliber of Falcao, Cambric and Dada Maravilha.
He went through Palmeiras and played professionally until 1980 when he began a long career as a coach, sponsored by the legendary Tele Santana, of which he was, initially, a technical assistant. He filmed in Brazil and was in Angola and twelve years in Portugal. There he commanded Belenenses, Marítimo, Sporting Lisboa and Vitoria de Guimares.
The ‘discoverer’ of Luis Figo
During his time at Sporting, he was the coach who promoted Luis Figo from the youth team to the first team and made him debut, placing him at right wing. When the then Portuguese jewel began to gain fame and continental notoriety, he received a call from his former teammate, Johan Cruyff, then Barça coach, who wanted to know more details about the young footballer, who would end up transferred to the Blaugrana club shortly after.
In Brazil he was always remembered and respected for having been a legendary centre-back, of great quality, who served as captain of the Seleçao in an exemplary manner. and who earned the respect and admiration of the best players he played with: Pelé, Rivellino, Cruyff…