Luis Mendoza, better known as “Mendocita”, who is considered as a Venezuelan soccer legend died at 78according to official football channels in his country.
“The Venezuelan Football Federation regrets the sensitive death of Luis Mendozaknown as ‘Mendocita’, legend of our National selection. Our deepest condolences to his family, friends and loved ones,” the FVF said on its account on the social network X.
Caracas FC, the club where the footballer said goodbye to the fields in 1986, also mourned the death of Mendocita: “He dazzled everyone with his fantasy on and off the fields, and he never stopped working to leave Venezuela high”mentioned his former team.
“Luis Alfredo Mendoza has left us, our first irreverent of Venezuelan football, the number 1 of our football legendswho taught the greatness of playing for Venezuela,” wrote former coach Richard Páez, who came to coincide with him during his playing days.
Mendocita has been listed as unot one of the best Venezuelan players of all time and was a scorer for Vinotinto between the sixties and seventies, despite playing mainly as a midfielder.
Was five-time Venezuelan league champion with four different teams: Deportivo Italia (on two occasions), Deportivo Galicia, Estudiantes de Mérida and Portuguesa.
Among the distinctions he received is Venezuela’s Player of the Year in 1966; he is also member of the Venezuelan Sports Hall of Fame.
With the Vinotinto He played three editions of the Copa América and after his retirement he was the coach of Vinotinto in 1989, in addition to being the reference par excellence of Venezuelan soccer.
In 2003, Mendoza was named technical director of Monagas Sport Club, following the departure of Colombian-Venezuelan coach Eduardo Borrero.
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