CHAPECOENSE: CHAMPIONS IN HEAVEN

On the night of November 28, 2016 a plane with 81 people aboard,  the charter airline Boliviana Lamia, heading for the airport of Medellin, crashed in Cerro Gordo, 57 km from the Colombian capital. Aboard also the Chapecoense Brazilian team,  Santa Catarina state, which flew to the final of the South American Cup (the equivalent of the Europa League) against Atletico Nacional. For Chapecoense is the first end of the story.

Something as terrible as that had already happened in the history of football. It was May 4, 1949 when the plane of the 'invincible' of Turin was returning from Lisbon after playing a friendly against Benfica: the collection of that event would be donated to the captain of the Lusitanian team, Francisco Ferreira, in great economic difficulty. That plane, carrying one of the best teams of all time, never landed; Grande Torino perished in that tragic accident at 17:05 o

f the Black Wednesday. Unfortunately, the story was repeated more than once ...  we also remember the great Manchester United 1958.

Brazil football is mobilized to come to the rescue to Chapecoense, the private team of as many as 20 players by the air in the vicinity of Medellin, Colombia. Four club, Corinthians, Palmeiras, Santos and Sao Paulo, signed a document with the aim of ensuring loan players and 'protect' the Chapecoense from next season, it has also been asked not to demote the team in B series for the next 3 years.  Not only the Brazilian teams but also many European teams have offered their help, support and money. Paris Saint-Germain striker Edinson Cavani says he understands that the referee had no choice but to book him for taking his shirt off to unveil a message about the Chapecoense tragedy after scoring in the 2-0 win over Angers on Wednesday.

Cavani scored a 66th-minute penalty to double PSG's advantage and then took his shirt off to reveal another shirt with a message for the families of the victims of the Chapecoense plane crash. Speaking in the mixed zone after the match, the Uruguay international player said he spoke with the referee Frank Schneider before he was booked and he "understood" because he knows "that's the way he is".

Alex P. & Denis