Antonio de Nigris

Antonio de Nigris Guajardo (1 April 1978 – 16 November 2009) was a Mexican footballer who played as a striker.

During his career, which was cut short at 31 by a fatal heart attack,^[1] he played in six different countries, also representing twelve clubs in nine years.

Club career

Born in Monterrey, Nuevo León, de Nigris became interested in sports at a young age, and began his football career with C.F. Monterrey. He then played for two seasons in Spain (first and second divisions), with little impact at Villarreal CF and modest Polideportivo Ejido, returning to Americas with Once Caldas, with whom, in the 2004 Intercontinental Cup, he scored in the penalty shootout defeat against F.C. Porto.

After another stint in Mexico, de Nigris was signed by Santos Futebol Clube of Brazil on 20 March 2006, making his debut against Brasiliense Futebol Clube in a Brazilian Cup match. However, in late 2006, he switched to Turkey, playing in quick succession for three teams in the country: Gaziantepspor, Ankaraspor and Ankaragücü. He was released from the latter due to heart problems, and his license was cancelled by the Turkish Football Federation.

Death

In 2009–10, de Nigris moved teams again, signing with Greek outfit Larissa FC for two years. On 16 November 2009, Jorge Urdiales, president of former club Monterrey, confirmed de Nigris had died, apparently from a heart attack.^[2][3]

International career

A Mexican international since 2001, de Nigris represented his nation at that year's Copa América. His debut came on 7 March in a friendly against Brazil, scoring the 2–0 in an eventual 3–3 draw.

After a seven-year absence in the national squad, de Nigris was called by national coach Hugo Sánchez for a friendly match against the United States, on 6 February 2008. He underperformed in that match and was substituted, but would also appear against Ghana in London; he totalled 16 appearances with four goals until his death, at 31.^[4]

International goals

Goal	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	7 March 2001	Estadio Jalisco, Guadalajara, Mexico	Brazil	2–0	3–3	Friendly
2.	25 March 2001	Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico	Jamaica	1–0	4–0	2002 World Cup qualification
3.	25 March 2001	Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico	Jamaica	2–0	4–0	2002 World Cup qualification
4.	23 August 2001	Estadio Luis de la Fuente, Veracruz, Mexico	Liberia	5–4	5–4	Friendly

Personal life

De Nigris' younger brother Aldo is also a footballer (also a striker, he too represented Monterrey and the national team), while older sibling Alfonso is an actor and model. He was given the nickname Tano by his Italian grandfather.^[5] He was survived by his wife and a five year-old daughter, named Miranda.

References

External links

• BDFutbol profile
• Antonio de Nigris at National-Football-Teams.com
• Addicion Rayada profile (Spanish)
• Photos at Addicion Rayada (Spanish)

v t e Mexico squad – 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup 1 Sánchez 2 Suárez 3 Beltrán 4 Oteo 5 Davino 6 M. Ruiz 7 Rangel 8 Rodríguez 9 Abundis 10 Borgetti 11 Osorno 12 Cabuto 13 Pardo 14 Villa 15 de Nigris 16 Coyote 17 Valdez 18 Victorino 19 Reyes 20 V. Ruiz 21 Pérez 22 Chávez 23 Dautt Coach: Meza

v t e Mexico squad – Copa América 2001 Runners-up 1 Sánchez 2 A. Rodríguez 3 H. Morales 4 Márquez 5 Vidrio 6 Torrado 7 Valdez 8 García Aspe 9 Borgetti 10 Victorino 11 Osorno 12 Pérez 13 Mercado 14 De Nigris 15 Juan Pablo Rodríguez 16 Reyes 17 Hierro 18 J. Rodríguez 19 Zepeda 20 C. Morales 21 Arellano 22 Martínez Coach: Aguirre

v t e Mexico squad – 2002 CONCACAF Gold Cup 1 Martínez 2 Arias 3 Balderas 4 Hierro 5 de Anda 6 Sosa 7 Gutiérrez 8 Campos 9 Ochoa 10 Garcés 11 de Nigris 12 Ortíz 13 Sancho 14 García 15 Noriega 16 Reyes 17 Espinosa 18 Bautista Coach: Aguirre