A deceased Chilean footballer is being celebrated around the world after his former teammates arranged for him to score a goal from his coffin in tribute to his striking prowess. Jaime Escandar died in the dying days of 2021, but his friends at Chilean team Aparicion de Paine wanted to celebrate the striker’s life.
They placed his coffin in the six-yard box and a teammate sent the ball into the coffin to bounce back into the goal. Dozens of spectators cheered enthusiastically as the ball hit the net. Some fired fireworks as friends in Aparicion’s green shirts knelt and hugged the coffin draped in the team’s colors.
Although little is known about the man, the video shot on January 3 in Huelquen, a suburb of Santiago, quickly went viral with sites across Latin America highlighting the passion and dedication that proof the fans. “He brought us together,” said Felipe Orellana, who filmed the happy scene. “What he leaves us with is this unity… We didn’t think (the video) would be shared around the world because he was just a regular guy.
“A very different goal, which was celebrated with pity and tears,” Escandar’s club said in a Facebook post, adding that the center-forward “celebrated from the sky with all his soul.” “Your heritage will never be forgotten.” (Written by Andrew Downie; edited by Ken Ferris)
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