Peru All-time 23 member team

Peru in the 1970's

Peru first made their mark on international football at the 1936 Berlin Olympics with their first Golden Generation.  They eliminated Austria's Wunderteam in the quarterfinal, but the organizer forced a rematch in which Peru forfeited the game. They won the 1939 South American Championship.

Forty years later, the second Golden Genertion arrived.  Héctor Chumpitaz, Teofilo Cubillas, Cesar Cueto  and Hugo Sotil formed the backbone of the team that charmed the world with dynamic performances at the 1970 and 1978 World Cup Finals.  They also won the Copa America in 1975.

If there were an All-Time World Cup, this would be 23 players I would bring to the tournament.

Team
GK : Juan Valdivieso
He was considered as Peru's greatest goalkeeper.  He was known for being a great penalty-stopper and also played successfully as a forward.  He played at the 1936 Olympics.  In the quarterfinal against Austria, Peru was leading 4-2 at 119th minute when a pitch invasion forced a replay.  Peru did not play and Austria advanced to the next round and would win the silver medal.

GK: Jose Soriano
He was best remembered for playing for River Plate in 1944 and 1946 and was the keeper for "La Máquina".  He was invited to play for Argentina, but declined it.


GK: Ramón Quiroga
Born in Argentina, he went to the WC in 1978 and 1982.  He is remembered for conceding 6 goals against his birth country Argentina and Argentina advanced to the WC Final.

RB: Jaime Duarte 
He played mainly for  Alianza Lima.  He went to the WC Finals in 1978 and 1982.

CB: Hector Chumpitaz
Peru's captain during their Golden Generation in the 1970's.  Peru with him as the captain won the  Copa America 1975 and qualified for the 1970 and 1978 World Cups, He was considered one of the best defenders in South America. 

Hector Chumpitaz

CB: Julio Meléndez 
Nicknamed "Black Diamond".  He was one of the best South American defender of his generation. He played for Boca Juniors between 1968 and 1972, and was considered one of Boca Juniors greatest players.

CB: Guillermo Delgado
Guillermo Delgado is also considered to be one of Peru's greatest defenders.  He was the hero of Peru's first ever victory over Brazil in 1953.

CB/DM: Victor Benitez 
Victor Benitez only played 11 games for Peru.  He was largely known for his career in Italy.  He  played for A.C. Milan, Messina, Roma, Venezia, and Inter Milan. In 1963, he won the European Cup with AC Milan.  He also played for Boca Juniors.

LB:  Nicolas Fuentes
A member of Peru's Golden Generation in the 1970's. He played mainly with Club Universitario de Deportes.

DM:  Jose Velazquez
He was not a member of Peru's 1970 team, but he won the Copa America in 1975.  He participated at the WC Finals in 1974, 1978 and 1982. He is considered one of the greatest defensive midfieders in South America.


RW/FW:  Hugo Sotil 
He was a key member of Peru's Golden Generation in the 1970's.  He played with Johan Cruyff at Barcelona where he was a fan favorite.

RW: Jefferson Farfan 
He began his professional career with Alianza Lima.  Later, he moved to play in Europe first with PSV Eindhoven and then, Schalke 04. 

Farfan

LW/ST:  Juan Seminario 
Juan Seminario had a great career in Europe during the 1960's.  He played with Sporting CP, Real Zaragoza, FC Barcelona and Fiorentina. He became the top scorer in La Liga with 25 goals for the 1961–62 season. For Peru, he scored a hat-trick against England in 1959.

LW:  Juan Joya
He was one of the best left wing in South American history.  He won 11 titles with Penarol, including two Copa Libertadores and a two Copa Intercontinental. 

AM: Cesar Cueto 
Nicknamed "El Poeta de la zurda" (the Left-footed Poet).  He was a key player in Peru's Golden Generation.  He played in 3 WC Finals and won the 1975 Copa America. He played club football in Colombia and Peru.


AM/SS: Julio Cesar Uribe
He started his career with Sporting Cristal before joining Caliari in 1982.  He also played in Colombia and Mexico.  He was capped 39 times and went to play at the 1982 WC Finals in Spain.

AM: Nolberto Solano
In 1998, he is the first Peruvian to play in the Premier League when he joined Newcastle United from Boca Juniors. He played 15 seasons in England.  He earned 95 caps for Peru.

AM: Alberto Terry
He is one of Universitario de Deportes' greatest players.  He was capped 25 times.

AM: Teofilo Cubillas
He is Peru's greatest ever player.  He was a part of three WC teams: 1970, 1978, 1982.  He is one of only three players to score five or more goals in two different World Cups.  Cubillas finished Number 17 at the South American Player of the Century award in 2006.  He is associated with Alianza Lima, but also played in Portugal, Switzerland and the United States.

Cubillas

ST Alejandro Villanueva
Known for his bicycle kicks.  He played his entire career with 
Alianza Lima.  He participated at the 1927 and 1937 Copa America, 1930 World Cup and at 1936 Summer Olympics.

ST: Valeriano López

He was a prolific goalscorer in the 1940's and 1950's.  His game-to goal ratio was more than a goal per game.  He spent most of his career in Peru, but had two stints with Deportivo Cali in Colombia.

ST: Teodoro Fernández 
He was part of the Peruvian squad that reached quarter-finals in the 1936 Olympic Games.  He won the 1939 Copa America, a tournament in which he emerged as the top scorer and best players.  He is the second top scorer in the history for his country.

ST: Claudio Pizarro

At the time of writing, he is the all-time leading foreign scorer in the Bundesliga history.  His career in Germany was sandwiched between Bayern Munich and Werder Bremen.  He also played for Chelsea in England.  For the national team, he only scored 19 times for 71 matches at the time of writing. 

Pizarro

Honorable Mention
Roberto Challe, Juan Manuel Vargas and Juan Jose Munante.

Squad Explantion

I coud not find space for Roberto Challe, Juan Manuel Vargas and Juan Jose Munante.

Starting lineup
Formation: 4-3-3
The code of the team is based on the Golden Generation of the 1970's.  I am using 4-3-3 used in Copa America 1975 and the WC Finals 1978. I started Jose Velazquez over Victor Benitez, and Julio Meléndez over Guillermo Delgado.