Julio César Romero Insfrán (born 28 August 1960), also known as Romerito, is a Paraguayan former professional footballer who played as a midfielder, considered among the greatest players in Paraguayan football history. He is the only Paraguayan named by Pelé as one of the FIFA 100 in March 2004.
Career Born in Luque, Paraguay, Romerito started his career at local club Sportivo Luqueño in 1977, by 1979 Romerito's consistent performances had earned him a place in the Paraguay national team that played in the FIFA World Youth Championship and was considered one of the best players of the tournament along with Diego Maradona. In the same year, Romerito played a key role in Paraguay's win in the Copa América, scoring three goals.
In 1980, he joined now defunct New York Cosmos where he played alongside such greats as the Brazilian and German World Cup winning captains of 1970 and 1974 Carlos Alberto and Franz Beckenbauer. In the 1980 Soccer Bowl he scored the game-winning goal of a 3–0 victory over Ft. Lauderdale.
Romerito moved to Brazil to play for Fluminense where he was selected as the South American Footballer of the Year in 1985. He became a fan favorite after leading the team to a Campeonato Brasileiro.
In 1986, he was a key player in helping the Paraguay national team return to the FIFA World Cup finals after a 28-year hiatus.World Cup 1986 qualifications by Karel Stokkermans, Sergio Henrique Jarreta and Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics FoundationWorld Cup 1986 finals by Karel Stokkermans, Sergio Henrique Jarreta and Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation At the finals in Mexico, he scored against Iraq and the host nation in the first round.
After a short spell with FC Barcelona in Spain and a stint in Mexico with Puebla F.C. Romerito returned to South America where he played out his career with Olimpia, Club Cerro Corá and Sportivo Luqueño in Paraguay and Deportes La Serena in Chile.
During his career, he scored a little more than 400 goals.
International goals Scores and results list Paraguay's goal tally first. No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition 1. 31 October 1979 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 2–2 2–2 1979 Copa América 2. 28 November 1979 Asunción, Paraguay 1–0 3–0 3. 3–0 4. 31 May 1981 3–0 3–1 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification 5. 5 October 1983 Lima, Peru 1–0 2–0 Friendly 6. 7 October 1983 Asunción, Paraguay 2–0 4–1 7. 4–1 8. 9 June 1985 Asunción, Paraguay 3–0 3–0 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification 9. 23 June 1985 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 1–1 1–1 10. 27 October 1985 Asunción, Paraguay 2–0 3–0 11. 17 November 1985 Santiago, Chile 2–1 2–2 12. 4 June 1986 Toluca, Mexico 1–0 1–0 1986 FIFA World Cup 13. 7 June 1986 Mexico City, Mexico 1–1 1–1
Honours New York Cosmos NASL: 1980, 1982
Fluminense Série A: 1984 Campeonato Carioca: 1984, 1985
Barcelona UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 1988–89
Puebla Primera División: 1989–90 Copa Mexico: 1989–90
Olimpia Asunción Torneo República: 1992
Paraguay Copa América: 1979
Individual South American Footballer of the Year: 1985; Silver Award: 1979 South American Team of the Year: 1986 Paraguayan First Division top scorer: 1990 FIFA top 125 greatest living footballers: 2004
Facts Romerito is the joint-fourth highest scorer in the history of the Paraguay national team with 13 goals. Romerito is a politician for the Colorado Party in his native city of Luque and works as a city counselor. In September 2006, Romerito made his debut as a rock singer in the Paraguayan music festival called "Pilsen Rock". He took the stage as a guest of the popular local band Revolber and sang the opening words of the song "Siete hermanos, 1 misil" in front of a crowd of 40,000.Marca article
References
External links
Romero's debut as a rock singer (video) Midfield Dynamo's 10 Heroes of the Copa América Romero listed in the top 10 New York Cosmos stats