The Ecuadorian left-back Mario Pineida, 33 years old, ex-Fluminense, was shot dead this Wednesday (17/12)in Guayaquil, Ecuador, as reported in the country’s press. The player’s current club, Barcelona de Guayaquil, confirmed the death and released a note of condolence on social media. Pineida defended Fluminense in 2022, when he played on loan.
According to information from the website “Ecuavisa”, Pineida was shot in front of a butcher shop in the Sanales neighborhood. In the attack, the player’s wife also died. The athlete’s mother, who was at the scene at the time of the crime, was rescued with injuries.
The murder occurred just hours after the president of Barcelona de Guayaquil, Antonio Álvarez, made public that Pineida had requested special protection because he was receiving death threats. On the same morning, the club’s squad decided to suspend activities in protest against the four-month delay in paying salaries.
This year, Pineida was in the Barcelona-EQU reserve, playing 14 games. With no space in the squad, the athlete was close to signing a move to Emelec, also from Ecuador.
According to Ecuadorian media outlets, the country’s football is facing a sequence of violent episodes involving athletes. In addition to Pineida, three other deaths were recently recorded: Maicol Valencia and Leandro Yépez, players from Exapromo Costa, from the second division, murdered on September 8, and Jonathan González, former Independiente del Valle and LDU, killed on the 20th of the same month.
Barcelona-EQU statement on the death of Mario Pineida
“To our partners and fans:
Barcelona Sporting Club informs, with deep regret, that it has been officially notified of the death of our player Mario Pineida, which occurred following an attack on him.
This regrettable news deeply dismays everyone who is part of the institution and unites us as a Barcelona family.
In the coming hours, we will inform you in a timely manner about the acts that will be carried out in his memory. For now, we ask our members, fans and public opinion to raise a prayer for the rest of his soul and for strength for his entire family in this moment of immense pain.
Barcelona Sporting Club”
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