Ecuadorian football is in mourning for Marco Angulo, a young 22-year-old midfieldera member of the Quito League and the national team of that country, who died in the last hours after having been hospitalized for more than a month after a very serious traffic accident. The news was confirmed by the club itself, which issued a succinct statement through its official social networks: “With deep pain and sadness, we regret to report the death of our beloved player Marco Angulo. We extend our heartfelt condolences to his family and loved ones. His departure is an irreparable loss that will leave an indelible mark on our hearts.”
On October 7, Angulo was traveling with four other people in a Ford Explorer vehicle, owned by his sister, on the General Rumiñahui Highway, in Quito. For reasons unknown, He lost control of the vehicle and collided with a beam used in the construction of a pedestrian bridge. As a result of the collision, two footballers who accompanied Angulo died instantly: Roberto Cabezas Simisterraof Independent Juniorsy Victor Charcopa Nazarenoof the Cuniburo Football Club. Angulo, meanwhile, was hospitalized with multiple critical injuries, such as a pelvic fracture, pneumothorax, cerebral edema and severe hemorrhages, which required an operation to relieve intracranial pressure. Thirty-nine days after the event, he died in the hospital.
The Ecuadorian Football Federation (FEF) also published an emotional message: “We join in solidarity with his family, colleagues and loved ones, wishing them strength in this difficult time.”
Angulo, born on May 8, 2002, emerged from the prestigious lower divisions of Independiente del Valle, with which he was champion of the Copa Libertadores Sub 20 in 2020.
He debuted in the first division in 2021 and with the Independiente del Valle senior team he won the local tournament and the 2022 Copa Sudamericana, in which he beat Sao Paulo in the final, at the Mario Alberto Kempes stadium, in Córdoba. In that remembered game, Angulo was a starter.
Marco Angulo, with the 2022 Copa Sudamericana champion medal, which he obtained with Independiente del Valle against Sao Paulo, at the Mario Alberto Kempes stadium, in Córdoba, Hernan Cortez – Getty Images South America
His good performances caught the attention of clubs abroad, and it was the MLS that decided to bet on him. In exchange for almost 3 million dollars, Angulo joined the ranks of Cincinnati. He played for the American club during the 2023 season and this year he had been loaned to the Liga Deportiva Universitaria de Quito, with which he played in the Copa Libertadores and the Sudamericana, from which he was eliminated in the round of 16 by Lanús.
It was Gustavo Alfaro who noticed him and called him up when he was in charge of the Ecuador team, in the run-up to the World Cup in Qatar. Angulo played the second half of the friendly against Iraq that ended 0-0, on November 22, 2022. Finally, he was left off the list for the World Cup. Already with the Spanish Félix Sánchez at the head of the national team, in 2023 he participated in a call for two games against Australia.
During these hours, messages of pain and goodbye are multiplying on social networks, especially from people who lived with Angulo in football. Among them, the Argentine soccer players Ezequiel Piovi and Lisandro Alzugaray, teammates in the Quito League.
According to the criteria of
