Members and fans of Independiente, grouped through Socios por Independiente and Movimiento Independiente Exigente, put into action a plan so that Pepé Santoro, one of the greatest idols in the club’s history, has a statue. The remembered goalkeeper of the cup cycles, who was also interim coach at various times of the club and trainer of great figures in the position (among them, Dibu Martínez), was excited about the initiative. “The fan, you can see, he loves me a lot,” he said in reference to the fact that, in addition, one of the headers of the Ricardo Bochini stadium bears his name. When he was informed about the undertaking, he was excited that his figure had his arms raised, just as the players greeted when they went out on the field since the 60s.
The first images of what the statue will be like – two meters high – were shown on the social networks of Socios Por Independiente (@SociosporCAI) and Movimiento Independiente Exigente (@MovimientoIE). There are more than fifty people working to carry out the project. To raise funds, they appealed to the sale of a thousand raffles of a replica of the Copa Libertadores. In a few hours they were sold.
This would be the statue of Pepé. (@SociosporCAI)
“The responsibility that comes with managing large sums of members’ money requires us to be as transparent as possible. As in other projects that we undertake, we always seek to make all the information we handle available to all those interested, so that they can see the money that was received, the receipts of the movement of that money, and the final destination of the proceeds. . We try to make that our line of work because we build a certain credibility over time and we intend to maintain it,” members of Socios por Independiente told Página/12.
“Although every time we meet Pepé we let him know our deep affection, it seems to be negligible next to everything we as fans receive from him. Both in his stage as a footballer, and in his stage as a goalkeeper trainer and searcher for new talents, Santoro demonstrated professionalism, loyalty and, above all, love,” they added.
Although there is no specific date, it is estimated that it will be three months of pure work to finish the statue. It is understood that it will then be exhibited in the stadium or headquarters, although when asked by this newspaper, those responsible responded that the location will be a decision of the Independiente board of directors and perhaps Santoro himself.
Also Bernao
Another great reference in the history of Independiente like Raúl Bernao will have a sculpture. In the first stage of this project, 320,000 pesos were raised to make a sketch and a model. It is now estimated that making the bust will take a minimum of four months of work. The value of the work is 1,600 dollars, of which half has already been raised through raffles and contributions. The remaining 800 are expected to be collected through raffles.
From the account @locobernao, the initiative is carried out, among others, by the journalist Leandro Balducci, author of the recently published book Bernao, idol and crazy.
The union of Independiente fans and members, led by the influencer Santiago Maratea and with Pepé Santoro as the club’s reference, made it possible at the beginning of last year to raise the money to unblock the economic inhibition and pay debts. “What is happening to us is proof that, united, we fans achieve great things,” the members of Socios por Independiente tell this newspaper.
2024-01-16 15:46:51
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