League 1 2024 starts in almost a month; However, Universitario fans still remember the 2023 final in which they defeated Alianza Lima at the Alejandro Villanueva Stadium. This great game will be remembered by Merengue fans, not only because it prevented their long-time rivals from winning the three-time championship, but also because they made their third Olympic appearance in La Victoria. This event is known as “Matutazo”, a name also given to the author's book. Juan Carlos Chavez.
This self-confessed Creme fan, who has also written other books such as “Crema, my great friend”, “The Wonderful Years” and “Matute 99”, told La República how the idea for this chronicle of the final at the Matute Stadium was born on November 8, 2023. Juan Carlos Chavez revealed some details that were not seen in this important duel, which ended in a blackout and gave “more shine” to the championship achieved by the “U”.
Universitario made the Olympic round for the third time in Matute. Photo: University
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“Matutazo”: Creamclaw’s Mastery of the Dark
—How did the idea of writing “Matutazo” come about?
—I experienced the finale like another fan; However, a few days later the idea of working on something disappeared, but she stuck with it. My horizon for writing this book extended well beyond 2023, but other circumstances occurred along the way. A bit of coincidence and also causality led me to get involved in this project.
—I heard in an interview that you only had 7 days to create this book of almost 300 pages. What motivated you to take the risk of writing this book in such a short time?
“What fascinated me most about the project was that an important publishing group was behind it and the Crisol bookstores were also involved.” This was important because there was a very strong impetus for the book; There was also great interest in publishing a commemorative book for this title (…). The Antártica publishing house gave me a lot of wings to be able to participate in the structure of the book, to have a lot of decision-making power in certain things, and it was as if I was doing it myself.
— In addition to the short time, you mention in the book that you wrote this chronicle in different countries such as Argentina and Chile. How was this trip?
—They contacted me for the first time on November 23rd and we had a few days to negotiate the book's characteristics, deadlines and everything else. So I started writing on Saturday November 25th until the following Monday (December 4th) and submitted everything. It was a pretty intense week due to several sunrises and excursions I had planned. Several weeks have passed and I realize that it was an effort, a very big sacrifice, but compensated by the result.
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—The book summarizes some anecdotes from the club that were not known: Which footballers or leaders of the Universitario helped you?
“I was lucky enough to interview Horacio Calcaterra and some of the things I say in the book are based on information he provided to me. Out of the entire team, he was the only one I had contact with and he gave me 10 points. Also, I can't give their names, but there are a few Universitario leaders who helped me contact Calcaterra.
—Is there an anecdote that couldn't be told in the book due to time constraints?
—There is one topic that is not discussed and that is the first leg. I don't talk much, almost nothing, and the publisher asked me not to, because if a second edition comes out, it will be added as an additional chapter.
—Could you tell us an anecdote from this first leg that fans might not know?
—There is an anecdote related to the arrival of the Alianza delegation, where there was already some friction with the “U” leadership. In September, the women's final had taken place at the Monumental and there was a precedent for Alianza not keeping the entry forms for their delegation. Then they tried to repeat the same thing in this first men's final, but the “U” was already up and worried about avoiding another bad time. I'm telling you this in general terms because there are a lot of details in the game that are not known.
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—After the release of the book “Matutazo,” did you receive any comments from Alianza Lima fans?
-Not really. I don't know if any Alianza fan wants to digest again the bitter experience of reviewing a final that certainly hurt them a lot due to the sporting aspect. I wouldn't do it, for example. This means that if Universitario loses a final with whatever team and the other club publishes a book, I would hardly read it.
—What’s coming this year? Will you publish a book for Universitario's 100th birthday?
—Since I think this year is very special for Universitario, I would be interested in doing something. I have a few ideas that I'm playing around with and trying to figure out how to define them in the future. That's why I will definitely publish a new book this year, because it is the 100th anniversary, a very special date to be able to enrich the university bibliography.
Who is Juan Carlos Chavez?
Juan Carlos Chávez is a fan of the Universitario and president of the association Todo por la 'U'. He is the author of the three-volume book series “Crema, my great friend” and author of “The Wonderful Years” (2019) and “Matute 99” (2020).