The Liga MX’s longest serving one-club players
Five Mexican players who have shown complete loyalty for their clubs in Mexico’s top flight.
Modern day football is a very transient business with players moving from club to club several times during their careers. However, there are five players in the Liga MX who have remained at their clubs for the duration of their careers.
Francisco Jara, Ignacio Flores, Jorge Dávalos, Mario Juárez and Juan Carlos Leaño have the peculiarity of having remained loyal to just one club - albeit different ones.
Francisco Jara Garibay spent 10 consecutive seasons as a centre-forward for Chivas. Now aged 82, the former player made his first division debut for the Rojiblancos as a teenager in 1960. Success came quickly for the young forward who was part of the 1960/61 championship-winning side. By the time he hanged up his boots, Jara had won five league titles during his decade’s service.
Ignacio ‘Nacho’ Flores served as a right-back and picked up four of the nine titles that Cruz Azul has won during their history. He spent 18 years with the Cementeros - more than enough to immortalize him as one of the clubs most legendary players. By the time his career ended, the Atomic Ant’ had contributed 16 goals in league 514 games, two more goals in national cups and another two in international competitions.
Similarly, Jorge Dávalos made history with Leones Negros. For approximately 14 years, he defended the shirt of the University of Guadalajara (U. de G) and for 12 of, he wore the captain’s armband. In 1977, he began his story with the club and continued until his career came full circle in 1991. Born in Tala, Jalisco, he worked on and off the field. In 2017, he led his beloved team in 69 matches and is currently the Sports Coordinator at Cruz Azul.
Another of the figures to have achieved the feat is Mario Juárez. El Mudo played 395 games with Atlético Morelia, then Monarcas Morelia. Although he was a midfielder, he regularly joined the attack and finished with an impressive tally of 49 goals. In 1964, at the age of 16, he put on the red and yellow kit for the first time and remained at the club until 1999.
Finally, a more recent case of a one-club player is that of Juan Carlos Leaño del Castillo. Better known as Cheto Leaño, he was active for more than a decade. He devoted 14 years of his life to the extinct Tecos Futbol Club, racking up 301 appearances from 1998 to 2012, during which he scored nine goals. After the club was relegated to the second division, he made the decision to call it a day.