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Robert Méndez Rodríguez (born 28 August 1989) is a Chilean former footballer who played as a midfielder.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Robert Méndez Rodríguez | ||
| Date of birth | 28 August 1989 | ||
| Place of birth | Concepción, Chile | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Universidad de Concepción | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2007–2010 | Universidad de Concepción | ||
| 2009 | → Iberia (loan) | ||
| 2010 | → Fernández Vial (loan) | ||
| Chiguayante Sur | |||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Méndez began his career with Universidad de Concepción, signing a professional contract with the club at the age of eighteen.[1] Despite showing promise at an early age, he was sent by then-manager Jorge Pellicer on loan to Tercera A side Iberia in 2009 - a move Méndez suggested may have simply been a mistake in a 2023 interview with Diario AS.[1][2] On 26 October 2009, Méndez was involved in a car accident while travelling on the highway from Los Ángeles to Concepción; after his partner, who was driving, fell asleep, the car crashed into a sign and Méndez suffered an injury to his left foot, later requiring one of his toes to be amputated.[1][2]
Having spent three months in hospital, and another three months recovering, Méndez was loaned again to the third division in 2010, this time joining Fernández Vial.[2] After suffering a meniscus tear, he struggled to get game-time, and with his contract at Universidad de Concepción set to expire, he decided to retire.[1] Following his retirement from professional football, he would feature for local amateur side Chiguayante Sur.[1]
Though never called up to represent Chile in official games, Méndez was called up by then-Chile national team manager Marcelo Bielsa in 2007 to play for a squad of under-18 players, led by César Vaccia, in 'sparring' games with the senior squad.[3]
Méndez was given the nickname "Chilean Messi" by then-Chile national team assistant manager, Eduardo Berizzo, as he shared a similar hairstyle and technical ability as Argentine football legend Lionel Messi.[2][4]
After his spell with Fernández Vial, he began to drink alcohol more frequently, and in a 2018 interview with El Mercurio, he stated that this led to him crashing his car a number of times.[1] His local side, Chiguayante Sur, offered him a position on the team, as well as helping him get a job as a driver for a construction company.[1] Following this, he became an electrical installer in Antofagasta, and later began studying to be a technician in mining processes.[1][2]
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