Two footballers have died after their car struck the rear of a lorry on a motorway in Mexico, leaving a 21-year-old woman travelling with them in a critical condition.
Goalkeeper Jose Ignacio Moreno Fernandez, 28, known as Nacho Porte, and forward Carlos Alfonso Ramirez Guevara, 26, known as Charly, were pronounced dead at the scene. Both players became trapped in the wreckage after the collision.
Crash on Cuacnopalan–Oaxaca motorway
The accident happened in the early hours of Monday, September 28, on the Cuacnopalan–Oaxaca motorway near Palmar de Bravo in Puebla State. The blue 2015 Ford Focus, driven by Nacho with Charly beside him, collided with the back of a Freightliner flatbed lorry close to kilometre one.
Emergency services worked to extract the pair from the vehicle following the impact. The 21-year-old female passenger survived and was taken to a private medical facility in a critical state.
Tributes from football community
Authorities confirmed both men were highly regarded in the regional football leagues of Puebla and neighbouring Tlaxcala. Nacho had come through the youth academies of prominent Mexican clubs and top-tier sides Lobos BUAP and Pachuca. Team-mates said he had been scheduled to represent the regional selection at the forthcoming Telmex Cup.
Charly was a prominent forward in the amateur football circuit throughout Puebla State. Tributes have been paid by clubs and figures within the local football community. Forensic experts are working to determine the precise cause of the collision.
