Gabriel Mendoza
 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Gabriel Rafael Mendoza Ibarra | ||
| Date of birth | 22 May 1968 | ||
| Place of birth | Graneros, Chile | ||
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Right-back | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1986–1990 | O'Higgins | 78 | (4) |
| 1991–1996 | Colo-Colo | 163 | (6) |
| 1997 | São Paulo | 17 | (0) |
| 1998–1999 | Tigres UANL | 19 | (1) |
| 2000 | Santiago Wanderers | 25 | (0) |
| 2001 | Colo-Colo | 13 | (1) |
| 2001 | Shandong Luneng | 6 | (0) |
| 2002 | Santiago Morning | 17 | (0) |
| International career | |||
| 1991–1997 | Chile | 36 | (1) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Gabriel Rafael Mendoza Ibarra (born 22 May 1968), commonly known as Coca Mendoza, is a Chilean former professional footballer who played as a right-back and central midfielder. Mendoza was member of Colo-Colo's historic squad that achieved 1991 Copa Libertadores.
Playing career
[edit]Mendoza was born in Graneros. He arrived to Colo-Colo, after of made a recognized season with O'Higgins. In the Cacique, he immediately was won the position of right back in the squad of the coach Mirko Jozic, European style assiduously defensive, but with very vertigo in the sidebands.
He was one of key players of the club in the squad that Colo-Colo achieved the Copa Libertadores 1991, after of defeat to Olimpia for 3–0 in the final, however he also was included in the best team of South America. Mendoza also won the Chilean Primera Division with the club in the same year. In the match against Puebla for Recopa Sudamericana of 1992, he scored one of three goals of Colo-Colo, in the 3–1 victory. After of four good seasons, he was signed by Tigres UANL of Mexico.
After of made an irregular season with Tigres, he return to Chile, for play at Santiago Wanderers in 2000. One year later, he returned to Colo-Colo. After of his spent for Colo-Colo, he joined to Shandong Luneng of Chinese Super League. He had gone to China along with Ricardo Queraltó, but he just could sign with the club.[1] Finally in 2002, he return to Chile for finish his career at Santiago Morning.
Post-playing career
[edit]In 2005, Gabriel Mendoza participated in the reality show La Granja VIP. During the reality, he was the runner-up of the contest, after of loss in a mourning of force at final against the Spanish singer Javier Estrada. After of his participation in this reality, he was invited to many stellars of the Chilean TV. In 2009, Mendoza once appeared in a TV series, the reality show 1810 of Canal 13. He had his personal revenge, because he won the final of the reality, winning a reward of 50 million pesos (US$80.000).
Currently Mendoza plays in the Chile national team of Showbol, tournament of futsal played for all South America. He also has a football school in Viña del Mar, called Gabriel "Coca" Mendoza.
In the 2016 Chilean municipal elections, Mendoza was elected as a councilman for Viña del Mar with the Independent Democratic Union, winning 5,314 votes, the most in that city's election.[2]
In the 2021 Chilean municipal elections, Mendoza was a candidate to Alcalde for Graneros commune.[3]
Personal life
[edit]Mendoza is better knwon by his nickname Coca for his similarity with the Chilean television actress Coca Guazzini.[4]
References
[edit]- ^ Abarzúa, Esteban (30 March 2020). "Secretos de camarín" (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 September 2022.
- ^ Echagüe, Patricio (31 May 2020). "Gabriel Mendoza y las críticas por su tendencia política: "No soy un desclasado como muchos lo dicen"". Dale Albo (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 June 2025.
- ^ "Víctor Hugo Castañeda y Gabriel Mendoza perdieron en las elecciones de alcalde en La Serena y Graneros". alairelibre.cl (in Spanish). Radio Cooperativa. 16 May 2021. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
- ^ "De aquí nació el apodo de Gabriel "Coca" Mendoza". Canal 13 (in Spanish). 8 May 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
External links
[edit]- Gabriel Mendoza at National-Football-Teams.com
- Gabriel Mendoza at WorldFootball.net
- Gabriel Mendoza at MemoriaWanderers.cl (in Spanish)
Chile squads | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||||||||
- 1968 births
- Living people
- People from Graneros
- Footballers from O'Higgins Region
- Chilean people of Basque descent
- Sportspeople of Spanish descent
- Chilean men's footballers
- Chilean expatriate men's footballers
- Chile men's international footballers
- 1991 Copa América players
- 1993 Copa América players
- 1995 Copa América players
- Men's association football defenders
- O'Higgins F.C. footballers
- Colo-Colo footballers
- Copa Libertadores–winning players
- São Paulo FC players
- Tigres UANL footballers
- Santiago Wanderers footballers
- Shandong Taishan F.C. players
- Santiago Morning footballers
- Primera B de Chile players
- Chilean Primera División players
- Ascenso MX players
- Liga MX players
- China League One players
- Expatriate men's footballers in Brazil
- Expatriate men's footballers in China
- Expatriate men's footballers in Mexico
- Chilean expatriate sportspeople in Brazil
- Chilean expatriate sportspeople in China
- Chilean expatriate sportspeople in Mexico
- Reality show winners
- Reality television participants
- Independent Democratic Union politicians
- Chilean sportsperson-politicians
- Chilean city councillors
- Chilean television personalities
- 20th-century Chilean sportsmen