Unquestionably his country's greatest ever footballer, Peruvian legend Teófilo Cubillas was born in Puente Piedra, near Lima, in 1949. He began his career aged just 17 with Alianza Lima, one of the country's leading clubs, and made an instant impact. Cubillas finished as the league's leading goalscorer in his first season and established a reputation as one of the finest strikers in South America.
His international debut came in 1968, and two years later Cubillas was one of players of the tournament at the World Cup in Mexico, scoring five goals in just four games as Peru reached the last eight before bowing out to eventual winners Brazil. After being named South American Footballer of the Year in 1972, Cubillas left Alianza to play in Europe, first in a short spell in Switzerland with Basel and then with FC Porto.
Peru missed out on qualifying for the 1974 World Cup, but Cubillas became a very popular player at Porto despite failing to win any trophies during his time at the club. His stay in Portugal did however see one of the highlights of his career when he returned home to Peru to help the national team win the Copa America on home soil in 1975. Cubillas returned to Alianza in 1976, and finally enjoyed domestic success when Alianza won the Peruvian League title in both 1977 and 1978.
Playing in his second World Cup in Argentina in 1978, Cubillas again scored five goals to finish as second highest scorer as Peru reached the second group stage. Following the tournament he made a move to the big-money North American Soccer League to play for the Fort Lauderdale Strikers. In five years with the club he became their highest ever goalscorer, leading the team to within one game of the league title in 1980.
Cubillas played in his third World Cup in Spain in 1982, but was past his best and could not prevent Peru from being knocked out in the First Round. Following the relocation of the Fort Lauderdale Strikers to Minneapolis, Cubillas played briefly for their successor team Fort Lauderdale Sun before retiring from playing. Since his retirement he has spent many years coaching youth players in his native Peru and in the United States.
