Career
Alberto Spencer began his career at age 15 playing for Everest. He jumped to fame when he was scouted while playing on loan for Barcelona SC against Peñarol in July 1959. Peñarol's manager, Hugo Bagnulo, asked his scout 'Pibe' Ortega to attempt to sign him after the game was over. He was soon transferred to Peñarol where he amassed three Libertadores Cups and two Intercontinental Cups, as well as several Uruguayan league titles. After his second Intercontinental Cup, he was twice sought by Inter Milan, but ultimately Peñarol's board would not sell him.
On the international front, Spencer holds the unique distinction of being the only goalscorer, capped by two different countries simultaneously: Ecuador, and Uruguay. He 'switched' shirts no less than four times. He played for Uruguay against England (2-1) in a friendly match at the legendary Wembley Stadium and scored, making him the first Ecuadorian-born player to score in that stadium.
His name was omitted from FIFA's, and Pelé's list of 100 greatest living players. This caused outrage among many South American journalists who despised the idea of forgetting some of the greats, like Spencer, in favour of commercialism. David Mellor of the Evening Standard notably blasted FIFA in his reporting of the incident.
Although widely considered one of the best South American players of all time, he still remains largely an unknown figure in Europe. This is presumably due to his having never participated in a World Cup or playing in Europe. Similar fates awaited other greats such as Alfredo Di Stéfano and George Best, though both are far more known due to their domestic careers with Real Madrid and Manchester United respectively.
He was elected the 20th South America Player of the Century in a poll by the IFFHS in 2004.
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