Óscar Sánchez (footballer, born 1971)

Óscar Sánchez
Personal information
Full name	Óscar Carmelo Sánchez Zambrana
Date of birth	July 16, 1971
Place of birth	Cochabamba, Bolivia
Date of death	November 23, 2007 (aged 36)
Place of death	La Paz, Bolivia
Height	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s)	Defender
Youth career
	Aurora
Senior career*
Years	Team
1991–1996	The Strongest
1997–1998	Gimnasia de Jujuy
1998–1999	Independiente
2000–2001	The Strongest
2002–2006	Bolivar
2007	The Strongest
Total
International career‡
1994–2006	Bolivia
Managerial career
2007	The Strongest
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 13:51, 19 June 2009 (UTC); ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 13:51, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

Óscar Carmelo Sánchez Zambrana (July 16, 1971 – November 23, 2007) was a Bolivian footballer who played for the Bolivia national football team in the 1994 FIFA World Cup held in the United States. Born in Cochabamba, he was capped 78 times by Bolivia and scored 6 goals, between 1994 and 2006.^[1] He was the captain of the national team several times. He made his debut for the national side on April 20, 1994, in a friendly match in Bucharest against Romania.

At club level he began his professional career with The Strongest in 1991. After five seasons with the atigrados, he was transferred to Argentine club Gimnasia y Esgrima de Jujuy, where he built a solid reputation as a temperamental and tough defender with scoring ability. His impressive displays rewarded him with a transfer to giant club Independiente in the winter of 1998. On his return to Bolivia in 2000, he would spend two more periods with The Strongest, and one with Bolívar. In 2007, he had one of his kidneys removed due to the discovery of a tumour, which proved to be malignant. After the operation he continued playing, but was forced to retire soon thereafter. He was offered the manager position of The Strongest, with which he attained an impressive undefeated streak. In October 2007, his weak health forced him to quit that position too. Sánchez died on November 23, 2007.^[2]