In July 1992, forward Leonel Bolsonello had only been in Mexico for two weeks, as he had been signed by Pumas for the 1992-93 season. The Brazilian arrived from his country accompanied by another compatriot, Sandro Coelho, to reinforce the university team in what was the second year of Ricardo 'Tuca' Ferretti as head coach after retiring as a player.
"Sandro and I had been on the team for about two weeks. We didn't know anything and we lived in the Pumas Clubhouse, which was on Revolution Avenue. There were only six players; Sandro and I were in one room and in another one nearby was 'Tiba' (José Damasceno) and Jorge Campos; I don't remember the other two guys," says Leonel Bolsonello to ESPN Digital.
"One day, around 5 or 6 in the morning, we were awakened by noises in the house and suddenly an armed thief was in the room pointing a gun at us; he came with the police officer who was on guard in the house; the police officer was bloody, because I think he had been hit on the head. The thief told the police officer to tie us up and he did it with the shoelaces of our sneakers; he tied our feet and hands and left us on the bed. Then we heard a whistle from the street and the thief left," recounts Leonel Bolsonello.
He assures that they remained tied up for about two hours until the office staff arrived, and subsequently the police, who had been informed of the incident.
"The other players in the house didn't even realize what had happened. The police officers entered the room to ask us what had happened. 'Tiba' appeared in the hallway, as he was going to the balcony, and the police officers saw him and started hitting him (laughs); they mistook him for a thief. Sandro and I tried to tell the police officers that he was not a thief, but another player. We didn't know any Spanish," he says.
The next day, Leonel Bolsonello says, "Sandro and I showed up for training and told 'Tuca' that we were going to terminate our contract and go back to Brazil, or else they should rent us an apartment to live in. The management calmed us down and the following week, 'Tiba' and I moved to one apartment and Sandro to another, as he was married."