MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Former Uruguayan football star Fabian O'Neill dies aged 49

O'Neill once had US$ 15 million in his bank account but lost it all to alcohol

Former Uruguayan footballer Fabian O'Neill died Sunday in Montevideo at the age of 49, it was reported. O'Neill, who suffered from chronic cirrhosis, had been hospitalized on Saturday in an intensive care unit.

According to Montevideo's El País, the former international midfielder had been hospitalized in 2020 due to a severe liver condition stemming from his problems with alcohol, which he admitted in his 2013 book “Hasta la última gota” (To The Last Drop). That situation led to his early retirement at the age of 29.

Nicknamed the “Magician,” O'Neill said he once had US$ 15 million in the bank, but he squandered that fortune. “Today I am poor, I meet those people I helped and they don't even greet me,” he once lamented.

Born in Paso de los Toros in 1973, O'Neill grew up as a player at Montevideo's Nacional, where he made his debut in 1992 and played until 1995 when he moved to the Italian team Cagliari. He stayed there between 1996 and 2000. He then played for Juventus and Perugia, before returning to Cagliari, before returning to Nacional, where he retired in 2003.

O'Neill also collected 19 caps and was on the Uruguayan roster at the 2002 South Korea-Japan World Cup but was never fielded due to physical issues.

Former French star Zinedine Zidane and Juventus teammate once hailed O'Neill as the “most talented player ever.”

“Uruguayan football is in mourning. One of the best players to emerge in recent decades and who knew how to shine on the field with his talent and magic has left us,” wrote the El Pais, while El Observador said that “Fabian O'Neill was one of those great talents wasted.... his career was marked by alcohol and excesses.”