​Ramos Delgado, the Argentine star who shone for SantosBy Guilherme Guarche, from the Memory CenterOn August 26, 1935, a Monday, José Manuel Ramos Delgado, the unforgettable center back Ramos Delgado, was born in the city of Quilmes, Argentina. His father, Faustino, a Cape Verdean, gave him the surname Ramos, and Delgado he inherited from his mother Maura, who was born in Sicily, Italy.In 1956, at the age of 20, he began his career at Lanús, a team that over the next two years achieved excellent results, to the point of being nicknamed Los Globetrotters and coming close to winning the Argentine title.His solid, composed performances earned him a place on the squad for the 1958 World Cup in Sweden and caught the attention of River Plate, which signed him in 1959. For the Buenos Aires club he won no titles, but he became a great fan idol because of his talent for dispossessing opposing players without violence, and his class in playing the ball out from the back was applauded by his Argentine admirers.Ramos Delgado was captain of the Argentine National Team for many years, and when he arrived at Vila Belmiro he was already an experienced player. At 32, he came with the mission of replacing star players Orlando Peçanha and the legendary Mauro Ramos de Oliveira.The Argentine star, known in his homeland by the nickname “El Negro,” was an extremely intelligent player, who positioned himself inside the penalty area like few others and also had the leadership spirit common among Argentine players.His first match for Alvinegro was on August 29, 1967, in Spain, in Santos’s 2–1 defeat to Málaga at La Rosaleda Stadium. Santos, coached by Antônio Fernandes, Antoninho, lined up with: Gylmar, Lima, Joel Camargo, Oberdan and Rildo; Clodoaldo (Ramos Delgado) and Negreiros; Edu, Toninho, Pelé (Douglas) and Abel (Buglê).Center back José Manuel Ramos Delgado was a rare type. For his exceptional class, his firm and quiet leadership, for being one of the few Black Argentine players, for continuing to play very well even close to the age of 40, and for having won over the hearts of Santos fans so easily and so deeply.Joel Camargo, a Brazil starter, was his backupOne of Ramos Delgado’s feats was remaining a starter for Santos at the age of 33 and keeping on the bench the young 22-year-old Joel Camargo, who at the time was a starter for the Brazilian National Team preparing for the 1970 World Cup.A leader who knew how to impose himself through technique and, why not, also through his athletic build of 1.81 m and around 78 kilos, Ramos Delgado commanded Santos’s defense from 1967 to 1972.Wearing the Santos shirt, Ramos played 321 matches and scored just one goal, from the penalty spot, in a 2–1 win over Alianza of San Salvador. In that match, interrupted due to heavy rain, he formed the center-back pairing with Djalma Dias.Titles won with Santos1967 – Campeonato Paulista; 1968 – Campeonato Paulista, Roberto Gomes Pedrosa Tournament (Brazilian Cham