Argentinian newspaper publishes documents, Imanol Machuca exposed.
Capital de Noticias continues to publish documents showing that Imanol Machuca and FAM fabricated information about his Malaysian origins. The player has been banned for 12 months, FAM faces an investigation, and Malaysia risks sanctions from FIFA.
Capital de Noticias (Argentina) has released further documents showing that Imanol Machuca has no blood relation to Malaysia as previously claimed. This is a new development following the revelation of Facundo Garces's case. Imanol Machuca has been banned from competing for 12 months and fined, while the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) faces an international investigation into the legality of his naturalization application.
Evidence from Capital de Noticias
According to Capital de Noticias, FAM claims Imanol Machuca's grandmother was born in Penang (Malaysia). However, exclusive documents obtained by the newspaper show the opposite. The birth certificate of Concepcion Agueda Alaniz – Imanol Machuca's grandmother – clearly states her birthplace as Roldan (Argentina), as stored by the Santa Fe Provincial Registry Office.
The newspaper reported that an official in charge of a notary office certified in official records that on August 23, 1954, at 10:00 AM, at Roldan, San Lorenzo, Santa Fe province, Mr. Celestino Alaniz (22 years old, Argentinian nationality) got married. That same month, a white baby girl was born, the legal daughter of Mr. Celestino Alaniz and Mrs. Nelida Agustina Ordonez (both Argentinians). The baby girl was registered under the name Concepcion Agueda.
This differs from the statements of Machuca and FAM.
Capital de Noticias stated that Imanol Machuca himself had claimed his connection to Malaysia came from his grandmother, Concepcion Agueda. The hypothesis that Machuca's grandmother may have married a Malaysian man was also mentioned as a potentially misleading possibility.
However, the marriage certificate shows that Concepcion Agueda registered her marriage with Jorge Luis Saracho – a worker born in Roldan, in the town of San Jeronimo Sur (Argentina). The newspaper concludes: there are no documents linking Imanol Machuca to Malaysia.
Consequences: penalties and the risk of further investigation.
The player, born in 1999, has been banned from playing for 12 months and fined. The FAM is facing an international investigation into the legality of his naturalization application. Argentinian newspapers suggest the incident could have a series of serious consequences, with Malaysia risking sanctions from FIFA if fraud is determined during the player registration process.
Moment on the field: 17 minutes against Vietnam
Imanol Machuca only played 17 minutes in Malaysia's 4-0 victory over Vietnam on June 10th. That was one of his rare appearances before the incident came to light and he received a 12-month suspension.
Context: from Facundo Garces to Machuca
New documents about Imanol Machuca were released shortly after Capital de Noticias exposed the true status of Facundo Garces. This series of discoveries raises serious questions about the naturalization process for players in recent times.
