El Gran Capitán was the name that stuck, and at the 1929 South American Championship he finished as top scorer while his side came second to Argentina; when San Lorenzo came with money in the early 1930s he turned it down to fight in the Chaco War. He won three Paraguayan titles with Olimpia between 1927 and 1929, played at the 1930 World Cup, scored 11 goals in 15 internationals, and later coached Paraguay to the 1958 World Cup.
One rank above: Salvador Cabañas at #8.
One rank below: Celso Ayala at #10.
Paraguay's editorial top five: Arsenio Erico · José Luis Chilavert · Carlos Gamarra · José Saturnino Cardozo · Julio César Romero.