"I am not a Chiva at heart, I am a Chiva by birth", Salvador Reyes Monteón (r.i.p.) repeated over and over again during his lifetime, and there is no more significant phrase to define his relationship with Guadalajara.
Chava' Reyes was born on September 20, 1936 and the blood which ran through his veins was through and through the Red and White blood inherited from his father, Luis Reyes, who was one of the main strikers for Guadalajara in the early days of professional soccer in Mexico.
As a boy, he was a ball-boy and even wore the mascot costume at Rebaño Sagrado matches, which nurtured his love for the Red and White colors during his childhood. At just 16 years of age, 'Chava' formally joined the team as a player and in 1953 he became the youngest player to make his debut with Guadalajara, when the Argentine coach José María Casullo gave him the opportunity in a match against León, and there he began to write his legendary story.
The moments that made 'Chava' Reyes a legend:
- He scored his first goal as a Red and White player against El Oro, on Sunday, November 29, 1953.
- He scored the goal that gave Guadalajara its first professional title, when they beat Irapuato by the minimum difference on Thursday, January 3, 1957.
- He was the Rebaño's top scorer for 6 consecutive seasons, a vital contribution to the transformation of Chivas into the 'Campeonísimo', winning another six league titles.
- In the 1961-62 campaign, he scored 21 goals to become the individual scoring champion of the national championship.
- One of his goals gave the Mexican National Team the qualification to the 1962 World Cup in a play-off against Paraguay.
- With the Tricolor, 'Chava' participated in 3 World Cups: Sweden 58, Chile 62 and England 66.
- In the Final of the 1962 CONCACAF Champions Cup, he scored three goals in a 5-0 victory over Comunicaciones de Guatemala to give Chivas it’s first international title in its history.
- In Guadalajara's first tour of Europe in 1964, he shone brightly, scoring 8 of the 12 goals the Rebaño scored in 10 matches (including 2 against Barcelona at the Camp Nou Stadium).
- He is the top scorer in the history of El Clásico de México with 14 goals, a figure he was proud of and always boasted about.
- On Saturday, January 19, 2008, at the age of 71, he became the oldest player to participate in an official Liga MX match, when he did so in the first minute of the match against Pumas on Game Day 1 of the CL08, in an unprecedented tribute by the Red and White board of directors.
- He held the record as the top scorer in the Club's history for more than 40 years with his 122 in Liga MX, until 2015 when Omar Bravo surpassed his mark.
Red and white notes:
- Other acknowledgements made by the Chivas board of directors to recognize his legend, was to name the Press Box at Chivas Stadium after Salvador Reyes and to retire his number 8 in a ceremony prior to the start of the Clausura 2013.
- Before a colon cancer unexpectedly broke his health until his death on December 29, 2012, Salvador Reyes collaborated with Club Deportivo Guadalajara as a scout and striker coach in the Basic Forces, to share the enormous experience acquired during a lifetime in soccer, which also allowed him to receive the affection of the members and fans of Chivas, attracted by his charisma and human qualities, always friendly and in a good mood.
