Erico is also considered the best Paraguayan footballer of all time and for some is the best player in history, including Alfredo Di Stéfano.

[citation needed] During the early 1930s, Erico was part of the Paraguayan Red Cross football team that was on tour in Argentina in order to gather funds for the Chaco War.

Because of his good performances during the friendly matches in the mentioned tour, Club Atlético Independiente of Argentina signed him.

Before the 1938 FIFA World Cup Erico was offered an extravagant amount of money to play for the Argentina national football team but he rejected it, gaining the praise in the general Argentine public for remaining loyal to his country of origin.

Other figures like Brazilian striker Leônidas da Silva and Paraguayan Delfín Benítez Cáceres also consider Erico as one of the best players in history.

[7] Argentine striker Francisco Varallo remembers Erico as a "phenomenon" that would excel in scoring headers due to his high jumps.