Eder Sarabia
Spanish football manager (born 1981)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Eder Sarabia Armesto (born 12 January 1981) is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a forward. He is the current manager of Elche CF.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Eder Sarabia Armesto | ||
| Date of birth | 12 January 1981 | ||
| Place of birth | Bilbao, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Elche (manager) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Arenas Getxo | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2000–2002 | Arenas Getxo B | ||
| 2002–2003 | San Pedro | ||
| 2003 | Leioa | ||
| 2003 | Indautxu | ||
| 2003–2004 | Gazteluzarra | ||
| 2004 | Somorrostro | ||
| 2004–2005 | Ugeraga | ||
| 2005 | Gallarta | ||
| Managerial career | |||
| 2003–2005 | Cruces (youth) | ||
| 2005–2011 | Danok Bat (youth) | ||
| 2011–2013 | Villarreal (youth) | ||
| 2013 | Villarreal C | ||
| 2015–2017 | Las Palmas (assistant) | ||
| 2017–2019 | Betis (assistant) | ||
| 2020 | Barcelona (assistant) | ||
| 2021–2024 | Andorra | ||
| 2024– | Elche | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
After an amateur playing career, he was Quique Setién's assistant at three clubs including Barcelona, before leading Andorra to the Segunda División as head coach.
Playing career
Born in Bilbao, Biscay, Basque Country, Sarabia only played amateur football during his entire career; he played for SD Indautxu,[1] SD Leioa, SD San Pedro[2] and Arenas Club de Getxo's reserve team[3][4] before retiring at the age of 24.[5] He never played higher than the Tercera División.
Coaching career
Early career
Sarabia began his coaching career in 2003 with CFD Cruces' Infantil squad, and then worked at Danok Bat CF's youth categories.[6]
In 2011, Sarabia moved to Villarreal CF, after being appointed manager of the Infantil side.[7] After being in charge of the Juvenil squad in the 2012–13 campaign,[8] he was named manager of the C-team on 1 October 2013, replacing Tito García Sanjuán.[9][10]
Sarabia was sacked by the Yellow Submarine on 12 November 2013, after only one win in seven matches.[11] In the following year, he led a Real Madrid academy project in the Dominican Republic.[12]
Assistant to Quique Setién
In October 2015, Sarabia joined Quique Setién's staff after being named his assistant at UD Las Palmas.[13] He followed Setién to Real Betis and FC Barcelona, again as his assistant.[14][15]
While at Barcelona, Sarabia was pointed out by the media as the main reason of a relationship problem between the players and the coaching staff,[16] being spotted often by the match cameras criticizing the players in matches;[17][18] Lionel Messi ignored him during a match against RC Celta de Vigo.[19] He later admitted an argument between the squad and the staff after that match.[20]
Andorra
On 18 January 2021, Sarabia was appointed manager of FC Andorra in Segunda División B, after agreeing to a two-and-a-half-year contract.[21][22] After losing the promotion playoff semi-final in his first season to Real Sociedad B, he achieved promotion from the new Primera Federación in 2022, despite losing the final 3–0 to Racing de Santander; that December, he extended his contract to 2025.[23] In his and Andorra's first match in the Segunda División on 15 August, the team won 1–0 at Real Oviedo with a goal by Pau Casadesús.[24]
On 25 March 2024, following a poor run of results which saw Andorra sitting bottom of the league, Sarabia was sacked.[25]
Elche
On 24 June 2024, Sarabia was named in charge of fellow second division side Elche CF, after agreeing to a one-year contract.[26] The following 10 June, after achieving promotion to La Liga, he renewed his link until 2027.[27]
In the 2025–26 season, Sarabia led Elche to an unbeaten start through the first seven league matches, finishing September in fourth place.[28] This run marked the best start to a season in the club's history and earned him the LaLiga Coach of the Month award for September.[29]
Personal life
Sarabia's father Manuel was also a footballer and a forward who played for Athletic Bilbao and CD Logroñés.[30]
Managerial statistics
- As of 26 April 2026
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | Ref | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % | |||||
| Villarreal C |  |
1 October 2013 | 12 November 2013 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 13 | 17 | −4 | 14.29 | [31] |
| FC Andorra |  |
18 January 2021 | 25 March 2024 | 134 | 53 | 31 | 50 | 160 | 141 | +19 | 39.55 | [32] |
| Elche CF | |
24 June 2024 | Present | 83 | 37 | 22 | 24 | 119 | 91 | +28 | 44.58 | [33] |
| Total | 224 | 91 | 55 | 78 | 292 | 249 | +43 | 40.63 | — | |||
Honours
Managerial
- La Liga Manager of the Month: September 2025[34]