Koldo Álvarez
Association football player and manager
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jesús Luis "Koldo" Álvarez de Eulate Güergue (born 4 September 1970) is a former footballer who played as a goalkeeper, currently manager of the Andorra national team.
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Koldo managing Andorra in 2016 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Jesús Luis Álvarez de Eulate Güergue | ||
| Date of birth | 4 September 1970 | ||
| Place of birth | Vitoria, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) | ||
| Position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Andorra (coach) | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1988–1989 | Aurrerá | ||
| 1989–1993 | Atlético Madrid B | 52 | (0) |
| 1990 | → Toledo (loan) | 15 | (0) |
| 1991 | Atlético Madrid | 0 | (0) |
| 1993–1994 | Salamanca | 0 | (0) |
| 1994–2006 | FC Andorra | ||
| 2006–2007 | Balaguer | ||
| 2007–2009 | FC Andorra | 10 | (0) |
| International career | |||
| 1998–2009 | Andorra | 78 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2010– | Andorra | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Playing career
Born in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Álava, Basque Country, Spain, Álvarez spent his entire career in the country.[1] He signed in the 1990 summer transfer window with Atlético Madrid from local CD Aurrerá de Vitoria, but struggled to appear even for the reserves. Due to injury to starter Abel Resino, he was on the bench for the first team in the final of the 1990–91 Copa del Rey, against RCD Mallorca.[2]
Álvarez resumed his career in the lower leagues, being second or third choice. In 1994, he joined FC Andorra who competed in the Spanish football league system, going on to remain 14 of the following 15 seasons with the club and retiring aged 39.[3] After being naturalised, he began representing the Andorra national team, making his debut on 3 June 1998 in a 3–0 friendly loss to Brazil.[4]
On 10 June 2009, Álvarez played his last international, a 6–0 defeat against England for the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers; arguably one of the best players in the match, he received a standing ovation from the opposing fans for his efforts, after he was substituted in injury time.[5] Previously, in November 2003, to celebrate UEFA's Jubilee, he was selected as Andorra's Golden Player by the Andorran Football Federation as their most outstanding player of the past 50 years.[6][7]
Coaching career
Álvarez was appointed as the Andorra national team's manager on 2 February 2010, replacing David Rodrigo.[8] His first win (on his 49th game in charge) came seven years and 20 days later, 2–0 over San Marino in a friendly.[9][10]
On 25 March 2017, nearly 12 years after the last point won in official matches, Álvarez led the side to a 0–0 draw with Faroe Islands for the 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign.[11] On 9 June, for the same competition, a 1–0 win against Hungary in Andorra la Vella was achieved, the first competitive one since October 2004.[12][13]
Personal life
Career statistics
Managerial statistics
Honours
Atlético Madrid
