Diego Alfonso Martínez Balderas (born 15 February 1981) is a Mexican former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who played as a

right-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

Biography

Martínez made his debut in the Invierno 2001 season with Necaxa. His ability to attack made him a fan favorite and quickly earned him a starting position. He signed with Chivas in 2006, where he immediately became an important part of the team. Martínez usually played in the right wingback position with Chivas, providing the team with crosses and through passes in the attack. However, he excelled more in his defending duties. Martínez lost favor with Chivas and was sent out on loan with various teams such as

Morelia Morelia (; from 1545 to 1828 known as Valladolid) is a city and municipal seat of the municipality of Morelia in the north-central part of the state of Michoacán in central Mexico. The city is in the Guayangareo Valley and is the capital and larg ...

, Tigres,

C.F. Monterrey Club de Fútbol Monterrey, often known simply as Monterrey or their nickname Rayados, is a Mexican professional football club based in Monterrey, Nuevo León which currently plays in Liga MX, the top tier of Mexican football. Founded on 28 ...

, San Luis,

Tiburones Rojos de Veracruz Club Deportivo Veracruz, commonly known as Tiburones Rojos de Veracruz, was a Mexican professional Association football, football club based in the city of Veracruz, Veracruz, Veracruz. ''El Aston'' was founded in 1943, and played in the Liga M ...

, and most recently CF La Piedad, until July 2012, when he received a second shot with Chivas, which included Diego in the squad for the next Apertura tournament. He was then released from his contract and he signed with

Querétaro Querétaro (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Querétaro ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Querétaro, links=no; Otomi language, Otomi: ''Hyodi Ndämxei''), is one of the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 federal entities of Mexico. I ...

. He was only featured in the

Copa MX The Copa MX (formerly called Copa Tower Monterrey, Copa Eliminatoria, Copa México and Copa Corona MX (for sponsorship reasons)) was a Mexican football cup competition that was established in 1907. After a lengthy hiatus that began in 1997, it wa ...

. After his release of yet another team, Martínez chose to retire. In 2014, he joined an organization named Glorias del Deporte, aimed to get kids to play football and get away from drugs. He is one of the head coaches, and the organization travels all over Mexico.

International career

Martínez has played in several national Mexican youth teams, and was captain of the Mexican National U-23 Team during the 2004 Olympic Trials. He received his first summons for the senior

Mexico national team The Mexico national football team () represents Mexico in international football and is governed by the Mexican Football Federation (). It competes as a member of CONCACAF. Mexico has qualified to seventeen World Cups and has qualified conse ...

in 2003. Martínez was called upon by former Mexico national team coach

Ricardo Antonio Lavolpe Ricardo Antonio La Volpe Guarchoni (; born 6 February 1952) is an Argentine former professional footballer and manager. He is a World Cup-winning goalkeeper who played for most of his career in Argentina and Mexico. As a coach, La Volpe was in ...

on several occasions in search for the team that would play in the

2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...

Career statistics

International goals

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Tuxtla Gutierrez Tuxtla may refer to: ;Cities and towns *Tuxtla Gutiérrez, capital of the Mexican state of Chiapas *San Andrés Tuxtla, Veracruz *Santiago Tuxtla, Veracruz *Tuxtla Chico, Chiapas ;Other *Los Tuxtlas, region of Veracruz *Sierra de los Tuxtlas, moun ...

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Carson, California Carson is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, in the South Bay region of Los Angeles, located south of downtown Los Angeles and approximately away from Los Angeles International Airport. Incorporated on February 20, 1968, ...

, United States , , , , 2–0 , , Win , , Friendly , - bgcolor=#DFE7FF , 3. , , October 26, 2005 , ,

Guadalajara, Jalisco Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Mexico, while the Guadalaj ...

, Mexico , , , , 3–1 , , Win , , Friendly

International caps

''As of 28 January 2009''

Honours

Mexico U23 * CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Championship:

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

External links

* * * * *
Chivas Loan out Pineda and Martínez to San Luis
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martinez, Diego 1981 births Living people Footballers from Mexico City Mexico international footballers C.D. Guadalajara footballers Atlético Morelia players Club Necaxa footballers Tigres UANL footballers San Luis F.C. players C.F. Monterrey players C.D. Veracruz footballers Liga MX players Association football defenders Mexican footballers Footballers at the 2003 Pan American Games Pan American Games bronze medalists for Mexico Medalists at the 2003 Pan American Games Pan American Games medalists in football