Gustavo Adolfo Munúa Vera (born 27 January 1978) is a Uruguayan former

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

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

, currently

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

of Argentine club

Unión de Santa Fe Club Atlético Unión (; mostly known as Unión de Santa Fe ) is a sports club from Santa Fe, the capital city of the Santa Fe Province, in Argentina. The club was founded on April 15, 1907 and plays in the Argentine Primera División. Althou ...

. After starting out at Nacional he spent most of his professional career in Spain, mainly at

Deportivo de La Coruña Real Club Deportivo de La Coruña (), commonly known as Deportivo La Coruña (), Deportivo or simply Dépor, is a professional football club based in the city of A Coruña, Galicia, Spain. They currently play in the Primera División RFEF – ...

where he could never be a starter in six seasons. He also played in the country for Málaga and Levante, being first choice and appearing in 151

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men' ...

matches over one decade. An Uruguayan international for six years, Munúa represented the country at the

2002 World Cup The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial football world championship for men's national teams organized by FIFA. It was held from 31 May to 30 June 2002 at sites in South Korea an ...

Playing career

Club

Nacional

Born in Montevideo, Munúa started his career at local

Club Nacional de Football Club Nacional de Football (, ''National Football Club'' or simply as Nacional) is a Uruguayan professional sports club based in Montevideo. The club was founded on 14 May 1899 as a result of the merger between ''Uruguay Athletic Club'' and ''Mon ...

, where he won four

Uruguayan Primera División The Liga Profesional de Primera División (American Spanish , en, First Division Professional League, local: , ''First Division''), named "Torneo Uruguayo Copa Coca-Cola" for sponsorship reasons, is the highest professional football league in Uru ...

titles in a row. He held the record of being the first goalkeeper to score in Uruguayan football, when he netted from a

free kick A free kick is an action used in several codes of football to restart play with the kicking of a ball into the field of play. Association football In association football, the free kick is a method of restarting the game following an offe ...

in a league win against

Central Español Central Español Fútbol Club, usually known simply as Central Español is a Uruguayan football club based in Montevideo. History The F.U.F era Together with Peñarol, Central founded FUF (Uruguayan football federation) in 1923 after being expel ...

. Munúa later scored three goals from

penalties Penalty or The Penalty may refer to: Sports * Penalty (golf) * Penalty (gridiron football) * Penalty (ice hockey) * Penalty (rugby) * Penalty (rugby union) * Penalty kick (association football) * Penalty shoot-out (association football) * Penalty ...

, both in the league and the Copa Libertadores.

Deportivo

Munúa left Nacional in 2003, joining

side

on a six-year contract, where he struggled to gain first-choice status. From 2003 to 2006 he was topped by

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

international

José Francisco Molina José Francisco Molina Jiménez (born 8 August 1970) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Eleven years of his extensive professional career were spent at Atlético Madrid and Deportivo de La Coruña, where he won a total ...

and, subsequently, faced stiff competition from

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

Dudu Aouate David "Dudu" Aouate (or Awat, he, דוד "דודו" אוואט, ''pronounced Dūdū Ahwaht''; born 17 October 1977) is an Israeli retired professional association football, footballer who played as a goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper ...

. In January 2008, after regaining first-choice from Aouate, both goalkeepers were involved in a post-training punching session that resulted in both being suspended for the match against

Villarreal CF Villarreal Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. ( ca-valencia, Vila-real Club de Futbol, S.A.D.), usually abbreviated to Villarreal CF or simply Villarreal, is a professional football club based in Villarreal, in the Castellón province of eastern Spain, ...

, as well as subsequent league games. In February, due to B-team goalkeeper

Fabri Fabri is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Anna Fabri (f. 1496), Swedish publisher and printer * Annibale Pio Fabri (1697–1760), Italian singer and composer * Emanuel Fabri (born 1952), Maltese footballer * Ernst Fabri (189 ...

's inexperience, both players were reinstated in the squad, although the Israeli regained his lost spot. After having started the following season, as Aouate, deemed surplus to requirements, Munúa eventually returned to back-up status, as Aouate was sold to RCD Mallorca and Fabri returned to the reserves. On 25 January 2009, due to the forced absence of new first-choice

Dani Aranzubia Daniel Aranzubia Aguado (born 18 September 1979) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper, and the goalkeeper coach of Athletic Bilbao B. He appeared in 303 La Liga matches during 13 seasons, with Athletic Bilbao ...

(

sent off In sports, an ejection (also known as dismissal, sending-off, disqualification, or early shower) is the removal of a participant from a contest due to a violation of the sport's rules. The exact violations that lead to an ejection vary depending ...

the previous week against

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football. Found ...

), he returned to action for his only appearance of the campaign, a 1–0 loss at Real Madrid.

Málaga and Levante

On 28 June 2009, Munúa signed a one-year deal with Málaga CF. At his new club he was an instant first choice, appearing in all the league games in his

first year A freshman, fresher, first year, or frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. Ar ...

as the

Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a "historical nationality". The t ...

ns barely avoided relegation (17th position). After only one season, Munúa rejected a new contract offer and was released by the club, on 26 May 2010. On 6 August he signed with Levante UD, returned to the top flight after two years, and he made his official debut on 28 August, in a 1–4 home defeat to

Sevilla FC Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville, the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. It plays in Spanish football's top flight, La Liga. Sevilla have won the UEFA E ...

. Munúa was a starter for the

Valencian Community The Valencian Community ( ca-valencia, Comunitat Valenciana, es, Comunidad Valenciana) is an autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish autonomous community after Andalusia, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid wi ...

side throughout the vast majority of his spell. However, late into his third season, he, alongside

Sergio Ballesteros Sergio Martínez Ballesteros (born 4 September 1975) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a central defender. He started and finished his 19-year professional career with Levante, amassing La Liga totals of 387 games and e ...

and Juanlu, was accused by teammate José Barkero of lack of commitment during a 4–0 home loss against Deportivo, which led to several match fixing allegations.

Later years

In January 2014, after a brief spell with ACF Fiorentina which consisted of two

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...

appearances, the 36-year-old Munúa returned to his country and Nacional.

International

Munúa made his debut for

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

aged 20, in a

friendly match An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, a scrimmage, a demonstration, a preseason game, a warmup match, or a preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sporting event whose prize money and impact on the player's or ...

with

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

on 24 May 1998. As a backup, he represented the nation at the

2001 Copa América The 2001 Copa América was held in Colombia, from 11 to 29 July. It was organised by CONMEBOL, South America's football governing body. Colombia won the tournament for the 1st time without conceding a goal. Brazil were the defending champions wh ...

and the

2002 FIFA World Cup The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial football world championship for men's national teams organized by FIFA. It was held from 31 May to 30 June 2002 at sites in South Korea an ...

Coaching career

After winning the 2015 national championship with the latter, as

team captain In team sport, captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field. In eithe ...

, Munúa was announced as Álvaro Gutiérrez's replacement as head coach. The following season, he resigned in June 2016 due to a poor showing in the

Clausura The ' and ' tournaments is a split season format for Spanish-speaking sports leagues. It is a relatively recent innovation for many Latin American football leagues in which the traditional association football season from August to May is divi ...

tournament. NUEVO DT LDU (32107659145)

In December 2016, Munúa was named manager of Ecuador's L.D.U. Quito. He was dismissed at the end of July, having won one of 20 league matches, but also reached the knockout stages of the Copa Sudamericana with victories over

Defensor Sporting Defensor Sporting Club is a sports club based in Montevideo, Uruguay. Founded in 1913, Defensor has several sports sections, with football and basketball being the most important and the ones in which the club has achieved significant achievem ...

and

Club Bolívar Club Bolívar () is a Bolivian professional football club that currently plays in the Bolivian Primera División. Founded in 1925 in honor of Venezuelan military leader Simón Bolívar, it is the most successful and popular club in the history ...

. On 7 November 2017, Munúa returned to his former club Deportivo as manager of their reserves in the Segunda División B. In his one season in the dugout, the club reached the

play-offs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

where they lost on

away goals The away goals rule is a method of tiebreaking in association football and other sports when teams play each other twice, once at each team's home ground. Under the away goals rule, if the total goals scored by each team are equal, the team that ...

Extremadura UD Extremadura Unión Deportiva was a Spanish football team based in Almendralejo, in the autonomous community of Extremadura. Founded in 2007, it last played in Primera División RFEF – Group 1, holding home games at '' Estadio Francisco de la He ...

after a 3–3 aggregate draw. Munúa joined fellow third division side

FC Cartagena Fútbol Club Cartagena, S.A.D. is a Spanish football team based in Cartagena, in the Region of Murcia, Spain. Founded in 1995 it currently plays in Segunda División, holding home games at ''Estadio Cartagonova'', with a capacity of 15,105 spe ...

on 10 July 2018. He again took his team to the post-season, this time being eliminated 3–1 in the semi-finals by

SD Ponferradina Sociedad Deportiva Ponferradina, S.A.D. is a Spanish football team based in Ponferrada, in the El Bierzo region, in the autonomous community of Castile and León. Founded on 7 June 1922, it plays in Segunda División, holding home matches at the ...

. On 22 December 2019, Munúa took advantage of a contract clause allowing him to leave for a top-flight or foreign team, and returned to Nacional for the upcoming season; he mentioned the necessity of being nearer his two teenage children. He was relieved of his job on 15 October 2020, after losing the Apertura final to

C.A. Rentistas Club Atlético Rentistas, known simply as Rentistas is a Uruguayan professional football (soccer), football club based in Cerrito de la Victoria, Montevideo. Founded in 1933, the club competes in the Uruguayan Segunda División. History In 1971 ...

. In October 2021, Munúa was hired at

, ranked 14th in the Argentine Primera División.

Club statistics

Managerial statistics

Honours

Nacional *

: 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2014–15 Uruguay *

FIFA U-20 World Cup The FIFA U-20 World Cup is the biennial football world championship tournament for FIFA members’ men's national teams with players under the age of 20. The competition has been staged every two years since the inaugural tournament in 1977 whe ...

runner-up:

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of ...

References

External links

* * * *
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Munua, Gustavo 1978 births Living people Uruguayan footballers Footballers from Montevideo Association football goalkeepers Uruguayan Primera División players Club Nacional de Football players La Liga players Deportivo de La Coruña players Málaga CF players Levante UD footballers ACF Fiorentina players Uruguay under-20 international footballers Uruguay international footballers 2001 Copa América players 2002 FIFA World Cup players Uruguayan expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Spain Expatriate footballers in Italy Uruguayan expatriate sportspeople in Spain Uruguayan expatriate sportspeople in Italy Uruguayan football managers Uruguayan Primera División managers Club Nacional de Football managers L.D.U. Quito managers Segunda División B managers FC Cartagena managers Argentine Primera División managers Unión de Santa Fe managers Uruguayan expatriate football managers Expatriate football managers in Ecuador Expatriate football managers in Spain Expatriate football managers in Argentina Uruguayan expatriate sportspeople in Ecuador Uruguayan expatriate sportspeople in Argentina