Francisco Xabier Azkargorta Uriarte (born 26 September 1953) is a Spanish retired
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 le ...
who played as a
forward
Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward.
Forward may also refer to:
People
* Forward (surname)
Sports
* Forward (association football)
* Forward (basketball), including:
** Point forward
** Power forward (basketball)
** Sm ...
, and is a
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 o ...
.
Football career
Born in
Azpeitia
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,
Gipuzkoa
Gipuzkoa (, , ; es, Guipúzcoa ; french: Guipuscoa) is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the autonomous community of the Basque Country. Its capital city is Donostia-San Sebastián. Gipuzkoa shares borders with the French depa ...
, Azkargorta spent five years under contract to
Athletic Bilbao
Athletic Club ( eu, Bilboko Athletic Kluba; es, Athletic Club de Bilbao), commonly known as Athletic Bilbao or just Athletic, is a professional Association football, football club based in the city of Bilbao in the Basque Country (autonomous com ...
after arriving in 1971 from neighbouring
Real Sociedad
Real Sociedad de Fútbol, S.A.D., more commonly referred to as Real Sociedad (; ''Royal Society''), La Real in Spanish, Erreala in Basque, is a Spanish professional sports club in the city of San Sebastián, Basque Country, founded on 7 Septem ...
and completed his development at the former, but failed to appear in any official games with the first team due to injury. He retired at only 23 years of age.
Azkargorta started working as a manager one year after retiring, his beginnings being in lower league football mainly in his native
Basque Country. In the summer of 1982, the 28-year-old was appointed at
Gimnàstic de Tarragona
Club Gimnàstic de Tarragona, commonly known as Gimnàstic Tarragona or sometimes just Nàstic, is a Spanish sports club based in Tarragona, in the autonomous community of Catalonia. Its football team plays in Primera División RFEF – Group 2.
...
in
Segunda División B
Segunda División B ( en, Second Division B) was the third tier of the Spanish football league system containing 102 teams divided into five groups, until it was replaced by the new structure in 2021. It was administered by the Royal Spanish Foot ...
and,
the following season, moved straight into
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's ...
after signing for
RCD Español
Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona (; "Royal Spanish Sports Club of Barcelona"), commonly known as Espanyol, is a professional sports club based in Barcelona, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of the Spanish football league sy ...
.
After two more years in
Catalonia
Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy.
Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the north ...
, Azkargorta continued to coach in the top flight until 1991, being in charge of
Real Valladolid
Real Valladolid Club de Fútbol, S.A.D., or simply Real Valladolid () or Valladolid, is a professional football club based in Valladolid, Castile and León, Spain that competes in La Liga, the top tier of the Spanish league system.
The club colo ...
,
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 Euro ...
and
CD Tenerife
Club Deportivo Tenerife, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Tenerife, in the Canary Islands. Founded in 1912, the club plays in the Segunda División, holding home matches at the Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez Lóp ...
. He was dismissed by the last two clubs before the respective campaigns ended.
Still in the decade, Azkargorta worked with the national teams of
Bolivia
, image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg
, flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center
, flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
and
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 ...
. He
led the former to the
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup was the 15th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national soccer teams. It was hosted by the United States and took place from June 17 to July 17, 1994, at nine venues across the country. The United States ...
, thus marking the first time the country reached
the tournament through the
qualification process. In 1997, he returned to club duties after signing with
Yokohama F. Marinos
is a Japanese professional football club based in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, part of the Greater Tokyo Area. The club competes in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country.
Having won the J-League title four times an ...
, and eight years later he took charge of
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
's
C.D. Guadalajara
Club Deportivo Guadalajara (); often simply known as Guadalajara () and their nickname ''Chivas'' (), is a Mexican professional football club based in Zapopan, Jalisco. Guadalajara is one of the ten founding members of the Mexican First Divi ...
. In between, he spent two years with
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid.
Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
as head of its academies in
Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
and
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...
.
In March 2006, Azkargorta was appointed
director of football
A sporting director, or director of sport, is an executive management position in a sports club. The role is well known as a manager role for European football clubs, which are sometime also "sports clubs", offering many types of sports. The sport ...
at
Beijing Guoan F.C.
Beijing Guoan Football Club () is a professional football club that currently participates in the Chinese Super League under licence from the Chinese Football Association (CFA). The team is based in the Chaoyang District in Beijing and their hom ...
in the
Chinese Super League
The Chinese Football Association Super League, commonly known as Chinese Super League or CSL, currently known as the China Ping An Chinese Football Association Super League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest tier of professional football in ...
. In the 2008 summer he returned to his homeland, joining
Valencia CF
Valencia Club de Fútbol (, ca-valencia, València Club de Futbol ), commonly referred to as Valencia CF (or simply Valencia) is a professional football club based in Valencia, Spain, that currently plays in La Liga, the top flight of the Spa ...
in the same capacity.
Azkargorta was again chosen as Bolivian national side manager on 17 July 2012, replacing
Gustavo Quinteros
Gustavo Domingo Quinteros Desabato (born 15 February 1965) is a football manager and former professional player who played as a defender. He is the current manager of Chilean club Colo-Colo. Born in Argentina, he played for the
Bolivia nat ...
six games into the
2014 World Cup qualifying campaign. He was relieved of his duties on 9 March 2014, after it was revealed he had signed with
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 of ...
.
Personal life
Azkargorta's younger brother, Juan Ignacio, was also a footballer.
Managerial statistics
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Azkargorta, Xabier
1953 births
Living people
People from Azpeitia
Spanish footballers
Footballers from the Basque Country (autonomous community)
Association football forwards
Athletic Bilbao footballers
Bilbao Athletic footballers
Spanish football managers
La Liga managers
Segunda División B managers
Tercera División managers
Gimnàstic de Tarragona managers
RCD Espanyol managers
Real Valladolid managers
Sevilla FC managers
CD Tenerife managers
J1 League managers
Yokohama F. Marinos managers
Liga MX managers
C.D. Guadalajara managers
Club Bolívar managers
Oriente Petrolero managers
C.D. Palmaflor del Trópico managers
Bolivia national football team managers
Chile national football team managers
1993 Copa América managers
1994 FIFA World Cup managers
1995 Copa América managers
Spanish expatriate football managers
Expatriate football managers in Bolivia
Expatriate football managers in Chile
Expatriate football managers in Japan
Expatriate football managers in Mexico
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Bolivia
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Chile
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Japan
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Mexico
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in China