Luis Fernando Suárez Guzmán (born 23 December 1959) is a Colombian
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
manager and former player who played as a
defender. Suárez has managed in six Latin American countries: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Honduras, Mexico and Costa Rica.
Managerial career
Suárez led the
Ecuador national team to the round of 16 at the
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international Association football, football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to FIFA World Cup hosts ...
and won the 1999 Colombian championship with Atlético Nacional. In 2005, he led Ecuador to their second consecutive
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...
. He has enjoyed hero status in Ecuador and Colombia, leading
Ecuador
Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...
to their best showing in a
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...
in
2006
2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification.
Events
January
* January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute.
* January 12 – A stampede during t ...
. Reaching the second round by inflicting defeats on
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
and
Costa Rica
Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...
, they lost to
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
1–0 after a
David Beckham
Sir David Robert Joseph Beckham ( ; born 2 May 1975) is an English former professional footballer, the president and co-owner of Inter Miami CF and co-owner of Salford City. Primarily a right winger and known for his range of passing, cross ...
free kick sailed into the net.
Suárez was offered to keep coaching the Ecuador national team till the next
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...
in 2010. Following a poor
2007 Copa América
The 2007 Campeonato Sudamericano Copa América, known simply as the 2007 Copa América or 2007 Copa América Venezuela, was the 42nd edition of the Copa América, the South-American championship for international association football teams. The c ...
, many people wanted him out. Suárez stated that he would not resign and would improve his results. Suárez got off to the worst possible start for the
2010 World Cup qualifiers, losing 1–0 at home to
Venezuela
Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...
and receiving a 5–0 hammering by
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
. After another hammering defeat 5–1 to
Paraguay
Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...
, he resigned irrevocably his position as head coach, immediately after the end of the match. In October 2009 he signed with
Juan Aurich, a Peruvian football team.
Honors
;As a player
Atlético Nacional
Atlético Nacional S. A., best known as Atlético Nacional, is a Colombian professional football club based in Medellín. The club is one of only three clubs to have played in every first division tournament in the country's history, the other ...
*
Copa Libertadores
The CONMEBOL Libertadores, also known as Copa Libertadores de América (), is an annual continental club football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1960. It is the highest level of competition in South American club football. The tournam ...
:
1989
1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...
;As a manager
Atlético Nacional
Atlético Nacional S. A., best known as Atlético Nacional, is a Colombian professional football club based in Medellín. The club is one of only three clubs to have played in every first division tournament in the country's history, the other ...
*
Categoría Primera A
The Categoría Primera A (), commonly referred to as Liga BetPlay Dimayor due to Sponsor (commercial), sponsorship by online betting company BetPlay, is a professional association football league in Colombia and the highest level of the Colombian ...
:
1999
1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons.
Events January
* January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers.
* January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...
Managerial statistics
References
1959 births
Living people
Footballers from Medellín
Colombian men's footballers
Men's association football defenders
Atlético Nacional footballers
Copa Libertadores–winning players
Deportivo Pereira footballers
Categoría Primera A players
Colombian football managers
Atlético Nacional managers
Deportivo Cali managers
Deportes Tolima managers
S.D. Aucas managers
Ecuador national football team managers
Juan Aurich managers
Honduras national football team managers
Club Universitario de Deportes managers
Dorados de Sinaloa managers
Atlético Junior managers
Atlético Bucaramanga managers
Costa Rica national football team managers
Peruvian Primera División managers
Liga MX managers
2006 FIFA World Cup managers
2007 Copa América managers
2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup managers
2014 FIFA World Cup managers
2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup managers
2022 FIFA World Cup managers
2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup managers
Colombian expatriate football managers
Colombian expatriate sportspeople in Ecuador
Colombian expatriate sportspeople in Peru
Colombian expatriate sportspeople in Honduras
Colombian expatriate sportspeople in Mexico
Colombian expatriate sportspeople in Costa Rica
Expatriate football managers in Ecuador
Expatriate football managers in Peru
Expatriate football managers in Honduras
Expatriate football managers in Mexico
Expatriate football managers in Costa Rica
La Equidad managers
Deportivo Pereira managers
20th-century Colombian sportsmen
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