Professional Soccer Player and Coach. Considered by most experts to be one of the greatest players of all time. A forward, he was best known for his play at Real Madrid during their five straight European Champions Cup wins from 1956 to 1960. With Madrid he also won eight Spanish Championships, one Royal Spanish Cup, and one Intercontinental Cup. He also won two Argentine championships with River Plateand three Colombian Championships and one Columbian Cup with Millionarios. He scored 376 goals in 524 first division games and is Real Madrid's number two all time scorer with 216 goals in 284 games. He was seclected the European Footballer of the year in 1957 and 1959. He also played for the national teams of both Argentina, winning the Copa America in 1947, with six caps and six goals, and then Spain, after becoming a Spanish citizen in 1956, with 31 caps and 23 goals. An injury in 1962 prevented him from playing in the 1962 FIFA World Cup, the only one for which his teams qualified. In 1963 he was kidnapped by FALN rebels in Venezuela, but was released unharmed a couple of days later. After retirement from playing in 1966, he became a coach, leading both Boca Juniors and River Plate to Argentine Championships and Valencia of Spain to a Spanish Championship in 1971 and a European Cup Winner's Cup in 1980. With Real Madrid, he was less successful, finishing as runners up in a number of competitions but never winning. He retired from coaching in 1991, and was named Honorary President of Real Madrid in 2000.
Professional Soccer Player and Coach. Considered by most experts to be one of the greatest players of all time. A forward, he was best known for his play at Real Madrid during their five straight European Champions Cup wins from 1956 to 1960. With Madrid he also won eight Spanish Championships, one Royal Spanish Cup, and one Intercontinental Cup. He also won two Argentine championships with River Plateand three Colombian Championships and one Columbian Cup with Millionarios. He scored 376 goals in 524 first division games and is Real Madrid's number two all time scorer with 216 goals in 284 games. He was seclected the European Footballer of the year in 1957 and 1959. He also played for the national teams of both Argentina, winning the Copa America in 1947, with six caps and six goals, and then Spain, after becoming a Spanish citizen in 1956, with 31 caps and 23 goals. An injury in 1962 prevented him from playing in the 1962 FIFA World Cup, the only one for which his teams qualified. In 1963 he was kidnapped by FALN rebels in Venezuela, but was released unharmed a couple of days later. After retirement from playing in 1966, he became a coach, leading both Boca Juniors and River Plate to Argentine Championships and Valencia of Spain to a Spanish Championship in 1971 and a European Cup Winner's Cup in 1980. With Real Madrid, he was less successful, finishing as runners up in a number of competitions but never winning. He retired from coaching in 1991, and was named Honorary President of Real Madrid in 2000.
Bio by: Kenneth Gilbert
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