José Rafael García Torres[a] (born 14 August 1974) is a Mexican former professional footballer and current manager.
Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Full name | José Rafael García Torres[1] | |||||||||||||||||||
Date of birth | 14 August 1974 | |||||||||||||||||||
Place of birth | Mexico City, Mexico | |||||||||||||||||||
Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | |||||||||||||||||||
Position(s) | Midfielder | |||||||||||||||||||
Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||
1992–1998 | UNAM | 134 | (19) | |||||||||||||||||
1998–2004 | Toluca | 214 | (27) | |||||||||||||||||
2004–2006 | Cruz Azul | 32 | (2) | |||||||||||||||||
2005–2006 | → Atlas (loan) | 27 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||
2007–2008 | Veracruz | 19 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||
International career | ||||||||||||||||||||
1996–2006 | Mexico | 52 | (3) | |||||||||||||||||
Managerial career | ||||||||||||||||||||
2009 | Atlas Reserves and Academy | |||||||||||||||||||
2013–2015 | Atlas (Assistant) | |||||||||||||||||||
2015–2016 | Chiapas (Assistant) | |||||||||||||||||||
2016–2017 | América (Assistant) | |||||||||||||||||||
2017 | Puebla | |||||||||||||||||||
2018 | Pyramids (Assistant) | |||||||||||||||||||
2019 | Toluca (Assistant) | |||||||||||||||||||
2020 | Atlas (Assistant) | |||||||||||||||||||
2021–2024 | Sinaloa | |||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
As a player, he was a participant in the 2002 FIFA World Cup in South Korea/Japan and the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.[2]
Club career
editA midfielder comfortable in the center or on the left side, García began his club career with UNAM in 1992.[3] During the 1994–95 season, he established himself in the Pumas lineup, appearing in 32 matches and scoring 8 goals.[3] In the summer of 1998 he left for Toluca, beginning a six-year stint at the club. At Toluca, García won league titles during the Verano 1999,[4] Verano 2000,[5] and Apertura 2002[6] seasons, appearing in the finals on each occasion. Playing wide on the left alongside Fabián Estay and Víctor Ruiz in his early years with Toluca,[4] García later formed a central midfield trio with Israel López and Antonio Naelson.[6] In 2004, he moved to Cruz Azul, joined Atlas for one year in 2005, then returned to Cruz Azul briefly before finishing his top-division career in 2008 with Veracruz.[3]
International career
editGarcía also earned 52 caps for the Mexico national team, scoring three times.[7] He made his international debut on February 7, 1996, in a 2–1 loss against Chile.[8] In the 1996 U.S. Cup, he scored his first international goal with a bending free kick against the United States at the Rose Bowl.[9] García represented Mexico in four matches of the 1997 Copa América,[10] but missed the 1998 FIFA World Cup. After the appointment of Manuel Lapuente as national coach, García appeared at the 1999 Copa América[11] and the 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup, which Mexico won.[12] Recalled to the team for the 2002 World Cup, he played 14 minutes in the opening-round match against Italy.[13] García remained in the team under new coach Ricardo Antonio Lavolpe, helping Mexico to victory in the 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup and scoring in the quarterfinal against Jamaica.[14] Although he also played in the 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup[15] and five qualifying matches for the 2006 FIFA World Cup,[16] he did not play any matches in the 2006 competition itself. García made his final international appearance in a 2–1 loss to the Netherlands on June 1, 2006.[17] New light has surfaced that nepotism was the reason why he participated in the World Cup games of 2006 as he is a relative of then Coach Ricardo La Volpe.[18]
At junior international levels, García competed for Mexico at the 1991 FIFA U-17 World Championship and 1993 FIFA World Youth Championship,[16] as well as the 1996 Summer Olympics.[19]
International goals
edit- Scores and results list Mexico's goal tally first.[20]
Goal | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 16 June 1996 | Rose Bowl, Pasadena, United States | United States | 1–1 | 2–2 | 1996 U.S. Cup |
2. | 20 July 2003 | Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico | Jamaica | 2–0 | 5–0 | 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
3. | 31 March 2004 | The Home Depot Center, Carson, United States | Costa Rica | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
Honours
editToluca
- Mexican Primera División: Verano 1998, Verano 1999, Verano 2000, Apertura 2002
- Campeón de Campeones: 2003
- CONCACAF Champions' Cup: 2003
Mexico
Individual
- CONCACAF Gold Cup Best XI: 2003
Notes
edit- ^ In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is García and the second or maternal family name is Torres.
References
edit- ^ "2006 FIFA World Cup Germany: List of Players: Mexico" (PDF). FIFA. 21 March 2014. p. 18. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 June 2019.
- ^ FIFA. "2006 FIFA World Cup Germany: Mexico". Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
- ^ a b c MedioTiempo. "Rafael García - Veracruz" Archived 2016-01-16 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
- ^ a b MedioTiempo. "Toluca 2 (5-4) 2 Atlas" Archived 2013-11-10 at the Wayback Machine. June 6, 1999. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
- ^ MedioTiempo. "Toluca 5 - 1 Santos" Archived 2010-05-26 at the Wayback Machine. June 3, 2000. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
- ^ a b MedioTiempo. "Toluca 4 - 1 Morelia" Archived 2014-07-15 at the Wayback Machine. December 21, 2002. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
- ^ Mexico - Record International Players - RSSSF
- ^ Morrison, Neil. "International Matches 1996 - Intercontinental, January-March". RSSSF, February 2, 2005. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
- ^ Jones, Grahame L. "Mexico Wins U.S. Cup '96; Americans Look Ahead". Los Angeles Times, June 17, 1996. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
- ^ Tabeira, Martín. "Copa América 1997". RSSSF, August 2, 2007. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
- ^ Tabeira, Martín. "Copa América 1999" Archived July 9, 2015, at the Wayback Machine. RSSSF, May 31, 2012. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
- ^ Courtney, Barrie. "Intercontinental Cup for Nations 1999". RSSSF, December 21, 2005. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
- ^ FIFA. "2002 FIFA World Cup Match Report: Mexico - Italy 1:1". June 13, 2002. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
- ^ Saaid, Hamdan. "CONCACAF Championship, Gold Cup 2003 - Full Details" Archived October 24, 2008, at the Wayback Machine. RSSSF, December 6, 2006. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
- ^ Courtney, Barrie & Saaid, Hamdan. "CONCACAF Championship, Gold Cup 2005 - Full Details" Archived October 24, 2008, at the Wayback Machine. RSSSF, July 30, 2005. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
- ^ a b FIFA. "FIFA Player Statistics: Rafael GARCIA". Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
- ^ CONCACAF.com. "Mexico and Trinidad & Tobago drop friendlies to European squads". CONCACAF, June 1, 2006. Retrieved on March 29, 2013. [dead link]
- ^ "Llegó con palancas a la selección de México y fue mundialista, ahora gana 120 mil pesos en su nuevo trabajo".
- ^ "José García Biography and Statistics". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 2012-10-24. Retrieved 2009-11-12.
- ^ "García, Rafael". National Football Teams. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
External links
edit- Rafael García at National-Football-Teams.com