Juanfran (footballer, born 1976)

Juan Francisco García García (born 15 July 1976), known as Juanfran, is a Spanish retired footballer, currently a manager. Mainly a left-back, he could also play as a central defender.

For another people with the same nickname, see Juanfran.
In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is García and the second or maternal family name is García.

Juanfran
Personal information
Full name Juan Francisco García García
Date of birth (1976-07-15) 15 July 1976
Place of birth Valencia, Spain
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Defender
Youth career
Levante
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1994–1997 Levante 47 (1)
1997–1999 Valencia 41 (0)
1999–2004 Celta 126 (6)
2004–2006 Beşiktaş 13 (1)
2005–2006 → Ajax (loan) 16 (0)
2006–2008 Zaragoza 62 (0)
2008–2010 AEK Athens 27 (0)
2010 → Levante (loan) 19 (0)
2010–2016 Levante 153 (0)
Total 504 (8)
International career
1998 Spain U21 1 (0)
2000–2003 Spain 11 (0)
Managerial career
2020 Lugo
2023 Ponferradina
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

He started and finished his extensive professional career with Levante, which he represented in all three major levels of Spanish football, going on to amass La Liga totals of 382 games and six goals over 15 seasons and also appearing in the competition for Valencia, Celta and Zaragoza. He also played in Turkey, the Netherlands and Greece.

Juanfran represented Spain at the 2002 World Cup.

Playing career

Club

Born in Valencia, Valencian Community, Juanfran started his professional career at Levante UD, where he attracted the attention of local giants Valencia CF, signing after three seasons for €1 million. On 31 August 1997 he played his first La Liga game, a 2–1 away loss against RCD Mallorca,[1] and went on to make 54 competitive appearances for the Che.[2]

Juanfran joined RC Celta de Vigo prior to the 1999–2000 campaign for €4 million, where he was an undisputed starter in a Galician team that appeared in the UEFA Cup and the 2003–04 UEFA Champions League (he scored in a 1–1 draw at Club Brugge KV to progress to the knockout rounds of the latter competition). However, in 2003–04, they would also be relegated to Segunda División.[3]

After leaving Celta in 2004, Juanfran joined Turkish club Beşiktaş JK,[4] but soon fell out of favour with team management – the coach who brought him to Istanbul, compatriot Vicente del Bosque, was dismissed midway through the season – and would spend the following campaign on loan to Dutch side AFC Ajax.[5]

In 2006–07, Juanfran returned to Spain and joined Real Zaragoza for €1.5 million,[6] being a key defensive element to qualify for the UEFA Cup in that first year. The following season the player struggled individually and collectively, and the Aragonese returned to the second division after a five-year stint.

Juanfran agreed to sign a two-year deal with AEK Athens F.C. on 30 July 2008, earning approximately €1 million per season.[7] He was used regularly during his spell in Greece but, in late January 2010, was loaned to his first professional team Levante until the end of the second-tier campaign; only weeks later, he bought out his contract with AEK and signed permanently until June 2012, contributing massively to the former's top-flight return after a two-year absence.[8]

The 34-year-old Juanfran was the most used player in his position in 2010–11 at 23 matches, as Levante eventually retained their status. He fared even better the following season, with the side finishing sixth and qualifying for the Europa League for the first time ever.[8]

On 20 September 2012, in Levante's European competition group stage debut, Juanfran scored the game's only goal at home against Helsingborgs IF, netting with his preferred foot from the corner of the penalty area.[9] On 4 May 2016, after a further four top-tier campaigns – suffering relegation in the last – the 39-year-old announced his retirement.[10]

International

Juanfran earned 11 caps for Spain, making his debut in a friendly with Italy on 29 March 2000 after impressive displays at Celta.[11] Subsequently, he was included in the nation's 2002 FIFA World Cup squad, and appeared in three matches out of five.[12][13][14]

Juanfran's last game was an UEFA Euro 2004 qualifier against Northern Ireland in June 2003, playing the whole 90 minutes of a 0–0 away draw.[15]

Coaching career

On 10 December 2018, in an interview with Marca, Juanfran revealed he had signed for EFL Championship club Aston Villa as a scout, focusing primarily on Spain and Portugal. He stated "it is a privilege to work for a club like Aston Villa. Everyone identifies it as a big club in England and it’s a dream come true."[16][17]

Juanfran was hired in his first managerial job on 30 June 2020, succeeding Curro Torres at a CD Lugo team in the second division's relegation zone.[18] His debut the following day was a 3–1 home win over CD Numancia;[19] he managed to narrowly avoid relegation, but was dismissed on 11 October after four losses in the first five matches of the new campaign.[20]

On 10 April 2023, Juanfran returned to working in the same division at SD Ponferradina. He was their third coach of the season, tasked with its final seven matches,[21] and left on 16 June after failing to prevent relegation.[22]

Managerial statistics
As of match played 28 May 2023
Managerial record by team and tenure
Team Nat From To Record Ref
G W D L GF GA GD Win %
Lugo Spain 30 June 2020 11 October 2020 11 5 2 4 15 15 +0 045.45 [23]
Ponferradina Spain 10 April 2023 16 June 2023 7 2 3 2 13 12 +1 028.57 [24]
Total 18 7 5 6 28 27 +1 038.89 —

Honours

Levante

Valencia

Celta

  • UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2000

Ajax

AEK

References
  1. Infante, Cristina (1 September 1997). "Venganza en Mallorca" [Revenge in Mallorca]. ABC (in Spanish). Retrieved 31 May 2016.
  2. Bort, J. M. (29 March 2012). "Enemigo mío" [Enemy of mine]. Levante-EMV (in Spanish). Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  3. "Juanfran" (in Spanish). Yo Jugué en el Celta. 3 April 2008. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
  4. "Juanfran the man for Besiktas". UEFA. 6 August 2004. Retrieved 2 March 2009.
  5. "Ajax take a chance on Juanfran". UEFA. 12 August 2005. Retrieved 2 March 2009.
  6. "Fernández lands former charges". UEFA. 3 July 2006. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  7. Gaudioso, Sonia (26 July 2008). "El descartado Juanfran cerró su marcha al AEK de Atenas" [Released Juanfran closed deal with AEK Athens]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 March 2009.
  8. "Juanfran García, un clásico de LaLiga" [Juanfran García, a LaLiga classic] (in Spanish). La Liga. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  9. "Debutants Levante overcome Helsingborg task". UEFA. 20 September 2012. Retrieved 20 September 2012.
  10. Rodríguez, Miguel Ángel (4 May 2016). "Juanfran anuncia su retirada" [Juanfran announces retirement]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 31 May 2016.
  11. Astruells, Andrés (30 March 2000). "La selección saca nota" [National team get grade]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  12. "Spain see off Slovenia". BBC Sport. 2 June 2002. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  13. "Spain reach last 16". BBC Sport. 7 June 2002. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  14. "Spain break Irish hearts". BBC Sport. 16 June 2002. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  15. Ramírez Orsikowsky, Jorge (11 June 2003). "España tampoco es capaz de ganar a Irlanda del Norte" [Spain cannot beat Northern Ireland as well]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 December 2017.
  16. Valero, Rafa (10 December 2018). "Juanfran: "Es un orgullo trabajar para un club como el Aston Villa"" [Juanfran: "It is a privilege to work for a club like Aston Villa"]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 December 2018.
  17. Chapman, Joseph (12 December 2018). "Aston Villa appoint new scout ahead of January transfer window". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 29 December 2018.
  18. Palacios, Xosé María (30 June 2020). "Juanfran, nuevo entrenador de un Lugo que lucha por la permanencia" [Juanfran, new manager of a Lugo fighting for survival]. La Voz de Galicia (in Spanish). Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  19. Lorenzo, Álvaro (1 July 2020). "Juanfran cambia la cara al Lugo" [Juanfran changes the face of Lugo]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 16 April 2023.
  20. "El CD Lugo determina el cese de Juanfran García como entrenador del primer equipo" [CD Lugo sack Juanfran García as first-team manager] (in Spanish). CD Lugo. 11 October 2020. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  21. "Juanfran, nuevo entrenador de la Ponferradina" [Juanfran, new manager of Ponferradina]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). 10 April 2023. Retrieved 16 April 2023.
  22. Cabo, Claudia (16 June 2023). "Juanfran se despide de la Ponferradina" [Juanfran bids farewell to Ponferradina] (in Spanish). El Bierzo Digital. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
  23. "Matches Juanfran, 2019–20 season". BDFutbol. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
    "Matches Juanfran, 2020–21 season". BDFutbol. Retrieved 14 April 2023.
  24. "Matches Juanfran, 2022–23 season". BDFutbol. Retrieved 14 April 2023.
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