Manolo Martínez

Manuel 'Manolo' Martínez Lara (born 15 June 1980) is a Spanish football coach and former player who played mainly as a defensive midfielder but also as a central defender. He is the current assistant manager of Gimnàstic de Tarragona.

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Martínez and the second or maternal family name is Lara.
Manolo Martínez
Personal information
Full name Manuel Martínez Lara
Date of birth (1980-06-15) 15 June 1980
Place of birth Bigastro, Spain
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Defensive midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Gimnàstic (assistant)
Youth career
Hércules
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1998–2003 Hércules 118 (5)
2003–2007 Gimnàstic 77 (4)
2007–2010 Tenerife 111 (1)
2010–2013 Recreativo 89 (1)
2013–2014 Levadiakos 13 (0)
2014–2017 Gimnàstic 36 (0)
Total 444 (11)
Managerial career
2023– Gimnàstic (assistant)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

He appeared in 228 Segunda División matches over ten seasons, scoring a combined five goals for Hércules, Gimnàstic (two stints), Tenerife and Recreativo. He also competed professionally in Greece.

Club career

Born in Bigastro, Alicante, Valencian Community, Martínez started his professional career with local Hércules CF, as a central defender. After years spent almost exclusively in Segunda División B he had a brief spell in La Liga, playing three games for Gimnàstic de Tarragona and being released in the 2007 winter transfer window; his debut in the latter competition consisted of 55 minutes of a 1–2 home loss against RC Celta de Vigo, on 10 September 2006.[1]

Martínez then moved to CD Tenerife,[2] where he reconverted into a defensive midfielder, greatly helping the club return to the top division in 2009 after a seven-year hiatus. In the subsequent season he played more often than not in his secondary position – stopper – and his performances were overall poorer,[3] with the Canary Islands team being immediately relegated although it would only be certified in the last round against Valencia CF (0–1 away defeat).[4]

In July 2010, aged 30, Martínez did not renew his Tenerife contract and agreed a two-year deal with another club in Segunda División, Recreativo de Huelva.[5] On 10 July 2013 he moved abroad, joining Superleague Greece side Levadiakos FC.[6]

In February 2014, Martínez suffered a knee injury which sidelined him for the remainder of the campaign. He returned to action in July,[7] and subsequently signed a one-year contract with Gimnàstic;[8] during his second spell at the Nou Estadi de Tarragona he was severely hindered by physical problems,[9][10] and on 3 July 2017 he announced his retirement at the age of 37.[11]

References
  1. Pagan cara su inexperiencia (Inexperience cost them dearly); Mundo Deportivo, 11 September 2006 (in Spanish)
  2. El Tenerife confirma los fichajes de Manolo Martínez y Raúl Navas (Tenerife confirm signings of Manolo Martínez and Raúl Navas); Marca, 4 July 2007 (in Spanish)
  3. Manolo Martínez: "Soy el Camacho del Tenerife" (Manolo Martínez: "I am Tenerife's Camacho"); Marca, 10 September 2009 (in Spanish)
  4. El Tenerife llora en Mestalla (Tenerife cry in Mestalla); Marca, 16 May 2010 (in Spanish)
  5. El Recreativo ficha a Manolo Martínez del Tenerife por dos temporadas (Recreativo sign Manolo Martínez from Tenerife for two seasons); Diario AS, 24 July 2010 (in Spanish)
  6. Manolo Martínez inicia una aventura griega en el Levadiakos (Manolo Martínez starts a Greek adventure in Levadiakos) Archived 6 March 2014 at the Wayback Machine; Depor Press, 10 July 2013 (in Spanish)
  7. Manolo Martínez ya tiene el alta (Manolo Martínez already has medical clearance); Diari de Tarragona, 16 July 2014 (in Spanish)
  8. Manolo Martínez, oficialmente nuevo jugador del Nàstic (Manolo Martínez, officially new player of Nàstic); Gimnàstic Tarragona, 6 August 2014 (in Spanish)
  9. Graves lesiones de Reina y Martínez en el Nástic (Serious injuries for Reina and Martínez at Nástic); El Periódico de Aragón, 15 August 2016 (in Spanish)
  10. Manolo Martínez: “Se me está haciendo duro” (Manolo Martínez: “This is getting to be hard”); Depor Press, 1 March 2017 (in Spanish)
  11. Gràcies, Manolo! (Thanks, Manolo!); Gimnàstic Tarragona, 3 July 2017 (in Catalan)
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