Place of birth Silla, Spain Current team Villarreal B (coach) Height 1.7 m | Playing position Years Team Position Forward | |
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Full name Francisco José López Fernández Date of birth (1967-09-19) 19 September 1967 (age 49) | ||
Francisco José 'Paco' López Fernández (born 19 September 1967) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a forward, and the current manager of Villarreal CF B.
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Club career
Born in Silla, Valencia, Valencian Community, López graduated from Valencia CF's youth setup, and made his senior debuts with the reserves in Tercera División.
In the 1991 summer López joined Hércules CF in Segunda División B. After appearing regularly in the 1992–93 campaign, which ended in promotion, he played his first match as a professional on 19 September 1993, coming on as a second-half substitute in a 0–2 away loss against Real Burgos CF for the Segunda División championship.
On 16 October López scored his first professional goal, netting the third of a 4–0 home win against Villarreal CF. In 1994 he moved to CF Extremadura, also in the second level.
After appearing sparingly, López moved to Levante UD in the third level in January 1995. In July he moved to CD Castellón in the same level, and scored a career-best 16 goals in the 1997–98 season.
In the 1998 summer López signed for Real Murcia, also in the third division. After appearing regularly he moved to Benidorm CF, retiring with the latter in 2002, aged 34.
Manager career
López started his managerial career in 2004, with Villarreal's C-team. In July 2008, after three full seasons at Catarroja CF, he signed with another club he had represented as a player, Benidorm in division three.
On 16 July 2009 López was appointed at the helm of CD Alcoyano. He was relieved from his duties on 11 April 2011, after falling from first to fourth in only five matches.
On 27 May 2011 López was appointed FC Cartagena manager. On 19 September he was sacked, after losing all four matches in the second level.
On 24 October 2012 López returned to his first club Valencia Mestalla, replacing fired Sergio Ventosa. On 17 June of the following year he left the club, after narrowly avoiding relegation, and returned to Villarreal C on 13 November.
On 22 May 2014 López was promoted to the reserves, after the departure of Lluís Planagumà.