Full name Enrique Sanchez Flores Playing position Partner Orsi Feher | Height 1.76 m (5 ft 9 ⁄2 in) Role Coach Name Quique Flores | |
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Date of birth (1965-02-05) 5 February 1965 (age 50) Parents Isidro Sanchez Garcia-Figueras, Carmen Flores Children Patricia Sanchez Casanova, Quique Sanchez Casanova, Paulo Sanchez Casanova, Jorge Sanchez Casanova Similar People Orsi Feher, Troy Deeney, Odion Ighalo, Isidro Sanchez Garcia‑Figueras, Slavisa Jokanovic | ||
Clase Magistral: Quique Sánchez Flores, Táctica, Premier League 15/16, Watford 3 Liverpool 0
Enrique "Quique" Sánchez Flores ([ˈkike ˈsant͡ʃeθ ˈfloɾes]; born 5 February 1965) is a Spanish former footballer who played as a right back, and the current manager of RCD Espanyol.
Contents
- Clase Magistral Quique Snchez Flores Tctica Premier League 1516 Watford 3 Liverpool 0
- Luis enrique y quique s nchez flores se enfrentan por primera vez en liga en el derbi catal n
- Playing career
- Beginnings Getafe
- Valencia
- Benfica
- Atltico Madrid
- Al Ahli
- Al Ain
- Return to Getafe
- Watford
- Espanyol
- Personal life
- Managerial statistics
- Club
- Country
- Manager
- References
He began his professional career with Valencia in 1984, going on to amass La Liga totals of 304 games and 16 goals over the course of 12 seasons and also appearing for Real Madrid and Zaragoza in the competition, retiring in 1997. Internationally, he represented Spain at under-18, under-21 and under-23 levels, appearing with the senior side at the 1990 World Cup.
In 2001, Flores began his managerial career when he took charge of Real Madrid's youth team. His first senior post came in 2004, with Getafe. Afterwards he returned to Valencia in 2005, being sacked after two years and going on to work with Benfica, Atlético Madrid – where he won the 2010 Europa League – Al-Ahli, Al-Ain and Watford, before being appointed to Espanyol in 2016.
Luis enrique y quique s nchez flores se enfrentan por primera vez en liga en el derbi catal n
Playing career
Born in Madrid, Flores spent his first ten years as a senior with Valencia CF, starting in 1984–85. However, his beginnings at the Mestalla Stadium were not particularly positive as the club was relegated in his second season, and when it returned to La Liga in the 1987–88 campaign, finished 14th. However, from that point until 1994 the team never ranked lower than seventh, with him as an everpresent fixture.
In the 1994 summer Flores moved to Real Madrid, and stayed with the capital side for two seasons, winning the league title in the first one. Subsequently, he had a brief spell with Real Zaragoza, retiring from professional football at the age of 32 with Spanish top flight totals of 304 games and 16 goals; in his only season in Segunda División, as Valencia won the championship in 1987, he posted career-highs with 40 matches and nine goals.
Flores made 15 appearances for the Spanish national team, and was selected to the 1990 FIFA World Cup squad. His debut came on 23 September 1987 in a 2–0 friendly win against Luxembourg, in Castellón de la Plana.
Beginnings / Getafe
Flores began his coaching career by following the footsteps of one of his predecessors at Valencia, Rafael Benítez, by taking charge of Real Madrid's youth teams. After gaining plaudits during his time at the youth teams he caught the eyes of the newly promoted Getafe CF, also in Madrid.
After the 2004–05 season with Getafe, which managed to finish in the 13th place, Flores was given the opportunity to coach former club Valencia, succeeding Claudio Ranieri.
Valencia
In his first season, Flores guided the club to the third place, with the subsequent qualification to the UEFA Champions League where the team went on to reach the quarter-finals, being knocked out by Chelsea. In May 2007, the Che achieved a top-four league finish and consequently a place in the next Champions League.
On 29 October 2007, the Valencia board of directors fired Flores after a string of average results with poor performances.
Benfica
Flores was appointed as manager of S.L. Benfica on 24 May 2008. On 8 June of the following year he left the Primeira Liga side through a friendly contractual termination, after a third place in the league and winning the domestic league cup.
Atlético Madrid
On 23 October 2009, Flores signed for Atlético Madrid following the sacking of Abel Resino, penning a contract until 30 June 2010. At the end of the campaign, he led his team to the ninth position in the domestic competition, but also to two cup finals: the UEFA Europa League against Fulham (2–1 win) and the Copa del Rey, lost to Sevilla FC.
Frequently clashing with star player Diego Forlán during 2010–11, Flores announced his departure from the Colchoneros before the season ended, with the team finally qualifying to the Europa League.
Al Ahli
In early May 2011, Flores was linked with a move to FC Spartak Moscow. On 8 November, however, he was named new coach of UAE Pro League team Al Ahli Dubai FC, replacing Ivan Hašek. He left on 11 June 2013.
Al Ain
On 28 September 2013, only three months after leaving the country, Flores returned to the United Arab Emirates, being appointed at Al Ain FC. However, his time spell was a brief one as he was sacked on 8 March 2014 due to poor results.
Return to Getafe
After nearly nine months without a club, Flores returned to Getafe on 5 January 2015 to succeed Cosmin Contra as the new manager following the latter's departure to China. His first match in charge took place two days later, and it ended with a 1–1 away draw against UD Almería for the domestic cup; on 26 February, however, alleging personal reasons, he resigned.
Watford
On 5 June 2015, Flores was appointed the head coach of newly promoted Premier League side Watford, replacing former head coach Slaviša Jokanović and being the fifth man to hold that position in the past twelve months. In December, the team won three and lost only one of their league matches, earning him the Premier League Manager of the Month accolade; his forward Odion Ighalo earned the equivalent award for his five-goal haul that month.
However, despite going on to lead the team to a comfortable mid-table position and the semi-finals of the FA Cup, it was announced on 13 May 2016 that Flores would be leaving at the end of the season.
Espanyol
On 9 June 2016, Flores returned to Spain, signing a three-year deal to replace Constantin Gâlcă as manager of RCD Espanyol. His second signing was that of José Antonio Reyes, with whom he had previously worked at Benfica and Atlético.
Personal life
Flores is the nephew of Flamenco singer-dancer Lola Flores. His father, Isidro Sánchez García-Figueras, was also a footballer and a defender, and Alfredo Di Stéfano was his godfather.