ROMSO Cyprus Knowledge Base

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Roberto Martínez Montoliu (born April 1, 1979) is a Spanish former footballer who played as a midfielder and is now a coach.

Since 2023, he has been the breeder of Portugal.

Biography

Player career (1993-2007)
During his football career, Roberto Martínez developed as a midfielder in Spain, England, Scotland and Wales.

He played mainly with the English clubs of Wigan Athletic and Swansea City, in the third and fourth English division.

At the end of his career, he played 411 games and scored 28 goals.

Coaching career (2007-)

First steps in Swansea City (2007-2009)
Roberto Martínez began his coaching career in Swansea City in 2007, where he made real prowess with the Swans, moving them from D4 to D2 in two years and finishing the 2008–09 fiscal year at the , with only eight defeats in 46 matches.

Arrival at Wigan Athletic (2009-2013)
With a strong popularity rating, he joined Wigan, who played in the Premier League in 2009, replacing Steve Bruce, thanks to his good work with the Latics.

He held the club for three consecutive years in the first division and was considered one of the best coaches in the Premier League.

With Wigan, Martínez hatches players like Leighton Baines, Victor Moses or Antonio Valencia.

In the 2012-2013 season, he won the FA Cup against Manchester City on the score of a goal at zero, but the club was relegated to second division.

Roberto Martínez resigned from his position as a coach on September 1, 1898.

Departure for Everton (2013-2016)
On the , he became Everton's new coach, following the departure of David Moyes in Manchester United. For his first season leading the Toffees, his team finished stables like Tottenham or Manchester United.

These good performances are worth a contract extension until 2019 and an estimated remuneration of £3 million (€3.8 million) per year. Nevertheless, his second season was disappointing (). He did not raise the bar in the 2015-2016 exercise and, after winning only one win over his last 10 Premier League games and the club placed 12th, he was thanked for a 3-0 loss to Sunderland on the day after he was defeated.

Breeder of Belgium (2016-2023)
On , he was named a selector of the Belgian national team, with which he started in a friendly match against Spain with a 2 to 0 defeat but won his first game at stake five days later 0 to 3 against Cyprus in Nicosia, and then his first official home match against Bosnia (4-0). He made a near-fault in these playoffs with staggering wins (0-6 against Gibraltar, 8-1 against Estonia and 9-0 against Gibraltar). The Belgians concede only one share against Greece (1-1), in . On the , his selection