Míchel (footballer)

This article is about the Spanish right midfielder and coach. For other players with the same nickname, see Míchel (nickname).

Míchel

Míchel as Getafe coach in 2011
Personal information
Full name	José Miguel González Martín del Campo
Date of birth	(1963-03-23) 23 March 1963
Place of birth	Madrid, Spain
Height
Position(s)	Midfielder
Team information
Current team	Marseille (coach)
Youth career
1976–1981	Real Madrid
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1981–1984	Real Madrid B	108	(25)
1982–1996	Real Madrid	404	(97)
1996–1997	Celaya	34	(9)
Total		546	(131)
International career
1980	Spain U16	3	(0)
1980–1981	Spain U18	21	(11)
1983–1984	Spain U21	7	(1)
1984	Spain amateur	1	(0)
1985–1992	Spain	66	(21)
Managerial career
2005–2006	Rayo Vallecano
2006–2007	Real Madrid B
2009–2011	Getafe
2012–2013	Sevilla
2013–2015	Olympiacos
2015–	Marseille
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is González and the second or maternal family name is Martín del Campo.

José Miguel González Martín del Campo (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈmitʃel]; born 23 March 1963), known as Míchel, is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a right midfielder, and the current coach of French club Olympique de Marseille.

He was most noted for his stellar crossing ability, also contributing with a fair share of goals. During his career he represented mainly Real Madrid – over a decade – achieving great team and individual success.

Míchel gained nearly 70 caps for Spain from 1985 to 1992, and represented the nation in two World Cups (scoring four goals in the 1990 edition) and one European Championship. He started working as a manager in 2005, notably leading Olympiacos to two Superleague Greece accolades.

Club career

The son of a footballer who had to retire from the game at 27 after a road accident, Míchel was born in Madrid and joined Real Madrid at the age of thirteen, his technique and physicality on the pitch quickly standing out. He moved quickly through the ranks to the first team, appearing – and scoring – once in the 1981–82 season, in a 2–1 away win against CD Castellón on 11 April 1982.

A member of the renowned Quinta del Buitre, which also featured Emilio Butragueño, Miguel Pardeza, Rafael Martín Vázquez and Manuel Sanchís, Míchel never played less than 31 La Liga contests from 1985 to 1994. After helping Castilla CF to the second division title in 1984, he was instrumental in the capital club's conquests, which included six leagues and two consecutive UEFA Cups; he opened the score in the 1985 final of the latter competition, against Videoton FC.

In 1989, Míchel announced he would leave Real Madrid after having signed with an Italian side, but this never came to pass and he ended up staying until 1996. In his penultimate season he suffered a severe knee injury which rendered him unavailable for most of the successful league campaign, but still bounced back for a final solid year, after which he left for Club Celaya in Mexico – where Butragueño was also playing – shortly after the arrival at Madrid of president Lorenzo Sanz. He retired from football in 1997.

Míchel's career was not without incident: in 1988 he was hit by a bottle while on the pitch and, three years later, he was sanctioned by UEFA for using an unorthodox method of disrupting the concentration of Carlos Valderrama, in a game against Real Valladolid. The presiding judge in the case noted that "manipulating in public that of your neighbour which is a gift given exclusively to males by nature" violated a federation rule protecting a player's dignity.

In the summer of 2005, after working as a sports commentator with RTVE after his retirement (still active, he had already worked in the capacity at the 1994 World Cup) and also writing articles for Madrid's Marca, Míchel was appointed manager of Rayo Vallecano. The following year he returned to his alma mater as director of Real Madrid's sports city, the entire youth system, and manager duties at Real Madrid Castilla, where he coached one of his sons, Adrián; under his management the side dropped down a level into the third and he was sacked, also leaving his post in the youth sides due to disagreements with president Ramón Calderón.

On 27 April 2009 Míchel was appointed as coach of top flight strugglers Getafe CF, until the end of the season. He replaced former FC Barcelona midfielder Víctor Muñoz, and also managed Adrián, helping the club avoid relegation in the last matchday, and renewing his contract for two more years in the following week; he was relieved of his duties at the end of 2010–11, with the team again managing to stay afloat after finishing 16th, just one point clear of the relegation zone.

Míchel was appointed at Sevilla FC on 6 February 2012, replacing fired Marcelino García Toral and signing until the end of the season. On 14 January of the following year, after a 0–2 away loss to Valencia CF that left the Andalusians in the 12th place, he was relieved of his duties.

Míchel signed for Olympiacos F.C. in the Superleague Greece on 1 February 2013, penning a contract until June 2015. In his first 18 months in charge, he won two national championships and the 2013 Greek Cup.

On 19 August 2015, Míchel succeeded Marcelo Bielsa at the helm of Olympique de Marseille.

International career

Míchel made his debut for the Spanish national team on 20 November 1985 against Austria, going on to appear in a further 65 internationals and score 21 goals (only missed a callup due to injury). He played in the 1990 FIFA World Cup, netting a hat-trick against South Korea in Spain's second game (3–1) and also a penalty against Belgium in the country's final group game.

Shortly after Javier Clemente's arrival as national boss, Míchel was deemed surplus to requirements and never called again, although only 29. All national categories comprised, he received exactly 100 caps.

International goals

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	18 December 1985	Luis Casanova, Valencia, Spain	Bulgaria	1–0	2–0	Friendly
2.	12 November 1986	Benito Villamarín, Seville, Spain	Romania	1–0	1–0	Euro 1988 qualifying
3.	14 October 1987	Sánchez Pizjuán, Seville, Spain	Austria	1–0	2–0	Euro 1988 qualifying
4.	18 November 1987	Benito Villamarín, Seville, Spain	Albania	3–0	5–0	Euro 1988 qualifying
5.	11 June 1988	Niedersachsenstadion, Hanover, Germany	Denmark	0–1	2–3	UEFA Euro 1988
6.	14 September 1988	Carlos Tartiere, Oviedo, Spain	Yugoslavia	1–0	1–2	Friendly
7.	21 December 1988	Sánchez Pizjuán, Seville, Spain	Northern Ireland	3–0	4–0	1990 World Cup qualification
8.	22 January 1989	Ta' Qali, Attard, Malta	Malta	0–1	0–2	1990 World Cup qualification
9.	23 March 1989	Benito Villamarín, Seville, Spain	Malta	1–0	4–0	1990 World Cup qualification
10.	23 March 1989	Benito Villamarín, Seville, Spain	Malta	2–0	4–0	1990 World Cup qualification
11.	20 September 1989	Riazor, A Coruña, Spain	Poland	1–0	1–0	Friendly
12.	11 November 1989	Népstadion, Budapest, Hungary	Hungary	0–2	2–2	1990 World Cup qualification
13.	13 December 1989	Heliodoro Rodríguez, Tenerife, Spain	Switzerland	1–0	2–1	Friendly
14.	17 June 1990	Friuli, Udine, Italy	South Korea	1–0	3–1	1990 FIFA World Cup
15.	17 June 1990	Friuli, Udine, Italy	South Korea	2–1	3–1	1990 FIFA World Cup
16.	17 June 1990	Friuli, Udine, Italy	South Korea	3–1	3–1	1990 FIFA World Cup
17.	21 June 1990	Marc'Antonio Bentegodi, Verona, Italy	Belgium	0–1	1–2	1990 FIFA World Cup
18.	12 September 1990	El Molinón, Gijón, Spain	Brazil	3–0	3–0	Friendly
19.	13 November 1991	Sánchez Pizjuán, Seville, Spain	Czechoslovakia	2–1	2–1	Euro 1992 qualifying
20.	22 April 1992	Benito Villamarín, Seville, Spain	Albania	1–0	3–0	1994 World Cup qualification
21.	22 April 1992	Benito Villamarín, Seville, Spain	Albania	2–0	3–0	1994 World Cup qualification

Club statistics

Season	Club	League	League		Cup		Continental		Super Cup		Total
			Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1984–85	Real Madrid	La Liga	26	2	8	2	9	3			43	7
1985–86			31	7	5	0	12	2			48	9
1986–87			44	5	6	0	8	0			58	5
1987–88			35	14	7	1	8	4			50	19
1988–89			36	13	10	2	5	0	2	1	51	15
1989–90			37	8	6	0	3	2			46	10
1990–91			36	8	4	1	6	1	2	1	46	10
1991–92			38	11	6	3	10	2			54	16
1992–93			37	9	6	1	8	3			51	13
1993–94			37	11	4	1	6	2			47	14
1994–95			13	2	0	0	5	0			18	2
1995–96			33	6	1	1	8	1	2	0	42	8
Mexico			League		Cup		Continental		Other		Total
1996	Celaya	Liga MX	17	6
1997			17	3
Total	Spain		403	96	63	12	88	20	6	2	560	130
	Mexico		34	9
Career total			437	105

Honours

Player

Real Madrid

• La Liga: 1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1994–95
• Copa del Rey: 1988–89, 1992–93
• Copa de la Liga: 1984–85
• Supercopa de España: 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993
• UEFA Cup: 1984–85, 1985–86
• Copa Iberoamericana: 1994

Manager

Olympiacos

• Superleague Greece: 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15
• Greek Football Cup: 2012–13

Individual

• La Liga Spanish Player of the Year: 1986
• European Cup: Top Scorer 1988
• FIFA World Cup: Bronze Boot: 1990
• Ballon d'Or: 4th Place 1987

External links

• Míchel profile at BDFutbol
• Míchel manager profile at BDFutbol
• National team data (Spanish)
• Míchel at National-Football-Teams.com
• Míchel – FIFA competition record
• Stats at Medio Tiempo (Spanish)