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Mexicans Abroad: Hugo’s Debut
Hugo Sánchez earned an important morale boosting victory for Almería in his managerial debut in La Liga. Also, defender Jaime Durán is the newest player to ply his trade in Europe.
Jan 4, 2009 7:43:31 PM
With the start of the new year, three new Mexicans have made the jump to dispute their football on European soil.
Mexican legend Hugo Sánchez was recently signed by modest Spanish club UD Almería. The “Pentapichichi” had a winning start to his coaching debut in La Liga with a 1-0 victory against Real Betis in an Andalusian derby.
Also in Spain, everything is ready for Gerardo Torrado to make a return to the La Liga after an almost 4 year absence. He previously played for Racing Santander, Sevilla, Polideportivo Ejido and CD Tenerife in Spain. Catalán club RCD Espanyol have expressed their supreme interest for the Cruz Azul hard-man. To make sure they count with his services, club manager José Manuel Esnal recently spoke with Torrado on the phone to manifest the clubs enthusiasm and desire for his imminent arrival to join the Pericos. Torrado mentioned that this “is an opportunity he cannot let pass by.”
In Greece, Morelia defender Jaime Durán has made a dream-move to European football when he signed with Greek side Skoda Xanthi for the next six months. The 27-year-old joins the long list of Atlas youth products to move abroad and he hopes to make the most of this opportunity.
SPAIN
LIGA BBVA - PRIMERA DIVISION - Week 17
Coach Hugo Sánchez, UD Almería
1/4: UD Almería 1-0 Real Betis
Coach Javier Aguirre, Asst. Ignacio Ambríz, Atlético de Madrid
1/4: Atlético 1-3 Valencia
Rafael Márquez, Barcelona
1/4: Barcelona 3-1 Mallorca (71 minutes, 1 yellow card)
Andrés Guardado, Deportivo La Coruña
1/3: Deportivo 2-1 Getafe (90 minutes)
Omar Bravo, Deportivo La Coruña
1/3: Deportivo 2-1 Getafe (Substitute, Not Used)
Guillermo Franco, Villareal
1/4: Villareal 0-1 Real Madrid (No Activity)
Jonathan dos Santos, Barcelona (División de Honor Juvenil)
1/4: Week 17: Barcelona Juvenil ‘A’ 1-0 Badalona
SUPERLIGA FEMENIL
Maribel Domínguez, Euromat Unió Esportiva L'Estartit
1/4: Week 14: L’Estartit 2-2 Lagunak
“Marigol” recently stated that she hopes her performances help save L’Estartit from relegation and earn her a desired return to the México women’s national team in 2009.
LIGA ADELANTE - SEGUNDA DIVISION - Week 18
Javier Iturriaga, UD Salamanca
1/3: UD Salamanca 2-2 UD Las Palmas (No Activity)
SEGUNDA DIVISION “B” - Week 19
Juan Seguro, Real Unión
1/3: Real Unión 0-4 Guijuelo (46 minutes)
ENGLAND
PREMIER LEAGUE - Week 19
Carlos Vela, Arsenal
12/28: Arsenal 1-0 Portsmouth (24 minutes)
1/3: FA Cup: Arsenal 3-1 Plymouth Argyle (20 minutes)
Giovani dos Santos, Tottenham Hotspurs
It is likely that Dos Santos will abandon the Spurs during the winter transfer market since he does not fall in the plans of manager Harry Redknapp. During the week, Chivas officials announced that they informally asked Tottenham about the youngster, but they did not receive a positive response.
However, in recent days there has been a resurgence of interest by Chelsea who are ready to offer around nine million dollars for the 19-year old. Giovani has not completely recovered from his ankle injury, but after a lamentable six-months, the best thing for him is to find regularity.
GERMANY
Pável Pardo, Club América
Pardo was unable to participate in Club America’s first match of the InterLiga against Chivas because Stuttgart has not released his international pass to the Mexican club. The midfielder has traveled to Germany to handle the issue and speak with Stuttgart officials.
GREECE
Super League Greece - Week 16
Jaime Durán, Skoda Xanthi FC
1/3: Xanthi 0-0 Panionios (No Activity)
NETHERLANDS
EREDIVISIE - Week 17
Carlos Salcido, PSV Eindhoven
12/27: PSV 0-0 Twente Enschede (No Activity)
Francisco Rodríguez, PSV Eindhoven
12/27: PSV 0-0 Twente Enschede (No Activity)
Héctor Moreno, AZ Alkmaar
12/28: AZ 1-0 NEC Nijmegen (No Activity)
Héctor Moreno will be sideline for 2 to 3 months due to a foot fracture he sustained in early December.
TURKEY
Süper Lig
Antonio De Nigris, Ankaraspor
De Nigris is currently in negotiations with a Turkish club that is in dispute for one of the UEFA and Champions League spots in the Süper Lig. Ankaraspor has a match in the Turkish cup on 1/11 against Kayserispor and the Süper Lig will resume on 1/25.
UKRAINE
Nery Castillo, Shakhtar Donetsk
Nery finished his loan-deal with Manchester City and has reported back with Ukraine side Shakhtar Donetsk. There is rumors that Celtic Glascow and Almería are interested in his services, but he will remain with Shakhtar until a concrete offer is made.
With transfer market activity in full swing, please feel free to contact me regarding any new Mexican player who makes the move abroad in the new year, regardless of division. The objective is to mention all those players who have made it their struggle to earn a spot and ply their trade in any league around the world.
--César García covers México for Goal.com.
Contact him with any questions or comments at: cesar.garcia@goal.com.
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