Álvaro Cervera facts for kids
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Álvaro Cervera Díaz | ||
| Date of birth | 20 September 1965 | ||
| Place of birth | Santa Isabel, Guinea | ||
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Winger | ||
| Team information | |||
|
Current team
|
Tenerife (manager) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Alegría | |||
| Tenerife | |||
| Perines | |||
| Racing Santander | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1983–1985 | Rayo Cantabria | 35 | (15) |
| 1984–1987 | Racing Santander | 33 | (5) |
| 1987–1992 | Mallorca | 139 | (10) |
| 1992–1995 | Valencia | 82 | (5) |
| 1995–1997 | Racing Santander | 42 | (3) |
| 1997–1998 | Hércules | 2 | (0) |
| 1998–1999 | Águilas | 11 | (1) |
| 1999 | Almería | 19 | (5) |
| 1999–2000 | San Fernando | 23 | (1) |
| 2000–2001 | Ontinyent | ||
| Total | 386 | (45) | |
| International career | |||
| 1987 | Spain U21 | 4 | (1) |
| 1991–1992 | Spain | 4 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2001–2002 | Catarroja (assistant) | ||
| 2002–2003 | Catarroja | ||
| 2003–2004 | Villarreal (youth) | ||
| 2004–2005 | Catarroja | ||
| 2005 | Castellón | ||
| 2006 | Almansa | ||
| 2006–2007 | Alicante | ||
| 2008–2009 | Cultural Leonesa | ||
| 2009–2010 | Jaén | ||
| 2010–2011 | Real Unión | ||
| 2011–2012 | Recreativo | ||
| 2012 | Racing Santander | ||
| 2012–2015 | Tenerife | ||
| 2016–2022 | Cádiz | ||
| 2022–2023 | Oviedo | ||
| 2024– | Tenerife | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Álvaro Cervera Díaz is a Spanish football coach and former player. He was born on September 20, 1965. He is currently the manager of CD Tenerife.
As a player, Álvaro was a winger. He played 261 matches in La Liga, which is Spain's top football league. He played for teams like Racing de Santander, Mallorca, and Valencia. He also played four games for the Spanish national team in the 1990s.
After his playing career, Cervera became a football coach in 2002. He has managed many different clubs since then.
Contents
Playing Career Highlights
Club Teams and Achievements
Álvaro Cervera was born in Santa Isabel, which is now called Malabo, in Spanish Guinea. His parents were working there at the time. He grew up in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain. He played youth football for several clubs, finishing his training at Racing de Santander.
He made his first appearance in La Liga on September 9, 1984. He played for Racing de Santander. After a few seasons, he joined RCD Mallorca in 1987. He stayed with Mallorca for five years. During the 1988–89 season, he scored six goals. This helped his team get promoted from the second division to La Liga.
In 1992, Álvaro moved to Valencia CF. He played 32 games in his first year there. He later returned to Racing de Santander. He retired from playing football in 2001 when he was almost 36 years old.
Playing for Spain
Álvaro played four games for the Spanish national team. His first game was on September 4, 1991. He came on as a substitute in a friendly match against Uruguay. Spain won that game 2–1.
Coaching Career Journey
Starting as a Coach
Álvaro Cervera began his coaching career in 2001. He started by working with amateur teams like Catarroja CF. For many years, he managed teams mostly in the third division of Spanish football.
His first job as a professional coach was in 2011–12. He became the manager of Recreativo de Huelva in the second division. In March 2012, he moved to Racing de Santander, a team he had played for. However, his time there was short, and he left after a few months.
Success with Tenerife and Cádiz
On July 3, 2012, Cervera signed with CD Tenerife. This was special because he had played for their youth team many years before. In his first season, he helped Tenerife get promoted to the second division. He stayed with the club until February 2015.
On April 18, 2016, Cervera became the manager of Cádiz CF. He quickly led them to promotion to the second division. The team continued to do well under his leadership. In July 2020, he guided Cádiz back to La Liga, the top division, after 14 years away!
A famous quote from Cervera, "La lucha no se negocia," became a popular saying for Cádiz. It means "The fight is non-negotiable." This shows his strong belief in always fighting hard. He left Cádiz in January 2022.
Recent Coaching Roles
After Cádiz, Cervera managed Real Oviedo from October 2022 to September 2023.
In December 2024, Álvaro Cervera returned to CD Tenerife for his second time as their manager. He is currently leading the team in the second division.
Managerial Statistics
Álvaro Cervera has managed many football clubs throughout his career. The table below shows his record as a manager, including how many games his teams played, won, drew, and lost.
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | Ref | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % | |||||
| Catarroja |  |
1 August 2002 | 1 July 2003 | 34 | 20 | 9 | 5 | 64 | 23 | +41 | 58.82 | |
| Catarroja | |
30 June 2004 | 25 April 2005 | 33 | 12 | 12 | 9 | 46 | 34 | +12 | 36.36 | |
| Castellón | |
25 April 2005 | 30 June 2005 | 9 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 11 | 7 | +4 | 55.56 | |
| Almansa | |
9 January 2006 | 30 June 2006 | 20 | 5 | 8 | 7 | 22 | 22 | +0 | 25.00 | |
| Alicante | |
1 July 2006 | 16 April 2007 | 39 | 18 | 7 | 14 | 50 | 39 | +11 | 46.15 | |
| Cultural Leonesa | |
1 July 2008 | 30 June 2009 | 40 | 20 | 11 | 9 | 46 | 25 | +21 | 50.00 | |
| Jaén | |
31 August 2009 | 30 June 2010 | 43 | 22 | 11 | 10 | 62 | 37 | +25 | 51.16 | |
| Real Unión | |
13 July 2010 | 2 January 2011 | 24 | 12 | 4 | 8 | 27 | 27 | +0 | 50.00 | |
| Recreativo | |
28 June 2011 | 9 March 2012 | 28 | 10 | 6 | 12 | 34 | 32 | +2 | 35.71 | |
| Racing Santander | |
9 March 2012 | 14 May 2012 | 13 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 7 | 28 | −21 | 0.00 | |
| Tenerife | |
3 July 2012 | 2 February 2015 | 110 | 43 | 29 | 38 | 132 | 112 | +20 | 39.09 | |
| Cádiz | |
18 April 2016 | 11 January 2022 | 258 | 98 | 84 | 76 | 288 | 259 | +29 | 37.98 | |
| Oviedo | |
18 October 2022 | 21 September 2023 | 40 | 16 | 10 | 14 | 35 | 35 | +0 | 40.00 | |
| Tenerife | |
23 December 2024 | Present | 24 | 6 | 7 | 11 | 22 | 28 | −6 | 25.00 | |
| Total | 715 | 287 | 203 | 225 | 846 | 708 | +138 | 40.14 | — | |||
See also
In Spanish: Álvaro Cervera para niños
- List of Spain international footballers born outside Spain
