Alfonso Pérez facts for kids
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Alfonso Pérez Muñoz | ||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 26 September 1972 | ||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Getafe, Spain | ||||||||||||
| Height | 1.78 m | ||||||||||||
| Playing position | Striker | ||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||
| 1985–1986 | Getafe | ||||||||||||
| 1986–1989 | Real Madrid | ||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | ||||||||||
| 1989–1992 | Real Madrid B | 3 | (1) | ||||||||||
| 1991–1995 | Real Madrid | 88 | (13) | ||||||||||
| 1995–2000 | Betis | 152 | (57) | ||||||||||
| 2000–2002 | Barcelona | 21 | (2) | ||||||||||
| 2002 | → Marseille (loan) | 11 | (4) | ||||||||||
| 2002–2005 | Betis | 45 | (10) | ||||||||||
| Total | 320 | (87) | |||||||||||
| National team | |||||||||||||
| 1988–1989 | Spain U16 | 12 | (6) | ||||||||||
| 1989–1990 | Spain U18 | 12 | (5) | ||||||||||
| 1991 | Spain U19 | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 1991–1993 | Spain U21 | 7 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 1991–1992 | Spain U23 | 11 | (6) | ||||||||||
| 1992–2000 | Spain | 38 | (11) | ||||||||||
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Honours
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Alfonso Pérez Muñoz (born 26 September 1972), often called just Alfonso, is a Spanish former professional footballer. He played as a striker, which means he was a forward player who focused on scoring goals.
Alfonso played for some of Spain's biggest football clubs, including Real Madrid and Barcelona. Even though he wasn't very tall, he was good at heading the ball. He played in 307 games in La Liga, which is Spain's top football league, and scored 84 goals. He also played for Real Betis in two different periods.
He represented the Spanish national team almost 40 times. He played for Spain in one World Cup and two European Championships. He also won a gold medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics!
Contents
Alfonso's Club Career
Alfonso was born in Getafe, a town near Madrid. He started his professional football journey very young, at just 18 years old, with Real Madrid in 1991.
Playing for Real Madrid
Even though he didn't always start every game, he helped Real Madrid win the Spanish national championship in the 1995 season. He learned a lot from famous players like Emilio Butragueño and Iván Zamorano.
Time at Real Betis
In 1995, Alfonso moved to Real Betis. This is where he really shined! In his second year there, he scored 25 goals in La Liga. This was a record for the most goals scored by a player in one season for Real Betis. He and his teammate Pier scored many goals together, helping the team finish fourth in the league.
Moving to Barcelona and Marseille
In 2000, Barcelona signed Alfonso. It was a bit tough for him to settle in at Camp Nou, their stadium. He only scored two goals in his first year there. Later, in 2002, he went on loan to a French team called Marseille.
Returning to Betis and Retirement
After his time at Barcelona, Alfonso returned to his former club, Betis, first on loan and then permanently. He played for two more seasons, but he had some injuries and struggled a bit. He decided to retire from football in June 2005. By then, he had scored over 100 goals in his career! After retiring, he joined Real Madrid's team for former players.
Alfonso's International Career
Alfonso played 38 games for the Spanish national team. His first game was a friendly match against England in 1992. He scored 11 goals for Spain.
Famous Goals for Spain
One of his most memorable goals was against Yugoslavia in UEFA Euro 2000. Spain was losing 3-2 in the final moments of the game and needed to win to move forward in the tournament. After a penalty kick tied the score, Alfonso scored a spectacular goal with seconds left, winning the game 4-3!
He also played in every game at UEFA Euro 1996, where he scored a quick goal against Bulgaria. He also played in two games at the 1998 FIFA World Cup.
Olympic Gold Medal
Alfonso was also part of the Spanish team that won the gold medal in football at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. This was a huge achievement for him and his country!
Alfonso's Personal Life
Alfonso has an older brother, Iván Pérez Muñoz, who was also a footballer. Both brothers came through the youth teams at Real Madrid. They even played together for one season at Betis and later reunited on Real Madrid's veterans' team.
The stadium of Getafe, his hometown club, was named the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez after him. This was special because he never actually played for Getafe professionally. However, in 2023, his name was removed from the stadium.
Career Statistics
Scores and results list Spain's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Pérez goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16 December 1992 | Sánchez Pizjuán, Seville, Spain |  Latvia |
3–0 | 5–0 | 1994 World Cup qualification |
| 2 | 6 September 1995 | Los Cármenes, Granada, Spain |  Cyprus |
2–0 | 6–0 | Euro 1996 qualifying |
| 3 | 9 June 1996 | Elland Road, Leeds, England |  Bulgaria |
1–1 | 1–1 | UEFA Euro 1996 |
| 4 | 4 September 1996 | Svangaskarð, Toftir, Faroe Islands |  Faroe Islands |
2–1 | 6–2 | 1998 World Cup qualification |
| 5 | 4–1 | |||||
| 6 | 6–1 | |||||
| 7 | 12 February 1997 | Rico Pérez, Alicante, Spain |  Malta |
2–0 | 4–0 | 1998 World Cup qualification |
| 8 | 3–0 | |||||
| 9 | 29 March 2000 | Montjuïc, Barcelona, Spain |  Italy |
1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 10 | 21 June 2000 | Jan Breydel, Bruges, Belgium |  Yugoslavia |
1–1 | 4–3 | UEFA Euro 2000 |
| 11 | 4–3 |
Honours and Awards
Alfonso won several important trophies and awards during his football career:
Team Honours
- Real Madrid
- La Liga: 1994–95 (Spanish League Champion)
- Copa del Rey: 1992–93 (Spanish Cup Winner)
- Supercopa de España: 1993 (Spanish Super Cup Winner)
- Betis
- Copa del Rey: 2004–05 (Spanish Cup Winner)
- Spain U23
- Summer Olympic Games: 1992 (Gold Medal)
Individual Awards
- Spanish Player of the Year: 1998
See also
In Spanish: Alfonso Pérez para niños
