José Santamaría facts for kids
Santamaría in 1976
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | José Emilio Santamaría Iglesias | ||
| Date of birth | 31 July 1929 | ||
| Place of birth | Montevideo, Uruguay | ||
| Height | 1.79 m | ||
| Playing position | Centre-back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Atlético Pocitos | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1948–1957 | Nacional | ||
| 1957–1966 | Real Madrid | 227 | (2) |
| National team | |||
| 1952–1957 | Uruguay | 20 | (0) |
| 1958–1962 | Spain | 16 | (0) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 1968–1971 | Spain (youth / Olympic) | ||
| 1971–1977 | Español | ||
| 1978–1980 | Spain U21 | ||
| 1980–1982 | Spain | ||
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José Emilio Santamaría Iglesias, born on July 31, 1929, is a famous retired football player and manager. He was a strong central defender. Santamaría played for 18 years with two big clubs: Nacional in Uruguay and Real Madrid in Spain.
He won many important titles, including four European Cups with Real Madrid. Santamaría played for two different national teams: Uruguay and Spain. After his playing career, he became a football manager, even leading the Spanish national team for two years.
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Playing for Clubs
José Santamaría was born in Montevideo, Uruguay. His parents were from Spain. He started his football journey playing for a local club called Club Nacional de Football. There, he helped his team win five national championships.
In 1957, when he was 28, Santamaría moved to Spain. He joined the famous club Real Madrid. He stayed with Real Madrid until he retired from playing.
During his first season with Real Madrid, he played 34 matches. He helped them win both the La Liga (Spanish league) and the European Cup. He became a key player for the team.
Santamaría earned the nickname 'The Wall' because he was such a strong defender. He retired at the end of the 1965–66 season when he was 36 years old. In his time at Real Madrid, he won ten more major trophies. He played a total of 337 official games for the club.
International Football Career
Santamaría was first asked to play for Uruguay in the 1950 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. However, his club did not let him go because they wanted him to play as a defender, not a forward.
Four years later, he was a very important player for Uruguay at the 1954 FIFA World Cup in Switzerland. His team finished in fourth place. He played 20 games for Uruguay in total.
In 1958, Santamaría started playing for Spain. His first game for Spain was a friendly match against Northern Ireland. He also played for Spain in the 1962 FIFA World Cup. Spain did not get past the group stage that year.
Becoming a Manager
After he stopped playing, Santamaría became a football manager. His first club coaching job was with RCD Español in Barcelona in 1971. He led the team to finish among the top four clubs twice in six years.
Later, he worked with Spain's youth national teams. He also managed the under-21 team for two years.
In 1980, Santamaría became the main manager for the Spanish national team. He led them during the 1982 FIFA World Cup, which was held in Spain. After the tournament, he left his role as manager.
Honours and Awards
José Santamaría won many awards and titles during his career:
With Nacional
- Uruguayan Primera División: 1950, 1952, 1955, 1956, 1957
With Real Madrid
- La Liga: 1957–58, 1960–61, 1961–62, 1962–63, 1963–64, 1964–65
- Copa del Generalísimo: 1961–62
- European Cup: 1957–58, 1958–59, 1959–60, 1965–66
- Intercontinental Cup: 1960
Individual Awards
- FIFA World Cup All-Star Team: 1954
- World Soccer World XI: 1960
- IFFHS Uruguayan Men's Dream Team
See also
In Spanish: José Santamaría para niños
- List of Spain international footballers born outside Spain
