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Marcelo Gallardo
Palestino - River Plate 20190424 32.jpg
Gallardo in 2019
Personal information
Date of birth (1976-01-18) 18 January 1976 (age 49)
Place of birth Merlo, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Height 1.69 m
Playing position Attacking midfielder
Club information
Current club River Plate (head coach)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
1993–1999 River Plate 109 (17)
1999–2003 Monaco 103 (18)
2003–2006 River Plate 77 (25)
2007–2008 Paris Saint-Germain 41 (6)
2008–2009 D.C. United 15 (4)
2009–2010 River Plate 28 (7)
2010–2011 Nacional Montevideo 13 (3)
Total 367 (77)
National team
1994–2003 Argentina 44 (13)
Teams managed
2011–2012 Nacional Montevideo
2014–2022 River Plate
2023–2024 Al-Ittihad
2024– River Plate
Honours
Men's Football
Representing  Argentina
Pan American Games
Gold 1995 Mar del Plata Team
Olympic Games
Silver 1996 Atlanta Team
  • Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.
† Appearances (Goals).

Marcelo Daniel Gallardo (born 18 January 1976) is a famous Argentine football manager and former player. He is currently the head coach of River Plate. During his playing days, Gallardo was an attacking midfielder. He was known for his amazing vision, great technique, and excellent dribbling skills. He was especially good at making passes that broke through the opponent's defense.

Gallardo started his football journey in the youth teams of River Plate. He made his first professional appearance at just 17 years old in 1993. He played for River Plate for six years, winning many local league titles, the 1996 Copa Libertadores, and the 1997 Supercopa Libertadores. Later, he moved to France to play for Monaco and was even named the French League Footballer of the Year in 2000. Gallardo also played for the Argentine national team in two FIFA World Cups.

After a successful playing career, Gallardo became a coach. He led Nacional de Montevideo to a championship in Uruguay. Then, he became the coach of River Plate. Under his leadership, River Plate won many local championships and returned to winning international tournaments. He is considered River Plate's most successful coach ever, having won the most international titles in the team's history.

Playing Career Highlights

Early Days at River Plate

Marcelo Gallardo was born in Merlo, a town near Buenos Aires, Argentina. He started playing football around age 10 for local clubs. After getting offers from several top teams, he joined River Plate as a midfielder in 1988. He made his professional debut for River Plate at 17 during the 1992–93 season.

His team quickly started winning. They won the 1993–94 Torneo de Apertura. Over the next few years, Gallardo helped River Plate win many national tournaments. By 1996, he became a regular starting player. That year, he won his first international trophy, the 1996 Copa Libertadores, with River Plate. They beat América de Cali in the final.

Time in Europe: Monaco and PSG

In the late 1990s, European teams noticed Gallardo's talent. He signed with Monaco in France in 1999. He quickly adapted to French football and helped Monaco win the Première Division in his first season. He was even named the French League Footballer of the Year in 2000.

After four years with Monaco, where he scored 23 goals in 126 matches, Gallardo returned to River Plate in 2004. He was named the team captain. He helped River Plate win another local championship, the Torneo de Clausura.

Later, Gallardo decided to return to France and joined Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in 2007. He played one season with PSG before moving to the United States.

Playing in the United States and Uruguay

In 2008, Gallardo joined D.C. United in Major League Soccer (MLS) in the United States. He was the highest-paid player in D.C. United's history at the time. However, injuries limited his playing time, and he left the club in 2009.

He returned to River Plate for a short time before signing with Nacional de Montevideo in Uruguay in 2010. Even though he played only 13 matches due to injuries, he was highly respected. On June 12, 2011, Gallardo played his final match as a player, helping Nacional win the Uruguayan championship. He retired as a player and became Nacional's manager just a few days later.

International Career for Argentina

Gallardo started playing for the Argentine national team at age 18 in 1994. He won his first international championship with Argentina in 1995, a gold medal at the Pan American Games. He was a key player and even scored in the final penalty shootout against Mexico.

Argentina also finished second in the 1995 FIFA Confederations Cup and won a silver medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics. Gallardo played in the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France, but injuries affected his performance. He was also part of the squad for the 2002 FIFA World Cup but spent the tournament on the bench. He played 44 matches for Argentina and scored 13 goals.

Managing Career Success

Marcelo Gallardo Nacional
Gallardo coaching Nacional

Marcelo Gallardo earned his coaching certificate in 2010, even before he stopped playing. After retiring as a player from Nacional de Montevideo, he accepted their offer to become their coach. He led Nacional to defend their championship in the 2011–2012 season. He later said that managing Nacional was like an "accelerated course" because he was coaching players he had recently played alongside.

River Plate: A Coaching Legend

On June 6, 2014, Gallardo became the new manager of River Plate. He quickly made a big impact. His coaching style was praised, and River Plate went on an amazing 32-game unbeaten streak.

Winning International Titles

Gallardo's River Plate team achieved incredible success in international tournaments.

  • In 2014, they won the 2014 Copa Sudamericana, their first international title since 1997. Gallardo became the first person to win an international title with River Plate as both a player and a coach.
  • In early 2015, River Plate won the 2015 Recopa Sudamericana.
  • Later in 2015, after a tough start, River Plate won the 2015 Copa Libertadores. This was their first Libertadores championship in nine years.
  • The very next day, Gallardo's team won the 2015 Suruga Bank Championship in Japan. This was their fourth international title under his leadership!

River Plate also played in the 2015 FIFA Club World Cup final but lost to the strong European champions, Barcelona. Despite the loss, Gallardo was named the fifth-best football coach worldwide in 2015.

More Trophies and Historic Wins

Marcelo Gallardo Ecuador 2016
Gallardo in 2016

In 2016, River Plate won the 2016 Recopa Sudamericana again. In December of that year, Gallardo led River to win the 2015–16 Copa Argentina, his first domestic cup as a manager. They won the Copa Argentina again in 2017.

One of Gallardo's most famous victories came in the 2018 Copa Libertadores Finals. River Plate faced their biggest rivals, Boca Juniors. It was the first time these two Argentine teams met in a Libertadores final. River Plate won the exciting final 3–1. Even though Gallardo was suspended and couldn't be on the sidelines for the final match, his coaching was key to this historic victory. Many people called him one of the best River Plate managers of all time.

After winning the 2019 Recopa Sudamericana, Gallardo became the most successful River Plate coach in history, with ten titles. He holds the record for the most international titles for the club, with seven. He is truly considered the greatest coach in River Plate's history.

In 2021, River Plate won the 2021 Argentine Primera División, and Gallardo equaled Ángel Labruna's record of 22 titles as both a player and a coach for the team. He decided to take a short break from coaching after the 2022 season.

Coaching Al-Ittihad and Return to River Plate

In November 2023, Gallardo became the manager of Al-Ittihad in Saudi Arabia. He coached the team for about eight months before leaving in July 2024.

On August 5, 2024, River Plate announced that Marcelo Gallardo would return as their new head coach, starting his fourth period with the club.

Personal Life and Nicknames

Marcelo Gallardo is married to Geraldine La Rosa, his high-school sweetheart. They have four sons. Two of his sons, Nahuel Gallardo and Matías Gallardo, are also professional football players.

When he was younger, Gallardo wasn't very interested in football and preferred flying kites! He also shared that he was a fan of San Lorenzo before joining River Plate, influenced by his mother's family.

During his playing days and early coaching years, Gallardo was nicknamed el Muñeco (which means "the doll"). His teammates gave him this nickname in the 1990s because he was one of the youngest players on the team. Later, because of his amazing success coaching River Plate, fans and the press started calling him Napoleon.

Honours

Player

River Plate

Monaco

Paris Saint-Germain

  • Coupe de la Ligue: 2007–08

D.C. United

  • U.S. Open Cup: 2008

Nacional

Argentina

Individual Player Awards

  • French Division 1 Player of the Year: 2000
  • South American Team of the Year: 1997, 1998

Manager

Nacional

  • Uruguayan Primera División: 2011–12

River Plate

Individual Manager Awards

  • South American Coach of the Year: 2018, 2019, 2020
  • Copa Libertadores Manager of the Year: 2015, 2018
  • Copa Sudamericana Manager of the Year: 2014
  • Recopa Sudamericana Manager of the Year: 2015, 2016, 2019

Images for kids

  • Marcelo Gallardo Nacional

    Gallardo coaching Nacional

  • Marcelo Gallardo Ecuador 2016

    Gallardo in 2016

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Marcelo Gallardo para niños

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