Miguel Muñoz facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Miguel Muñoz

Muñoz in 1973
Personal information
Full name	Miguel Muñoz Mozún
Date of birth	(1922-01-19)19 January 1922
Place of birth	Madrid, Spain
Date of death	16 July 1990(1990-07-16) (aged 68)
Place of death	Madrid, Spain
Height	1.65 m
Playing position	Midfielder
Youth career
1940–1941	Ferroviaria
1941–1942	Girod
1942–1943	Imperio
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1943–1944	Logroñés
1944–1946	Racing Santander	42	(19)
1946–1948	Celta	36	(1)
1948–1958	Real Madrid	223	(23)
Total		301	(43)
National team
1949	Spain B	1	(0)
1948–1955	Spain	7	(0)
Teams managed
1959	Real Madrid
1959–1960	Plus Ultra
1960–1974	Real Madrid
1969	Spain
1975–1976	Granada
1977–1979	Las Palmas
1979–1982	Sevilla
1982–1988	Spain
Honours Men's football Representing  Spain (as manager) UEFA European Championship Runner-up 1984
Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Miguel Muñoz Mozún (born January 19, 1922 – died July 16, 1990) was a famous Spanish football player and manager. He was a midfielder who played most of his career for Real Madrid.

Later, he became the coach for Real Madrid. Many people think he was one of the most successful football managers ever. He led the team to win the European Cup twice and the La Liga title nine times. As a player, he also won seven major titles in these competitions.

Muñoz also coached the Spanish national team for six years. He led them to the final of the Euro 1984 tournament.

Playing Career Highlights

Miguel Muñoz was born in Madrid, Spain. He started playing football for different youth teams in his hometown. At first, he didn't join Real Madrid. Instead, he played for other teams like CD Logroñés, Racing de Santander, and Celta de Vigo.

In 1948, while playing for Celta de Vigo, he helped his team finish fourth in La Liga. They also reached the final of the Copa del Generalísimo (a Spanish cup). In that final, he scored a goal, but Celta lost 4–1 to Sevilla CF.

The next year, Muñoz joined Real Madrid. He played 347 official matches for the club. He also played seven games for the Spanish national team. However, he never played in a major international tournament with Spain.

Muñoz made history by scoring Real Madrid's first-ever goal in the European Cup. This happened on September 8, 1955, in a 2–0 away win against Servette FC. He later became the captain of the team. He led them to win the European Cup two years in a row, in 1955–56 and 1956–57. He stopped playing football the next year, when he was almost 36 years old.

Coaching Success

After retiring as a player, Muñoz briefly coached Real Madrid's reserve team, which was called Plus Ultra CF at the time. In 1959, he became the head coach of the main Real Madrid team. His time as coach was one of the most successful periods for the club.

Under his leadership, Real Madrid won the league title nine times. This included an amazing streak of five wins in a row from 1961 to 1965. They also won the league three more times in a row after that.

On the European stage, Muñoz led Real Madrid to win the European Cup two more times. They won in 1959–60 and again in 1965–66. This made him the first person to win the European Cup both as a player and as a coach. Other famous football figures like Johan Cruyff and Zinedine Zidane later achieved this too.

Muñoz left Real Madrid in 1974 after 16 seasons. He is known as the club's longest-serving and most successful coach.

After leaving Real Madrid, he coached other clubs like Granada CF, UD Las Palmas, and Sevilla FC. In 1982, he took over as coach of the Spanish national team. He had coached them for a short time in the late 1960s too. He led Spain to finish second in the UEFA Euro 1984 tournament. He also guided them to the quarter-finals of the 1986 World Cup.

Life and Legacy

Miguel Muñoz passed away in Madrid on July 16, 1990, at the age of 68, due to an illness.

He is remembered as a legend in Spanish football. His achievements as both a player and a coach for Real Madrid and the Spanish national team left a lasting impact on the sport.

Achievements

Muñoz (center) with Amancio Amaro (left) and Francisco Gento, 1971

As a Player

Real Madrid

• La Liga: 1953–54, 1954–55, 1956–57, 1957–58
• Copa Latina: 1955, 1957
• European Cup: 1955–56, 1956–57, 1957–58

As a Manager

Real Madrid

• La Liga: 1960–61, 1961–62, 1962–63, 1963–64, 1964–65, 1966–67, 1967–68, 1968–69, 1971–72
• Copa del Generalísimo: 1961–62, 1969–70
• European Cup: 1959–60, 1965–66
• Intercontinental Cup: 1960

Individual Recognition

• France Football magazine named him the 14th Greatest Manager of All Time in 2019.

See also

In Spanish: Miguel Muñoz para niños