Quique Sánchez Flores facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Quique Sánchez Flores

Flores as manager of Watford in 2015
Personal information
Full name	Enrique Sánchez Flores
Date of birth	(1965-02-05) 5 February 1965 (age 60)
Place of birth	Madrid, Spain
Height	1.76 m
Playing position	Right-back
Youth career
	CD Pegaso
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1984–1994	Valencia	272	(23)
1994–1996	Real Madrid	63	(2)
1996–1997	Zaragoza	9	(0)
Total		344	(25)
National team
1982–1983	Spain U18	9	(0)
1984–1986	Spain U21	13	(0)
1986–1987	Spain U23	2	(0)
1987–1991	Spain	15	(0)
Teams managed
2001–2004	Real Madrid (youth)
2004–2005	Getafe
2005–2007	Valencia
2008–2009	Benfica
2009–2011	Atlético Madrid
2011–2013	Al-Ahli
2013–2014	Al-Ain
2015	Getafe
2015–2016	Watford
2016–2018	Espanyol
2018–2019	Shanghai Shenhua
2019	Watford
2021–2023	Getafe
2023–2024	Sevilla
Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Enrique "Quique" Sánchez Flores (born 5 February 1965) is a Spanish football manager and former player. He played as a right-back.

He started his professional playing career with Valencia in 1984. He played 304 games and scored 16 goals in La Liga over 12 seasons. He also played for Real Madrid and Zaragoza before retiring in 1997. Quique represented Spain at different youth levels and played for the senior team in the 1990 FIFA World Cup.

In 2001, Flores began his coaching career with Real Madrid's youth team. His first job as a senior team coach was with Getafe in 2004. He also managed Valencia, Atlético Madrid (where he won the 2010 Europa League), and Espanyol in Spain's top league. Outside Spain, he coached Benfica in Portugal and Watford (twice) in England. He also had coaching jobs in the United Arab Emirates and China.

Playing Career Highlights

Born in Madrid, Quique Flores spent his first ten years as a senior player with Valencia. He started playing for them in the 1984–85 season.

Valencia was relegated in his second season. When they returned to La Liga in the 1987–88 season, they finished 14th. However, from that point until 1994, the team always finished in the top seven, with Quique as a key player.

Flores joined Real Madrid in the summer of 1994. He signed a four-year contract. He played for the capital team for two seasons, winning the league title in his first year. He then had a short time with Real Zaragoza. He retired from professional football at age 32. He played a total of 304 games and scored 16 goals in the Spanish top league. In his only season in the Segunda División (second division), Valencia won the championship. He played 40 matches and scored nine goals, which were career highs for him.

Flores played 15 games for the Spain national team. He was part of the 1990 FIFA World Cup squad. His first game for Spain was on 23 September 1987. It was a 2–0 friendly win against Luxembourg in Castellón de la Plana.

Coaching Journey

Starting as a Coach

Quique Flores began his coaching career in 2001. He started by managing Real Madrid's youth teams. After three successful seasons with the youth teams, he caught the attention of Getafe. Getafe had just been promoted to the top league.

Coaching Valencia

After the 2004–05 season with Getafe, where they finished 13th, Flores got the chance to coach his former club, Valencia. He took over from Claudio Ranieri. In his first year, he led them to third place. This meant they qualified for the UEFA Champions League. In that competition, the team reached the quarter-finals, where they were knocked out by Chelsea.

In May 2007, Valencia finished in the top four of the league. This earned them a spot in the next Champions League. However, on 29 October, the club's board decided to let Flores go after a series of poor results.

Time at Benfica

Flores was named manager of Benfica in Portugal on 24 May 2008. He left the club on 8 June the next year by agreement. Benfica finished third in the league and won the domestic league cup.

Leading Atlético Madrid

On 23 October 2009, Flores signed with Atlético Madrid. He took over after Abel Resino was dismissed. His contract was until 30 June 2010. At the end of that season, he led the team to ninth place in the league. More importantly, he guided them to two cup finals. They won the UEFA Europa League against Fulham (2–1 win). They also reached the Copa del Rey final, which they lost to Sevilla.

Flores announced he would leave Atlético Madrid before the 2010–11 season ended. The team still managed to qualify for the Europa League.

Coaching in the UAE and China

In November 2011, Flores became the new coach of UAE Pro League team Al Ahli. He left the club on 11 June 2013.

Just three months later, on 28 September 2013, Flores returned to the United Arab Emirates. He was appointed manager at Al Ain. However, his time there was short. He was dismissed on 8 March 2014 because of poor results.

On 25 December 2018, Flores was appointed manager of Chinese club Shanghai Shenhua. He left the club the following July.

Returning to Getafe (Twice!)

After almost nine months without a club, Flores returned to Getafe on 5 January 2015. He took over from Cosmin Contra. His first match was two days later, a 1–1 draw against Almería in the domestic cup. However, on 26 February, he resigned, saying it was for personal reasons.

On 6 October 2021, Flores was presented as Getafe manager for the third time. This happened after Míchel was dismissed. His team was knocked out of the Spanish Cup second round. But seventeen days later, they achieved their first win over Real Madrid in almost nine years. Getafe finished 15th in his first season back. On 27 April 2023, he was relieved of his duties.

Watford Spells

On 5 June 2015, Flores was appointed head coach of newly promoted Premier League team Watford. In December, the team won three and lost only one of their league matches. This earned him the Premier League Manager of the Month award. His player Odion Ighalo also won an award for scoring five goals that month.

Even though he led the team to a good mid-table position and the semi-finals of the FA Cup, it was announced on 13 May 2016 that Flores would leave at the end of the season.

Flores returned to Watford on 7 September 2019. He replaced Javi Gracia. His team came back from 2–0 down to draw 2–2 with Arsenal in his first game back. However, one week later, they lost 8–0 to Manchester City. On 30 November 2019, Watford lost 2–1 to Southampton. The next day, Flores was sacked after only one victory in his second time in charge.

Espanyol and Sevilla

On 9 June 2016, Flores returned to Spain. He signed a three-year deal to manage Espanyol. Flores was dismissed on 20 April 2018, after poor results towards the end of the season.

On 18 December 2023, Flores was appointed manager at Sevilla. He signed a contract until 2025. He won his first game the next day, 3–0 against Granada. During a match at Getafe on 30 March 2024, Quique Sánchez Flores, who has Spanish Gypsy heritage, experienced unfair treatment from some people in the crowd. As a result of other chants in the same game, the home team was ordered to close parts of their stadium for three matches and received a fine.

On 18 May 2024, after making sure Sevilla would stay in the top league, Sánchez Flores announced he would leave the club on 30 June.

Family Life

Quique Flores is the nephew of the famous flamenco singer and dancer Lola Flores. His father, Isidro, was also a football player and a defender. The legendary footballer Alfredo Di Stéfano was Quique's godfather. Quique's brother and son, also named Isidro and Enrique, played football at lower levels.

Managerial Statistics

Trophies and Awards

As a Player

Valencia

• Segunda División: 1986–87 (Second Division Champions)

Real Madrid

• La Liga: 1994–95 (Spanish League Champions)

Spain U21

• UEFA European Under-21 Championship: 1986

As a Manager

Benfica

• Taça da Liga: 2008–09 (Portuguese League Cup)

Atlético Madrid

• UEFA Europa League: 2009–10
• UEFA Super Cup: 2010
• Copa del Rey runner-up: 2009–10 (Spanish Cup Finalist)

Al Ahli

• UAE League Cup: 2011–12
• UAE President's Cup: 2012–13

Al Ain

• UAE President's Cup: 2013–14

Individual Awards

• Premier League Manager of the Month: December 2015

Images for kids

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  Flores as manager of Watford in 2015

See also

In Spanish: Quique Sánchez Flores para niños