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 (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s)	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)
International career
1982–1983	Spain U18	9	(0)
1984–1986	Spain U21	13	(0)
1986–1987	Spain U23	2	(0)
1987–1991	Spain	15	(0)
Managerial career
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
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Enrique "Quique" Sánchez Flores (born 5 February 1965) is a Spanish football manager and a former player. He played as a right-back, which is a defensive position on the side of the field.

Quique started his professional playing career with Valencia in 1984. He played in over 300 games in La Liga, Spain's top football league. He also played for famous clubs like Real Madrid and Zaragoza. He retired from playing in 1997. Quique also played for the Spanish national team, even appearing in the 1990 FIFA World Cup.

After his playing days, Flores became a coach in 2001. He first coached youth teams at Real Madrid. Later, he managed several top clubs, including Valencia, Atlético Madrid, and Espanyol in Spain. He also coached teams in Portugal, England, the United Arab Emirates, and China. One of his biggest achievements as a manager was winning the Europa League with Atlético Madrid in 2010.

Playing Career Highlights

Quique Sánchez Flores was born in Madrid, Spain. He spent his first ten years as a professional player with Valencia. He joined the club in the 1984–85 season.

Valencia Years

During his time at Valencia, the team was relegated to a lower league in his second season. However, they quickly returned to La Liga. From 1987 until 1994, Valencia always finished in the top seven teams. Quique was a key player for them during this period. In the 1986–87 season, when Valencia won the Segunda División (second division), he played 40 matches and scored nine goals. This was his best scoring season.

Moving to Real Madrid

In 1994, Flores joined Real Madrid. He played for the capital city club for two seasons. He helped Real Madrid win the league title in his first season, 1994–95. After a brief time with Real Zaragoza, he retired from professional football at age 32.

Playing for Spain

Quique Flores played 15 times for the Spanish national team. He was part of the squad for the 1990 FIFA World Cup. His first game for Spain was a friendly match against Luxembourg in 1987, which Spain won 2–0.

Coaching Career Journey

Quique Flores started his coaching journey in 2001. He began by managing the youth teams at Real Madrid. After three successful seasons with the youth teams, he got the chance to manage a senior team.

First Senior Role at Getafe

In 2004, Flores became the coach of Getafe, a club also based in Madrid. He led them to a 13th-place finish in the 2004–05 season.

Managing Valencia

After his time at Getafe, Quique was offered the chance to coach his former club, Valencia, in 2005. In his first year, he guided Valencia to third place in the league. This meant they qualified for the UEFA Champions League, a major European club competition. Valencia reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League, where they were knocked out by Chelsea. He left Valencia in October 2007 after some difficult results.

Time at Benfica

On 24 May 2008, Flores was appointed manager of Benfica in Portugal. He stayed there for about a year, leaving in June 2009. During his time, Benfica finished third in the league and won the domestic league cup.

Success with Atlético Madrid

Quique Flores took over as manager of Atlético Madrid in October 2009. He signed a contract until June 2010. By 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 by beating Fulham 2–1. They also reached the Copa del Rey final, but lost to Sevilla. He left Atlético Madrid in May 2011.

Coaching in the UAE and China

After leaving Atlético Madrid, Flores moved to the United Arab Emirates. He became the coach of Al Ahli in November 2011. He stayed there until June 2013. Just three months later, in September 2013, he returned to the UAE to manage Al Ain. However, his time there was short, and he left in March 2014. In December 2018, he took on a new challenge, managing Shanghai Shenhua in China, but he left the club the following July.

Returns to Getafe and Watford

Flores returned to Getafe for a second time in January 2015. He resigned just a couple of months later in February 2015, citing personal reasons.

In June 2015, he was appointed head coach of Premier League side Watford in England. In December 2015, he won the Premier League Manager of the Month award because his team had a great month. He led Watford to a comfortable mid-table finish and reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup. However, it was announced in May 2016 that he would leave Watford at the end of the season.

He returned to Watford for a second time in September 2019. In his first game back, his team came back from 2–0 down to draw 2–2 with Arsenal. However, after securing only one victory, he was sacked in December 2019.

Espanyol and Third Getafe Spell

In June 2016, Flores returned to Spain to manage Espanyol. He signed a three-year deal. He was dismissed in April 2018 after a series of poor results.

On 6 October 2021, Flores was presented as Getafe manager for the third time. His team had a tough start to the season. In December, they were knocked out of the Spanish Cup. However, in January 2022, they achieved a big victory over Real Madrid. Flores's side finished 15th in his first season back. He left Getafe in April 2023.

Sevilla Appointment

On 18 December 2023, Quique Flores was appointed manager of Sevilla. He was their third coach of the 2023–24 season. He won his first game in charge, a 3–0 victory against Granada. During a match in March 2024, Quique Sánchez Flores, who has Spanish Gypsy heritage, faced racist abuse from some fans. This led to actions against the club for similar chants against a player. 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 2024.

Personal Life

Quique Flores comes from a family of artists and athletes. His aunt was Lola Flores, a famous flamenco singer and dancer. His father, Isidro, was also a football player and a defender. The legendary footballer Alfredo Di Stéfano was Quique's godfather. Quique's brother, Isidro, and his son, Enrique, also played football at lower levels.

Managerial Statistics

Honours and Awards

Quique Sánchez Flores has won several titles both as a player and as a manager.

As a Player

• Valencia

* Segunda División: 1986–87 (This is the second division of Spanish football)

• Real Madrid

* La Liga: 1994–95 (Spain's top football league)

• Spain U21

* UEFA European Under-21 Championship: 1986

As a Manager

• Benfica

* Taça da Liga: 2008–09 (A Portuguese league cup)

• Atlético Madrid

* UEFA Europa League: 2009–10 (A major European club competition) * UEFA Super Cup: 2010 (A match between winners of two European club competitions) * Copa del Rey runner-up: 2009–10 (Spanish cup competition)

• 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 (Award for best manager in England's top league)

See also

In Spanish: Quique Sánchez Flores para niños