 Valdez in 1979 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Rubén Óscar Valdez Ferrero | ||
| Date of birth | (1946-06-25)25 June 1946 | ||
| Place of birth | Buenos Aires, Argentina | ||
| Date of death | 16 February 2025(2025-02-16) (aged 78) | ||
| Place of death | Valencia, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in) | ||
| Position | Striker | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1967–1968 | Almirante Brown | 44 | (10) |
| 1969–1970 | Platense | 54 | (12) |
| 1971–1978 | Valencia | 163 | (42) |
| 1979 | Castellón | 7 | (0) |
| 1979 | Kimberley | 5 | (0) |
| Total | 273 | (64) | |
| International career | |||
| 1972–1974 | Spain | 9 | (5) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1984–1985 | Mestalla | ||
| 1985–1986 | Valencia | ||
| 1986–1987 | Gandía | ||
| 1988–1989 | Poli Almería | ||
| 1990 | Paraguay | ||
| 1992–1993 | Valencia B | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Rubén Óscar Valdez Ferrero (25 June 1946 – 16 February 2025) was a professionalfootball player and manager who played as astriker. Born in Argentina, he played the majority of his career for Spanish clubValencia C.F. and also represented theSpain national team.
Valdez began his playing career in 1967 withAlmirante Brown of the Argentine 2nd division. In 1969, he joinedClub Atlético Platense of thePrimera División where he played 54 games and scored 12 goals in his time at the club.
In the1970–71 season, he signed forValencia C.F. of Spain, he won theSpanish league championship with the club in his first season. He played for the club until 1978 making 195 appearances and scoring 51 goals all competitions.[1] Between 1977 and 1978 he played alongside fellow Argentine strikerMario Kempes.
In 1979 Valdez left Valencia to play forCD Castellón but before the end of the year he had returned to Argentina to joinKimberley where he made five appearances, including a famous 2–1 victory against River Plate on 9 September 1979.[2] before his retirement at the end of the year.
Valdez was first selected to play forSpain in 1972. He made his debut in a 2–0 home win againstUruguay on 23 May 1972, in which he scored one of the goals. His final international appearance came on 13 February 1974 in a 1–0 defeat toYugoslavia inFrankfurt in aqualification game for the1974 FIFA World Cup.[3]
Valdez was born inBuenos Aires, Argentina on 25 June 1946.[3] He died from complications ofAlzheimer's disease inValencia, Spain on 16 February 2025, at the age of 78.[4][5]
Platense have afilial club in Spain which has adopted the namePeña Calamar Óscar Valdez in his honour.[1]