.jpg) Zubeldía in 2015 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Luis Francisco Zubeldía | ||
| Date of birth | (1981-01-13)13 January 1981 (age 44) | ||
| Place of birth | Santa Rosa, La Pampa, Argentina | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Fluminense (head coach) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| General Belgrano | |||
| Lanús | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1998–2004 | Lanús | 57 | (3) |
| International career | |||
| 1997 | Argentina U17 | 12 | (0) |
| 1999–2001 | Argentina U20 | 15 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2005–2008 | Lanús (assistant) | ||
| 2008–2010 | Lanús | ||
| 2011–2012 | Barcelona SC | ||
| 2012–2013 | Racing Club | ||
| 2014–2015 | LDU Quito | ||
| 2016 | Santos Laguna | ||
| 2017 | Independiente Medellín | ||
| 2017 | Alavés | ||
| 2018 | Cerro Porteño | ||
| 2018–2021 | Lanús | ||
| 2022–2023 | LDU Quito | ||
| 2024–2025 | São Paulo | ||
| 2025– | Fluminense | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Luis Francisco Zubeldía (born 13 January 1981) is an Argentinefootballmanager and former player. He is the current head coach ofCampeonato Brasileiro Série A sideFluminense.
A formermidfielder, Zubeldía's career was mainly associated toClub Atlético Lanús, where he played as a senior and managed the club in two different spells. He was known for being the youngest person to be in charge of an Argentine first division team.
Born inSanta Rosa,La Pampa, Zubeldía started playing with hometown sideGeneral Belgrano, before being spotted byJosé Pékerman and being taken on a trial period for the Argentine youth sides.[2] After attracting the interest of several clubs, he chose to joinLanús, as according to himself, "his school was near the club".[2]
Zubeldía made his first team debut for Lanús on 30 October 1998, in a 2–2 home draw againstIndependiente. He made 57 appearances, scoring 3 goals. In 2004, he retired from football at 23 years of age due to aosteochondritis dissecans of his knee.[2][3]
Zubeldía representedArgentina atunder-17 andunder-20 levels. He played for the former in the1997 FIFA U-17 World Championship, and the latter in the1999 FIFA U-20 World Cup and the2001 South American U-20 Championship.[2]
After retiring, Zubeldía joined the staff ofRamón Cabrero at his main club Lanús, as an assistant.[3] In June 2008, he was announced as manager of the club in the place of Cabrero; at the age of 27, making him the youngest coach in the history of theArgentine Primera División.[3]
After leading the team to fourth place in the2008 Apertura Tournament and qualifying to the2009 Copa Libertadores, Lanús' Zubeldía ended the2009 Clausura Tournament in third place. Under his technical leadership, Lanus finished the 2008–09 season with a total of 75 points, the best record in club's history so far.
On 15 November 2010, Zubeldía resigned and was replaced byGabriel Schürrer.[4]
On 24 June 2011, Zubeldía moved abroad and took over Ecuadorian clubBarcelona SC, signing an 18-month contract.[5] On 8 April 2012, after a 1–1 tie againstLDU Quito, the president of Barcelona,Antonio Noboa, entered the dressing rooms, having a strong discussion with the young coach.[6] Zubeldía then gave a press conference in the following day announcing his resignation from Barcelona, which stated:
"The president made a comment that I believe was disoriented, I did everything possible not to react, but I reacted as any person of character would have reacted. It did not escalate, but respect was broken. Leaving that to the side and not being ego-centric, I choose to step aside for the benefit of the institution, because if the coach and the trainer don't respect each other, there's no project that could work. I would have liked to be in the photo of the winner of the stage, I wish the best to the next trainer, who has the most important thing, the raw materials."
Zubeldía's replacement was his compatriotGustavo Costas, which led Barcelona to the2012 Serie A title after 15 years. Zubeldía was recognized for his role in putting together the team that won the championship.[8]
On 15 April 2012, Zubeldía returned to his home country after being appointed manager ofRacing Club, replacingAlfio Basile.[9] He led the club to the2012 Copa Argentina Final, losing 2–1 toBoca Juniors.
Zubeldía provided the first team debuts of several youth players which would later establish themselves as regular starters, such asRicardo Centurión,Rodrigo De Paul,Luis Fariña andLuciano Vietto.[10] He led the club to a fifth place in the2012 Torneo Inicial, and to a sixth position in the 2013 Torneo Final.
On 25 August 2013, Zubeldía was sacked from Racing, after a poor start of the2013–14 campaign.[11]
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On 26 November 2013, Zubeldía returned to Ecuador to replaceEdgardo Bauza at the helm of LDU Quito.[12] On 20 December 2014, he renewed his contract with the club for a further year.[13]
In the2015 season, Zubeldía led LDU to the first place in the First Stage, but left on 21 December of that year after losing the finals toEmelec.[14]
On 28 November 2015, Zubeldía was announced atLiga MX sideSantos Laguna as their manager for the2016 Clausura tournament.[15] He reached the2016 CONCACAF Champions League semifinals with the club, being eliminated byClub América on extra time.
On 15 August 2016, after only two draws in the first five matches of theApertura tournament, Zubeldía was dismissed.[16]
On 14 December 2016, Zubeldía switched teams and countries again, after taking overIndependiente Medellín of theCategoría Primera A.[17] The following 6 June, after the club's elimination in the2017 Apertura quarterfinals, he resigned.[18]
On 16 June 2017, Zubeldía moved to Europe after being appointed manager ofDeportivo Alavés of the SpanishLa Liga, signing a one-year deal.[19] He was relieved from his duties on 17 September, after losing the first four matches ofthe campaign.[20]
On 3 February 2018, Zebeldía replacedLeonel Álvarez at the helm ofParaguayan Primera División sideCerro Porteño.[21] On 20 August, he was sacked and subsequently replaced byFernando Jubero.[22]
On 31 August 2018, Lanús president Nicolás Russo announced the return of Zubeldía as manager of the club,[23] with the official announcement occurring on 3 September.[24] He reached the2020 Copa Sudamericana final with the club, but lost 3–0 toDefensa y Justicia.
On 2 December 2021, Zubeldía confirmed that he would leave Lanús at the end ofthe season.[25]
On 22 April 2022, LDU confirmed the return of Zubeldía as manager of the club.[26] He won his first professional title of his career on 28 October 2023, lifting the2023 Copa Sudamericana after a 1–1 draw (4–3 penalty win) againstFortaleza.[27]
On 17 December 2023, Zubeldía's side won the2023 Serie A after another penalty win, now overIndependiente del Valle.[28] Despite the club's attempts for a contract renewal, LDU's president confirmed his departure on 4 January 2024.[29]
On 20 April 2024, Zubeldía was announced as head coach ofCampeonato Brasileiro Série A sideSão Paulo, signing a contract until December 2025.[30] On 16 June of the following year, he left by mutual consent.[31]
On 25 September 2025, Zubeldía was announced as head coach ofFluminense also in the Brazilian top tier, signing a contract until December 2026.[32]
Zubeldía's older brothers Gustavo andJuan are also involved in football: the former worked with him at Lanús as a fitness coach, later working under the same capacity at several clubs, and the latter was also a footballer and a midfielder, later becoming a manager.[33]
| Club | Country | Year | Part | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lanús | Argentina | 1998–2004 | 57 | 3 |
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % | |||||
| Lanús |  | 15 June 2008 | 15 November 2010 | 105 | 48 | 27 | 30 | 145 | 128 | +17 | 045.71 | |
| Barcelona SC |  | 24 June 2011 | 10 April 2012 | 32 | 16 | 9 | 7 | 43 | 27 | +16 | 050.00 | |
| Racing Club | | 15 April 2012 | 25 August 2013 | 60 | 22 | 14 | 24 | 69 | 64 | +5 | 036.67 | |
| LDU Quito | | 26 November 2013 | 21 December 2015 | 96 | 47 | 29 | 20 | 135 | 86 | +49 | 048.96 | |
| Santos Laguna |  | 22 December 2015 | 15 August 2016 | 34 | 12 | 9 | 13 | 44 | 40 | +4 | 035.29 | |
| Independiente Medellín |  | 14 December 2016 | 6 June 2017 | 28 | 17 | 3 | 8 | 47 | 36 | +11 | 060.71 | |
| Alavés |  | 16 June 2017 | 17 September 2017 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 7 | −7 | 000.00 | |
| Cerro Porteño |  | 5 February 2018 | 20 August 2018 | 36 | 25 | 8 | 3 | 69 | 36 | +33 | 069.44 | |
| Lanús | | 3 September 2018 | 12 December 2021 | 122 | 53 | 28 | 41 | 181 | 167 | +14 | 043.44 | |
| LDU Quito | | 22 April 2022 | 10 January 2024 | 71 | 37 | 23 | 11 | 114 | 60 | +54 | 052.11 | |
| São Paulo |  | 20 April 2024 | 16 June 2025 | 80 | 37 | 25 | 18 | 107 | 73 | +34 | 046.25 | |
| Fluminense | | 25 September 2025 | present | 12 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 14 | 9 | +5 | 058.33 | |
| Total | 680 | 321 | 177 | 182 | 968 | 733 | +235 | 047.21 | ||||
LDU Quito