 Juárez withCeltic in 2010 | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Efraín Juárez Valdez[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1988-02-22)22 February 1988 (age 37) | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Mexico City, Mexico | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[2] | ||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Defensive midfielder,right-back | ||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||
Current team | Pumas UNAM (head coach) | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| 2001–2006 | UNAM | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 2006–2008 | Barcelona | ||||||||||||||||
| 2008 | Pumas Morelos[3] | 11 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2008–2010 | Pumas UNAM | 66 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2010–2012 | Celtic | 13 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2011 | →Zaragoza (loan) | 15 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| 2012–2014 | América | 6 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2013–2014 | →Monterrey (loan) | 22 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| 2014–2018 | Monterrey | 74 | (2) | ||||||||||||||
| 2018 | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 16 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2019 | Vålerenga | 19 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| Total | 242 | (4) | |||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||
| 2005 | Mexico U17 | 5 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| 2007 | Mexico U20 | 4 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| 2009–2012 | Mexico | 39 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| Managerial career | |||||||||||||||||
| 2024–2025 | Atlético Nacional | ||||||||||||||||
| 2025– | Pumas UNAM | ||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||
Efraín Juárez Valdez (born 22 February 1988) is a Mexican professionalfootball manager and formerplayer. He is the current head coach ofLiga MX clubPumas UNAM.
Juárez joinedUNAM at the age of thirteen. Following Mexico's triumph at the2005 FIFA U-17 World Championship, he was signed byBarcelona alongside teammateJorge Hernández. Limited playing time withBarcelona B led him back to Pumas, where he continued his development until coachRicardo Ferretti promoted him to the first team. Juárez soon became a regular starter, and in the Clausura 2009 tournament, he helped Pumas secure the league title with a victory overPachuca in the final.[4]
On 17 July 2010, Pumas accepted a bid for Juárez fromScottish Premier League clubCeltic.[5] On 26 July a £2 million transfer was agreed and Juárez signed a four-year contract withThe Hoops, making him the first ever Mexican player to play in the SPL.[6][7] Juárez made his Celtic debut in a 3–0Champions League defeat away toBraga.[8] He scored his first goal for the club in the return fixture atCeltic Park with a header.[9] He then scored his second goal, again at Celtic Park, in aEuropa League qualifying first leg match againstUtrecht two weeks later.[10] Juárez was close to agreeing a loan move toSerie A sideBrescia Calcio in the January 2011 transfer window but the deal fell through.[7] He had fallen out of favour with the first team and his agent admitted that Juárez would need to move on in the summer of 2011 in order to play first team football.[7]
On 26 July 2011, after weeks of speculation, Juárez was loaned out toLa Liga sideReal Zaragoza,[11][12] where he was reunited with formerMexico national team coachJavier Aguirre. He made his debut for Zaragoza in a 6–0 loss againstReal Madrid.[13] He then scored his first goal for the club in a 4–3 defeat toReal Betis.[14]
On 5 June 2012 it was announced that Juárez had transferred toClub América in Mexico for an undisclosed fee, after failing to cement his place in the starting line-up for Celtic, and after his disappointing stint for Real Zaragoza.[15] He made his first appearance for América on 27 June in a 0–2 preseason loss againstJaguares.[16][17] He made hisleague debut on 21 July in a 0–0 draw againstMonterrey.[18] On 22 August 2012, Juárez suffered a terrible arm injury during a cup game againstCorrecaminos in the 39th minute which he had to miss a few months.
Juárez signed withVancouver Whitecaps FC ofMajor League Soccer on 18 January 2018.[19] On 1 February 2019, Juárez and Vancouver mutually agreed to part ways.[20]
On 28 June 2009, Juárez made his first international cap with thesenior national team againstGuatemala.[21] He played a part of the team that won the2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup. In the Gold Cup, he mainly played at right back. He started and completed all games played in the competition. Thanks to his great performance, he quickly gained a spot on the national team. Juárez scored for Mexico againstCosta Rica during a penalty shootout.[22]
On 11 June 2010, Juárez became the first player to be booked at the2010 World Cup in Mexico's opening match againstSouth Africa.[23][24] He also played in Mexico's 2–0 victory overFrance on 17 June, when he was replaced byJavier Hernández on 55 minutes, who later himself went on to score.[25]
On 22 September 2010, it was announced that Juárez and Mexico teammateCarlos Vela were banned from international duty for six months for their involvement in a party inMonterrey following a game withColombia two weeks earlier.[26]
Juárez scored his first national team goal in the 5–0 win againstEl Salvador in the opening match of the2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup on 5 June.[27]
Following his retirement as a footballer, Juárez assumed the role of technical assistant within the staff ofRonny Deila. He held this position atNew York City FC,Standard Liège andClub Brugge.
On 28 August 2024, Colombian clubAtlético Nacional announced Juárez as their new head coach.[28] His appointment was poorly received by local fans and media, who criticized the lack of experience of the foreign coach.[29]
On 17 November, during theCopa Colombia semifinal match againstIndependiente Medellín, Juárez was celebrating his team's victory after the full-time whistle when he was shown a red card and promptly escorted out of the stadium by Medellín police and stadium officials.[30] TheColombian Football Federation announced that Juárez would be banned from all Colombian stadiums for three years and fined 26 million Colombian pesos for his "provocative" celebrations.[31] On 27 December, the sanction was revoked.[32]
On 15 December, Juárez won his first title as manager when Atlético Nacional was crowned champion of the Copa Colombia.[33] A week later, he led Atlético Nacional to its 18th league title, making him one of only three managers to achievethe double in Colombian football.[34] On 14 January 2025, Juárez stepped down from his position due to disagreements with the club's management.[35]
On 2 March 2025, Juárez became the head coach of his boyhood clubUniversidad Nacional.[36][37] On 30 September, Juárez was handed a two-game ban after an altercation with a match official.
| Club performance | League | Cup | League cup | Continental | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Mexico | League | Cup | League cup | North America | Total | |||||||
| 2008–09 | UNAM | Primera División | 41 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 43 | 1 | ||||
| 2009–10 | 25 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 29 | 0 | ||||||
| Scotland | League | Scottish Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2010–11 | Celtic | SPL | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 21 | 2 |
| Spain | League | Copa del Rey | Supercopa de España | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2011–12 | Real Zaragoza | La Liga | 15 | 1 | 15 | 1 | ||||||
| Mexico | League | Cup | League cup | North America | Total | |||||||
| 2012–13 | América | Liga MX | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 0 | ||||
| Mexico | League | Cup | League cup | North America | Total | |||||||
| 2013–14 | Monterrey | Liga MX | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 0 | ||||
| Total | Mexico | 83 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 93 | 1 | |
| Scotland | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 20 | 2 | ||
| Spain | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 1 | ||
| Career total | 111 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 3 | 127 | 4 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mexico | 2009 | 9 | 0 |
| 2010 | 16 | 0 | |
| 2011 | 14 | 1 | |
| Total | 39 | 1 |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 5 June 2011 | Cowboys Stadium,Arlington, United States |  El Salvador | 1–0 | 5–0 | 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % | ||||
| Atlético Nacional |  | 28 August 2024 | 14 January 2025 | 27 | 14 | 8 | 5 | 44 | 24 | +20 | 051.85 |
| UNAM |  | 2 March 2025 | Present | 34 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 48 | 51 | −3 | 029.41 |
| Total | 61 | 24 | 20 | 17 | 92 | 75 | +17 | 039.34 | |||
UNAM
Celtic
América
Monterrey
Mexico U17
Mexico
Atlético Nacional
Individual
Mexico squads | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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