Over ten seasons, he amassedLa Liga totals of 264 games and 68 goals, adding 55 matches and nine goals in theSegunda División. He played for six teams in a 14-year professional career, includingEspanyol,Barcelona andAthletic Bilbao.
Valverde later went on to have an extensive spell as a manager, including being in charge of all three clubs. He wonthe double withOlympiacos in2008–09 and2011–12, and Barcelona in2017–18.
Valverde left forAthletic Bilbao in 1990, beingeligible although he was born in Extremadura (he moved to theBasque Country while still an infant).[14] He spent six seasons with the team, scoring 20 league goals from 1992 to 1994 before moving toMallorca, where he was relatively used as theBalearic Islands clubachieved top-flight promotion, and retired the following summer aged 33; during his time at Athletic, he was nicknamedTxingurri (Basque forant).[15]
Immediately after retiring, Valverde began his career as a manager in theyouth departments of former club Athletic Bilbao,[17] and four years later he became a co-trainer in the main squad.[18] Heavily involved in the establishment of thewomen's team,[19] in 2002 he again acted as head coach when he took over theB side,[20] being promoted to first-team duties the following year;[21] in2003–04, they finished fifth andqualified for the UEFA Cup.[22]
After one year out of football, Valverde joined another former employers, now renamed Espanyol.[23] During hisfirst season, theCatalans managed to reachanother UEFA Cup final – 19 years after their last – again losing on penalties, to fellow SpaniardsSevilla.[24]
On 28 May 2008, Valverde was appointed coach atOlympiacos,[25] winning theSuper League Greece in hisdebut campaign andaddingthe cup forthe double.[26] On 8 May 2009, the club decided not to renew his contract in spite of his success, because of a financial disagreement; however, most of the players and fans were openly in favour of him staying.[27]
On 2 June 2009,Villarreal announced that Valverde would succeedManuel Pellegrini on a one-year deal, after the Chilean had left forReal Madrid.[28] As the team stood tenth inthe league on 31 January 2010, he was dismissed following a 2–0 home loss againstOsasuna.[29]
On 19 April 2012, after helping Olympiacosrenew its league supremacy, Valverde announced his decision to leave due to family reasons.[32] On 3 December he returned toSpanish football by being appointed at Valencia until the end ofthe campaign, replacing the firedMauricio Pellegrino;[33] his first game occurred five days later, a 1–0 win at Osasuna,[34] and the second match, against the same opponent forthe Spanish cup, brought another triumph at theReyno de Navarra (2–0).[35]
On 17 August 2015, Valverde led theLions to their first trophy in 31 years after a5–1 aggregate defeat of Barcelona for theSupercopa de España.[40] He declared on 23 May 2017 he would be stepping down on 30 June,[41] to be replaced by former Athletic teammateJosé Ángel Ziganda.[42]
Valverde's 306 matches in charge of the team over two spells set a club record, beating the previous total of 289 set byJavier Clemente.[43][44] He also surpassed Clemente's 211 league matches managed, finishing on 228, but was unable to match his record of victories: The latter won 141 games – 102 in the league – while the former came up one short, with 140 and 101;[45][46] additionally, he was on the bench for 42European matches, another record.
Barcelona remained undefeated for 43 matches in the Spanish League only to lose in their penultimate game ofthe campaign on 13 May 2018, having restedLionel Messi for the trip toLevante – they were beaten 5–4 by the hosts.[53] They finished with a league and cupdouble, defeating Sevilla 5–0 in theCopa del Rey final.[54]
The2018–19 season began with a 2–1 victory over Sevilla to win thedomestic supercup.[55] In February 2019 Valverde signed a new one-year contract extension,[56] as they went on a 23-match unbeaten streak and secured asecond consecutive league title under him in April following a victory over Levante.[57] He led his team to their firstChampions League semi-final after a gap of three years, winning 3–0 at home againstLiverpool but being eliminated after a 4–0 defeat atAnfield in the second leg, leading many to call for his dismissal.[58][59] He also guided the side to anotherSpanish Cup final, this time losing 2–1 to Valencia.[60]
Valverde remained in charge for the start of2019–20. Despite the team winning theirChampions League group and being top of theleague table by the new year ongoal difference, poor performances and a period in December and January that saw them win only one in five matches meant his position once again came under pressure.[61] On 13 January 2020, he was dismissed by the club, with his last game being a 3–2 defeat toAtlético Madrid in theSupercopa de España;[62] he was replaced by formerReal Betis coachQuique Setién,[63] with Barcelona ending the campaign without a trophy after finishing five points behind Real Madrid.[64]
On 30 June 2022, Valverde returned to Athletic for a third spell, under new president Jon Uriarte.[65] On 29 August, following a victory againstCádiz, he became the manager with the most wins in the club's history.[66]
^Mallo, Borja (22 January 2021)."100 años entre la gloria y el barro" [100 years between the glory and the mud].Noticias de Álava (in Spanish). Retrieved1 March 2021.
^Guasch, Tomás (1 September 1986)."1–1: Este Español va en serio" [1–1: This Español are the real deal].Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved5 November 2021.
^abSanchis, Alberto; Carmona, Sergio (10 November 1988)."¡Fue de infarto!" [Heart-stopping!].Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved1 November 2017.
^Ger, Pedro (22 October 1989)."Primer positivo... que subo a poco" [First positive... bad taste in mouth].Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved31 October 2017.
^Barcelo, Carme (1 April 1990)."La noche de los "proscritos"" [The night of the "outcast"].Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved31 October 2017.
^Astruells, Andrés (9 April 1990)."¡Bendita primavera azulgrana!" [Holyazulgrana spring!].Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved31 October 2017.
^Archs, Jordi (16 April 1990)."Pulverizaron al Cádiz" [They pulverised Cádiz].Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved31 October 2017.
^Juárez, María Carmen (19 March 2008)."El padre de 'Txingurri'" [The father of 'Txingurri'].Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved3 July 2016.
^Astruells, Andrés (11 October 1990)."España, otra vez por la mínima" [Spain, again by the odd goal](PDF).Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved19 February 2016.
^Martín, Javi (27 February 2013)."Las camadas de "Los Leones de San Mamés"" [Classes at the "San Mamés Lions"] (in Spanish). La Cantera de Lezama. Retrieved5 November 2021.
.jpg)
.jpg)
