 Clemente in 2008 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Javier Clemente Lázaro[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1950-03-12)12 March 1950 (age 75)[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Barakaldo, Spain | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.71 m (5 ft 7 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Midfielder | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Barakaldo | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1966–1968 | Athletic Bilbao | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1968–1973 | Athletic Bilbao | 47 | (6) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1973–1974 | Bilbao Athletic | 7 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 54 | (6) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1968 | Spain U18 | 2 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1969–1970 | Spain U23 | 2 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Managerial career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1975–1976 | Arenas Getxo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1976–1978 | Basconia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1979–1981 | Bilbao Athletic | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1981–1986 | Athletic Bilbao | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1986–1989 | Español | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1989–1990 | Atlético Madrid | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1990–1991 | Athletic Bilbao | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1991–1992 | Español | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1992–1996 | Spain U21 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1992–1998 | Spain | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1998–1999 | Betis | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1999–2000 | Real Sociedad | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000–2001 | Marseille | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2002 | Tenerife | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2002–2003 | Espanyol | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2005–2006 | Athletic Bilbao | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2007 | Serbia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008 | Murcia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | Valladolid | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2011 | Cameroon | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | Sporting Gijón | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013–2016 | Libya | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019–2021 | Basque Country | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021–2022 | Libya | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Javier Clemente Lázaro (Spanish pronunciation:[xaˈβjeɾkleˈmenteˈlaθaɾo]; born 12 March 1950) is a Spanishfootball manager and former player who played as amidfielder.[2]
Forced to retire from playing in his early 20s through injury, he embarked on a coaching career with his first managerial appointment coming in 1975. Over the next four decades, he took charge of several club and national teams, includingAthletic Bilbao which he also represented as a player, as well asEspanyol andSpain. He won theLa Liga championship in1983 and1984 with the former.
NicknamedEl rubio deBarakaldo (The blond from Barakaldo) per his hair colour and town of origin,[3] Clemente coached the Spain national team in twoWorld Cups andEuro 1996.
Born inBarakaldo,Biscay, Clemente joinedAthletic Bilbao's youth system at the age of 16, from localBarakaldo CF.[4] He was propelled to the first team at only 18 by managerAgustín Gaínza, making his official debut againstLiverpool inthat season'sInter-Cities Fairs Cup (2–1 home win, 3–3 aggregate triumph);[5] along with fellow teenage newcomerJosé María Igartua, he was selected for the1969 Copa del Generalísimo final, a 1–0 victory overElche CF inMadrid.[6][7]
Clemente's bestLa Liga output with his only club consisted of 18 games in the1969–70 campaign. On 23 November 1969, during a league match againstCE Sabadell FC, he suffered a serious leg injury (fibula andtibia) from which he never fully recovered; after four unsuccessful operations, he retired aged just 24.[8]
Clemente started coaching immediately after retiring. His first stops were with localArenas Club de Getxo,CD Basconia andAthletic's reserves.[9]
In summer 1981, 31-year-old Clemente was appointed at Athletic Bilbao. He led the side to back-to-back national championships inhis second[10] andthird years[11][12] but, during this timeframe, also began abitter rivalry withCésar Luis Menotti and hisFC Barcelona – theArgentine criticised his playing style as authoritarian and his teams as defensive and destructive, and the Spaniard in turn dismissed Menotti as an ageing hippy and womaniser; the culmination of this was the1984 final of theCopa del Rey, which ended in a massive brawl between the two sets of players.[13]
Clemente left the Lions midway through the1985–86 season, after a run-in with star playerManuel Sarabia.[14] He was subsequently appointed atRCD Español in the same league, leading them to a best-ever third place in1987 and thefinal of the UEFA Cup the following year, but being relieved of his duties in March 1989 after questioning his squad's desire – the campaign eventually endedin relegation for theCatalans.[15][16]
In the following years, Clemente had incomplete top-flight spells withAtlético Madrid,[17] a return to Athletic Bilbao and Español.
In 1992 Clemente was appointed manager ofSpain, replacingVicente Miera after the nation had failed toqualify forUEFA Euro 1992. His first game in charge was a 1–0friendly win overEngland on 9 September,[18] and he led the country to the following three major international tournaments, the1994 and1998FIFA World Cups andEuro 1996, being eliminated in the group stage of the second competition[19] and having a run of 31 matches without defeat.[20]
Clemente's last game in charge was on 5 September 1998, a 3–2 defeat inCyprus for theEuro 2000 qualifiers.[21]
Clemente returned to club action after his national team dismissal, working in the main division withReal Betis,Real Sociedad,CD Tenerife,[22] Espanyol for a second time, aone-season spell inLigue 1 withOlympique de Marseille, and back with Athletic Bilbao. He helped the latter avoid relegation in the2005–06 season but, shortly beforethe new campaign started, was fired after a disagreement with chairmanFernando Lamikiz.[23][24]
Over his three spells in charge atSan Mamés, Clemente was manager in 289 official matches, which set a club record. This was broken in 2017 byErnesto Valverde,[25] who also surpassed his total of 211 league matches managed, finishing on 228, but was unable to match his record of victories: the former won 141 games – 102 in the league – while the latter came up one short, with 140 and 101.[26][27]
Clemente became manager of theSerbia national team on 21 July 2006, being brought in on initiative fromSerbian Football Association presidentZvezdan Terzić. According to local media his salary was €30,000 per month on a two-year contract, worth €720,000 in total – also, he was eligible for a €400,000 bonus if the countryqualified for Euro 2008, and an additional €150,000 bonus for every round passed at the tournament; in an interview given to Serbian dailyPolitika, he claimed his current was the lowest wage he had earned in the last 20 years.[28]
Clemente made his debut on 16 August 2006 in a 3–1 away friendly victory withCzech Republic. New players introduced into the squad includedDanko Lazović,Marko Pantelić,Vladimir Stojković andAleksandar Trišović, while previous mainstays such asPredrag Đorđević,Dragoslav Jevrić,Mateja Kežman,Savo Milošević andAlbert Nađ were dropped. The continental qualification campaign started with three home wins, overAzerbaijan,Belgium andArmenia, and a draw inPoland from the first four matches; however, things started to go wrong with a 2–1 defeat inKazakhstan in March 2007, and the nation eventually trailed Poland andPortugal in Group A, with the manager questioning the side's mental approach in the process.[29]
Following the failure to qualify, Clemente was released from his contract on 6 December 2007.[30]
On 17 August 2010, following spells in his country withReal Murcia CF (top tier andSegunda División)[31] andReal Valladolid (eight games in charge,top-flight relegation),[32] Clemente was named as the new coach ofCameroon, taking over fromPaul Le Guen who stepped down after three losses in as many games in the2010 World Cup.[33] He made his debut with theLions Indomptables on 4 September in a 3–1 away win againstMauritius in the first match of the2012 Africa Cup of Nationsqualifiers. However, the nation finished second behindSenegal and thus failed to reach the finals inGabon andEquatorial Guinea, and he was dismissed on 25 October 2011.[34][35]
On 13 February 2012, Clemente signed as the new manager ofSporting de Gijón, with a contract running until the end ofthe season.[36] He left theAsturians in May, following their relegation;[37] in the process he celebrated his 500th game in the Spanish first division, a 2–1 away loss toGranada CF.[38]
On 20 September 2013, Clemente was named manager ofLibya, taking over fromAbdul-Hafeedh Arbeesh who was fired after a 1–0 defeat to Cameroon for the2014 World Cup qualifying campaign.[39] He led the nation to its first silverware, the2014 African Nations Championship, with apenalty shootout win overGhana in the final inCape Town.[40] Later that year, the team withdrew from their hosting duty for the2017 Africa Cup of Nations due tocivil war.[41]
Clemente was sacked by theMediterranean Knights in October 2016, having won only three of 14 matches.[42]
On 6 March 2019, Clemente was appointed as manager for theunofficial national team of theBasque Country.[43][44] At his presentation, he spoke of plans to inviteplayers with Basque heritage to play for the team, in line with thegrandfather rule used by FIFA national teams.[45][46][47]
Clemente was re-appointed as head coach of Libya in May 2021.[48][49] After failing to qualify for the2021 FIFA Arab Cup and the2022 World Cup, his one-year contract was allowed to expire, with compatriotRamón Catalá seeing out the final weeks.[50][51]
| Team | Nat | Year | Record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | Win % | |||||||
| Arenas Getxo |  | 1975–1976 | 38 | 20 | 9 | 9 | 052.63 | ||||
| Basconia | | 1976–1978 | 76 | 26 | 11 | 39 | 034.21 | ||||
| Bilbao Athletic | | 1979–1981 | 76 | 30 | 21 | 25 | 039.47 | ||||
| Athletic Bilbao[52][53][54][55][56] | | 1981–1986 | 213 | 117 | 44 | 52 | 054.93 | ||||
| Español[57][58][59] | | 1986–1989 | 124 | 41 | 27 | 56 | 033.06 | ||||
| Atlético Madrid[60] | | 1989–1990 | 32 | 15 | 8 | 9 | 046.88 | ||||
| Athletic Bilbao[61] | | 1990–1991 | 31 | 11 | 3 | 17 | 035.48 | ||||
| Español | | 1992 | 22 | 10 | 4 | 8 | 045.45 | ||||
| Spain U21 | | 1992–1996 | 12 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 033.33 | ||||
| Spain | | 1992–1998 | 62 | 36 | 20 | 6 | 058.06 | ||||
| Betis | | 1998–1999 | 36 | 15 | 15 | 6 | 041.67 | ||||
| Real Sociedad | | 1999–2000 | 37 | 10 | 13 | 14 | 027.03 | ||||
| Marseille |  | 2000–2001 | 27 | 8 | 5 | 14 | 029.63 | ||||
| Tenerife[62] | | 2002 | 12 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 033.33 | ||||
| Espanyol | | 2002–2003 | 35 | 9 | 14 | 12 | 025.71 | ||||
| Athletic Bilbao[63] | | 2005–2006 | 31 | 11 | 3 | 17 | 035.48 | ||||
| Serbia |  | 2006–2007 | 16 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 043.75 | ||||
| Murcia[64][65] | | 2008 | 31 | 6 | 6 | 19 | 019.35 | ||||
| Valladolid[66] | | 2010 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 037.50 | ||||
| Cameroon |  | 2010–2011 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 050.00 | ||||
| Sporting Gijón[67] | | 2012 | 16 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 031.25 | ||||
| Libya |  | 2013–2016 | 13 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 023.08 | ||||
| Basque Country | | 2019–2021 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 050.00 | ||||
| Libya | | 2021–2022 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 036.36 | ||||
| Career total | 969 | 400 | 233 | 336 | 041.28 | ||||||
Athletic Bilbao
Athletic Bilbao
Spain U21
Libya
Individual
Spain squads | |||||||||||||||||||
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| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
