 Preciado withSporting Gijón | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Manuel Preciado Rebolledo | ||
| Date of birth | (1957-08-28)28 August 1957 | ||
| Place of birth | El Astillero, Spain | ||
| Date of death | 6 June 2012(2012-06-06) (aged 54) | ||
| Place of death | El Perelló, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1974–1977 | Racing Santander | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1977–1982 | Racing Santander | 115 | (2) |
| 1982–1984 | Linares | 68 | (0) |
| 1984–1985 | Mallorca | 13 | (0) |
| 1985–1986 | Alavés | 37 | (1) |
| 1986–1990 | Ourense | 132 | (1) |
| 1990–1992 | Gimnástica | 64 | (3) |
| Total | 429 | (7) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1995–1996 | Gimnástica | ||
| 1996–1997 | Racing B | ||
| 2000 | Gimnástica | ||
| 2001–2002 | Racing B | ||
| 2002–2003 | Racing Santander | ||
| 2003–2004 | Levante | ||
| 2004 | Murcia | ||
| 2005–2006 | Racing Santander | ||
| 2006–2012 | Sporting Gijón | ||
| 2012 | Villarreal | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Manuel "Manolo"Preciado Rebolledo (28 August 1957 – 6 June 2012) was a Spanishfootballdefender andmanager.
His 15-year career was mainly associated withRacing de Santander, and he also represented five other teams, mostly in the lower leagues. As a manager, he also coached with his main club but worked mostly withSporting de Gijón,promoting toLa Liga in 2008.
Preciado died in June 2012 at the age of 54, from a heart attack.[1]
Born inEl Astillero,Cantabria, Preciado appeared in 59La Liga matches for localRacing de Santander, split between three of his five-year spell with the club. His best-ever in the top flight was 32 games in the1978–79 season, which ended in relegation.
After three years inSegunda División (two of them withLinares CF), Preciado resumed his career in the lower leagues, eventually retiring in 1992 with lowlyGimnástica de Torrelavega also in his native region, at nearly 35. He scored his only goal in thetop tier on 18 April 1982, but in a 4–1 away loss againstAthletic Bilbao.[2]
Preciado took up coaching in the mid-90s precisely with his last team, leading it to theTercera División championship.[3] Being then recalled by Racing to be in charge ofthe reserves, two other promotions toSegunda División B befell, in 1997 and 2002.[4]
Preciado was called for first-team coaching duties in2002–03's top division, helping them to eventually retain their status in his 18 games in charge but submitting his resignation after the purchase of the club byDmitry Piterman,[5] given the intention of the businessman to act as coach.[6][7] After second-tier spells withLevante UD –with promotion[8] – andReal Murcia,[9] he returned to Santander. Although the side finished just one point abovethe relegation zone, they managed a 2–1 away win overReal Madrid on 21 December 2005.[10]
In the summer of 2006, Preciado switched toSporting de Gijón.[11] In hissecond season he managed to lead theAsturians to the top flight after ten years.[12] Subsequently, heavoided relegation with the lowestbudget of all 20 teams[13] after a 2–1 home defeat ofRecreativo de Huelva in the last round on 31 May 2009,[14] renewing his contract later that year.[15]
Preciado again led Sporting into safety in the2009–10 campaign (15th place). In November 2010, after resting almost his entire starting XI for a fixture againstFC Barcelona two months earlier, eventually losing 1–0 away, he was accused by Real Madrid managerJosé Mourinho of throwing the match, and responded by calling the Portuguese a "bad colleague" and a "scumbag". After the war of words, they met at theEl Molinón on the 14th, with the visitors winning 1–0.[16] On 2 April 2011, at theSantiago Bernabéu, Sporting won by the same scoreline, becoming the first side in nine years to defeat Mourinho in a league match at home,[17] with Preciado later commenting that "Mourinho entered our dressing room and congratulated us".[18]
On 31 January 2012, after nearly six years in charge, Preciado was dismissed following a 5–1 away loss toReal Sociedad and with Sporting ranking 19th in the league.[19]
Preciado's wife died from cancer in 2002. Two years later, his 15-year-old son (one of two the couple had) was killed in a car crash. He later claimed about the incidents: "I could have shot myself or I could have carried on".[16]
On 20 April 2011, Preciado's father, also named Manuel, died after being run over inSantander.[20]
On 6 June 2012, Preciado was appointed atVillarreal CF who, as Sporting had,suffered relegation at the season's end.[21] Later in that day, he was found dead in an hotel in theValencian Community from a heart attack.[1][22][23] He was reportedly a chain-smoker, consuming 40 cigarettes a day.[24]
According to theAssociated Press, "Preciado's sudden death led to an outpouring of emotional responses from Spanish clubs, coaches and players."[1]Spain national team managerVicente del Bosque, in Poland to prepare forUEFA Euro 2012, told Spanish sports dailyMarca "We are all shocked. We were having breakfast and we were all taken back by the news. He was a caring person and a great sportsman. He was a man of football that was an honor to coaching."[1] Team memberJuan Mata said, "The truth is that this is difficult to digest. I always remember him smiling, as a happy person that transmitted his passion, joy and character to all his teams. Talking about him in the past tense is tough for me."[1] Mourinho issued an open letter on Real Madrid's official website, saying in part that "He had everything I like in people and sportsmen: character, honesty and the courage to fight on."[1]Joaquín Caparrós, manager atRCD Mallorca, said "I was so happy for him joining Villarreal. I am sure he would have taken it back to the first division. He should be a reference in the world of coaching."[1]
InGijón, many people met atEstadio El Molinón, the home ground of Sporting, in order to pay their respects.[25] The same day, the city Mayor announced she would make a proposal to name a street close to the stadium "Alameda de Manuel Preciado".[26]
On 7 June 2013, one year after Preciado's death, a bronze statue was inaugurated near El Molinón, with the funds being arranged through popular donations.[27]
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | Ref | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % | |||||
| Gimnástica |  | 30 June 1995 | 1 July 1996 | 44 | 29 | 11 | 4 | 94 | 20 | +74 | 065.91 | [28] |
| Racing B | | 1 July 1996 | 30 June 1997 | 44 | 23 | 14 | 7 | 89 | 40 | +49 | 052.27 | [29] |
| Gimnástica | | 1 July 2000 | 1 August 2000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | !— | — |
| Racing B | | 5 February 2001 | 30 June 2002 | 58 | 32 | 12 | 14 | 112 | 42 | +70 | 055.17 | [30] |
| Racing Santander | | 1 July 2002 | 20 January 2003 | 19 | 6 | 2 | 11 | 22 | 27 | −5 | 031.58 | [31] |
| Levante | | 11 July 2003 | 30 June 2004 | 46 | 25 | 13 | 8 | 64 | 36 | +28 | 054.35 | [32] |
| Murcia | | 1 July 2004 | 23 November 2004 | 14 | 2 | 3 | 9 | 9 | 24 | −15 | 014.29 | [33] |
| Racing Santander | | 1 July 2005 | 23 April 2006 | 35 | 7 | 13 | 15 | 29 | 42 | −13 | 020.00 | [34] |
| Sporting Gijón | | 1 July 2006 | 31 January 2012 | 232 | 79 | 55 | 98 | 267 | 321 | −54 | 034.05 | [35] |
| Villarreal | | 6 June 2012 | 6 June 2012 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | !— | [36] |
| Total | 492 | 203 | 123 | 166 | 686 | 552 | +134 | 041.26 | — | |||
Levante
Individual