 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Édison Vicente Méndez Méndez[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1979-03-16)March 16, 1979 (age 46) | ||
| Place of birth | Ibarra, Ecuador | ||
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Winger,attacking midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Club Deportivo La Unión | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1996–2001 | Deportivo Quito | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1997–2002 | Deportivo Quito | 193 | (18) |
| 2002–2003 | El Nacional | 34 | (3) |
| 2004 | Irapuato | 16 | (5) |
| 2004 | Santos Laguna | 14 | (2) |
| 2005–2007 | LDU Quito | 60 | (6) |
| 2006–2007 | →PSV(loan) | 26 | (5) |
| 2007–2009 | PSV | 46 | (4) |
| 2009–2010 | LDU Quito | 23 | (6) |
| 2010 | Atlético Mineiro | 9 | (0) |
| 2011 | Emelec | 35 | (5) |
| 2012–2013 | LDU Quito | 47 | (6) |
| 2014 | Santa Fe | 10 | (0) |
| 2015 | El Nacional | 22 | (4) |
| Total | 535 | (64) | |
| International career | |||
| 2000–2014 | Ecuador | 111 | (18) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2020 | El Nacional | ||
| 2022 | LDU Quito (caretaker) | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Édison Vicente Méndez Méndez (Spanish pronunciation:[ˈeðisomˈmendes]; born March 16, 1979, inIbarra) is an Ecuadorianfootballcoach and former player who played as either awinger or anattacking midfielder. He is the current manager ofclub deportivo La Union.
Méndez is a formerEcuador International and is the second-most capped player for his country.
He is known for his pace, accurate passing and long range shooting. He is also known as a dead-ball specialist, and generally takesfree kicks andcorners for his country and club. While he is right-footed, he can play on either wing as well as in the middle.
Méndez began his career withSociedad Deportivo Quito of his native Ecuador. After his2002 FIFA World Cup performances, during which he scored the winning goal in Ecuador's 1-0 win overCroatia, he was rumored to have attracted interest from English clubs, notablyAston Villa andEverton.[3]
He transferred toClub Irapuato of thePrimera División de México for the latter part of the 2004 season, starting 16 games and scoring 5 goals during the remainder of that season. Following Irapuato's relegation the following year, Méndez moved toSantos Laguna, where he struggled to find a place, in 14 games, and scoring 2 goals.
He returned to Ecuador, and was part of theLDU Quito team who won theEcuadorian Apertura season in 2005.
In 2006, shortly after the World Cup, there was speculation of a move toGermany, more specificallyHannover.[4] He ended all rumours in August 2006 by signing a one-season loan deal withPSV Eindhoven, which was followed by a contract for three and a half years which would tie him to thePhilips Stadion outfit until 2010. He made his debut in theEredivisie againstWillem II, and marked his stamp in his new club by scoring two goals for a 3–1 win. The following week he became the firstEcuadorian to play in theUEFA Champions League and made his debut againstLiverpool F.C. He was voted Man of the Match in the game.[5]
In March 2007, he became the first Ecuadorian to score in theUEFA Champions League by getting the only goal in the round of 16 match againstArsenal.[6] Mendez, along with fellow midfieldersTimmy Simons and veteranPhilip Cocu helped PSV reach the quarterfinals.
Mendez's reputation was enhanced when he was among 50 players nominated for theBallon d'Or-award for the best players in Europe.[7] In Winter 2007, rumors stated that Mendez wanted a move back to Ecuador.[8]
On August 4, 2009, Mendez returned to Ecuador for personal reasons to play for his former teamLDU Quito. However, there is speculation that he could return to the club for the 2012 season.[9]
In March, Brazilian clubClube Atlético Mineiro announced Méndez as its new player. The Ecuadorian midfielder started defending his new team after the2010 FIFA World Cup.[10]
On December 11, 2013, it was confirmed that Mendez would join Colombian sideSanta Fe.[11]
On January 7, 2015, it was confirmed that would Méndez return to Ecuador to play forEl Nacional.[12]
He participated at the South American U-20 Championship in Paraguay in 1999, andOlympic qualifying tournament in Brazil in January 2000. Two months later, he was called up to the full squad and made his debut in a 3–1 defeat against Honduras inQuito.
He played all three games of Ecuador's2002 World Cup campaign, scoring in the 1-0 victory in the final group stage match overCroatia, the country's first ever victory in aFIFA World Cup. The win againstCroatia came as a surprise, eliminating them and sealing Méndez's reputation as a star.[13] He was seen by many to be the promise or Ecuadorian football and gained interest from many clubs.[14]
He scored five goals in the qualifying stage for theFIFA World Cup, including a dazzling double from long range againstParaguay in 2005, helping Ecuador to a 5–2 win inQuito. With his goals, he helpedEcuador qualify to theGermany 06 edition.
Méndez again played throughout his team's historic campaign in the2006 FIFA World Cup, which culminated in a 1–0 defeat toEngland in the round of sixteen. He was credited with two assists throughout the whole tournament.
He played forEcuador in theCopa América 2007. In that tournament he scored a consolation goal againstMexico as they were eliminated 2-1. On February 26, 2008, Mendez announced his retirement from the national team, to the surprise of mostEcuadorians and theLatin American world.[15] He has stated that one of the reasons for his early retirement is dissatisfaction with the newly appointed Ecuador coach,Sixto Vizuete. However, on 12 May 2008, Méndez announced his return to the national team,[16] after a meeting with Vizuete and theFEF president,Luis Chiriboga, in which they solved any differences and misunderstandings that could have led the player to his early retirement.[17]
On June 30, 2014, after the2014 FIFA World Cup held inBrazil, Méndez stated that "His cycle is over", retiring from the Ecuador national team after a span of 14 years, ending with 111 Caps and 18 Goals for his country.[18]
His nephew is fellow professional footballer and Ecuadorean international playerSebas Méndez.[19]
| Club performance | League | Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Ecuador | League | Cup | South America | Total | ||||||
| 1997 | Deportivo Quito | Serie A | 27 | 1 | N/A | — | — | 27 | 1 | |
| 1998 | 28 | 1 | N/A | 6 | 0 | 34 | 1 | |||
| 1999 | 39 | 0 | N/A | — | — | 39 | 0 | |||
| 2000 | 31 | 2 | N/A | — | — | 31 | 2 | |||
| 2001 | 35 | 4 | N/A | — | — | 35 | 4 | |||
| 2002 | 33 | 10 | N/A | — | — | 33 | 10 | |||
| 2003 | El Nacional | Serie A | 34 | 3 | N/A | 6 | 0 | 40 | 3 | |
| Mexico | League | Cup | North America | Total | ||||||
| 2003–04 | Deportivo Irapuato | Primera División | 16 | 5 | N/A | — | — | 16 | 5 | |
| 2004–05 | Santos Laguna | Primera División | 14 | 2 | N/A | — | — | 14 | 2 | |
| Ecuador | League | Cup | South America | Total | ||||||
| 2005 | LDU Quito | Serie A | 42 | 4 | N/A | 14 | 3 | 56 | 7 | |
| 2006 | 18 | 2 | N/A | 10 | 3 | 28 | 5 | |||
| Netherlands | League | KNVB Cup | Europe | Total | ||||||
| 2006–07 | PSV | Eredivisie | 26 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 35 | 6 |
| 2007–08 | 20 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 27 | 1 | ||
| 2008–09 | 26 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 33 | 3 | ||
| Ecuador | League | Cup | South America | Total | ||||||
| 2009 | LDU Quito | Serie A | 8 | 0 | N/A | 10 | 7 | 18 | 7 | |
| 2010 | 15 | 6 | N/A | 0 | 0 | 15 | 6 | |||
| Brazil | League | Copa do Brasil | South America | Total | ||||||
| 2010 | Atlético Mineiro | Série A | 9 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 0 | 12 | 0 |
| Ecuador | League | Cup | South America | Total | ||||||
| 2011 | Emelec | Serie A | 35 | 5 | N/A | 3 | 0 | 38 | 5 | |
| 2012 | LDU Quito | Serie A | 19 | 1 | N/A | — | — | 19 | 1 | |
| 2013 | 28 | 5 | N/A | 0 | 0 | 28 | 5 | |||
| Colombia | League | Cup | South America | Total | ||||||
| 2014 | Santa Fe | Primera A | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 18 | 1 |
| Ecuador | League | Cup | South America | Total | ||||||
| 2015 | El Nacional | Serie A | 22 | 4 | N/A | — | — | 22 | 4 | |
| Total | Ecuador | 414 | 48 | N/A | 49 | 13 | 463 | 61 | ||
| Mexico | 30 | 7 | N/A | — | — | 30 | 7 | |||
| Netherlands | 72 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 21 | 1 | 95 | 10 | ||
| Brazil | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 12 | 0 | ||
| Colombia | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 18 | 1 | ||
| Career total | 535 | 64 | 2 | 0 | 81 | 15 | 618 | 79 | ||
| No | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 2 June 2001 | Estadio Monumental "U",Lima,Peru |  Peru | 1–1 | 2–1 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 2. | 17 July 2001 | Estadio Metropolitano Roberto Meléndez,Barranquilla,Colombia |  Venezuela | 3–0 | 4–0 | 2001 Copa América |
| 3. | 13 June 2002 | International Stadium Yokohama,Yokohama,Japan |  Croatia | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2002 FIFA World Cup |
| 4. | 15 November 2003 | Estadio Defensores del Chaco,Asunción,Paraguay |  Paraguay | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 5. | 10 March 2004 | Estadio Víctor Manuel Reyna,Tuxtla Gutiérrez,Mexico |  Mexico | 1–2 | 1–2 | Friendly |
| 6. | 10 October 2004 | Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa,Quito,Ecuador |  Chile | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 7. | 17 November 2004 | Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa, Quito, Ecuador |  Brazil | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 8. | 27 March 2005 | Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa, Quito, Ecuador | Paraguay | 2–2 | 5–2 | 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 9. | 3–2 | |||||
| 10. | 4 May 2005 | Giants Stadium,East Rutherford,United States | Paraguay | 1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
| 11. | 1 July 2007 | Estadio Monumental de Maturín,Maturín,Venezuela | Mexico | 1–2 | 1–2 | 2007 Copa América |
| 12. | 21 November 2007 | Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa, Quito, Ecuador | Peru | 3–0 | 5–1 | 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 13. | 5–0 | |||||
| 14. | 6 September 2008 | Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa, Quito, Ecuador |  Bolivia | 2–1 | 3–1 | 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 15. | 9 September 2009 | Estadio Hernando Siles,La Paz,Bolivia | Bolivia | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 16. | 10 August 2011 | Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Aymá,San José,Costa Rica |  Costa Rica | 2–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 17. | 15 November 2011 | Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa, Quito, Ecuador | Peru | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 18. | 5 March 2014 | The Den,London,England |  Australia | 4–3 | 4–3 | Friendly |
Ecuador squads | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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