Antonio López Habas
Encyclopedia
Antonio López Habas is a retired Spanish
footballer who played as a central defender, and a current coach
.
matches over the course of four seasons, eight of those for Sevilla FC
, to where he arrived in 1977 from local amateurs CD Pozoblanco
, first being assigned to Sevilla Atlético
.
He also represented Real Murcia
, Burgos CF
and Atlético de Madrid (no matches for the latter), retiring from the game at only 29 years of age. In 1981–82, he scored an astonishing 13 goals in 32 games for Burgos, which nonetheless suffered Segunda División
relegation, due to financial irregularities.
. After one season apiece in amateur football, also in the Madrid area, he took charge of the Bolivian national team
, first as an assistant, and eventually appeared with it, as head coach, at two Copa América
tournaments. He then returned to club action with Club Bolívar
, followed by a spell in his homeland with UE Lleida
, in the second division
- whilst at the Catalan
club, he briefly accumulated with his work as the national coach of the South America
n country, which he left for good in 1997.
Three years after his last job, with lowly Granada CF
, López was hired by Valencia CF
to help develop its youth sides. However, after the sacking of Italian
Claudio Ranieri
, he managed the first team for 14 games, as the Che, the previous league champions, eventually finished seventh
.
López started the following season
with CD Tenerife
in level two, being fired after six games. Two years later, he joined Juan Ramón López Caro's staff at Celta de Vigo
, in the same category. With the Galicians constantly batlling relegation until the last month of competition, he was named interim coach for the final six matches, eventually maintaining division status for the club; he was the third Celta manager in approximately one year.
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
footballer who played as a central defender, and a current coach
Coach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
.
Playing career
López had an unassuming career as a professional footballer, appearing in 48 La LigaLa Liga
The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...
matches over the course of four seasons, eight of those for Sevilla FC
Sevilla FC
Sevilla Fútbol Club S.A.D. is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville, Spain that plays in the Spanish La Liga championship.They are one of the most successful clubs in Spanish football having won a 1 La Liga title, 5 Spanish "Copa del Rey" Cups, 1 Spanish Super Cup and 2 UEFA...
, to where he arrived in 1977 from local amateurs CD Pozoblanco
CD Pozoblanco
Club Deportivo Pozoblanco is a Spanish football team based in Pozoblanco, Córdoba, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1926, it plays in Tercera División Group 10, holding home matches at Estadio Municipal Pozoblanco, with a 4,000-seat capacity.-Season to season:---------*29...
, first being assigned to Sevilla Atlético
Sevilla Atlético
Sevilla Atlético Club is a Spanish football team based in Seville, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1958, it plays in Segunda División B, and is the reserve team of Sevilla FC, holding home games at Ciudad Deportiva José Ramón Cisneros Palacios, with a 7,000-seat capacity.Unlike...
.
He also represented Real Murcia
Real Murcia
Real Murcia Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in the region of Murcia. Founded in 1908, it currently plays in the second division, playing home matches at Estadio Nueva Condomina, which can hold 33,045 spectators....
, Burgos CF
Burgos CF (I)
Burgos Club de Fútbol was a Spanish football club based in Burgos, in the autonomous community of Castile and León. Founded in 1936, it managed six seasons in the first division, mainly in the late 70's.Due to serious economic debts, it disappeared in 1983...
and Atlético de Madrid (no matches for the latter), retiring from the game at only 29 years of age. In 1981–82, he scored an astonishing 13 goals in 32 games for Burgos, which nonetheless suffered Segunda División
Segunda División
The Segunda División is the lower tier of the two professional football leagues in Spain. From the season 2008-09 onwards, the name of the league is Liga Adelante.-History:...
relegation, due to financial irregularities.
Manager career
López started coaching in the early 90's, with his last club's reservesAtlético Madrid B
Atlético Madrid B is a Spanish football team based in Madrid, in the namesake community. Founded in 1963, it is the reserve team of Atlético Madrid, and currently plays in Segunda División B, holding home games at Nuevo Cerro del Espino.-History:...
. After one season apiece in amateur football, also in the Madrid area, he took charge of the Bolivian national team
Bolivia national football team
The Bolivia national football team is the national team of Bolivia and is controlled by the Federación Boliviana de Fútbol. After playing in the 1930 and 1950 World Cups, they qualified just once—in 1994...
, first as an assistant, and eventually appeared with it, as head coach, at two Copa América
Copa América
The Copa América —previously known as South American Championship—is an international football competition contested between the men's national teams of CONMEBOL, the sport's continental governing body...
tournaments. He then returned to club action with Club Bolívar
Club Bolívar
Club Bolívar, a football team from Bolivia, was founded in La Paz on April 12, 1925, with the name Atletico Bolívar Literario Musical later changed to "Club Atlético Bolívar"...
, followed by a spell in his homeland with UE Lleida
UE Lleida
Club Lleida Esportiu is a Spanish football team based in Lleida, Catalonia. Founded in 2011, it plays in Segunda División B, holding home games at Camp d'Esports, with a capacity of 13,500 seats.-History:...
, in the second division
Segunda División
The Segunda División is the lower tier of the two professional football leagues in Spain. From the season 2008-09 onwards, the name of the league is Liga Adelante.-History:...
- whilst at the Catalan
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
club, he briefly accumulated with his work as the national coach of the South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
n country, which he left for good in 1997.
Three years after his last job, with lowly Granada CF
Granada CF
Granada Club de Fútbol is a Spanish football club based in Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded on 14 April 1931, it currently plays in La Liga, holding home matches at Estadio Nuevo Los Cármenes....
, López was hired by Valencia CF
Valencia CF
Valencia Club de Fútbol is a Spanish football club based in Valencia, Spain. They play in La Liga and are one of the most successful and biggest clubs in Spanish Football and European Football. Valencia have won six La Liga titles, seven Copa del Rey trophies, two Fairs Cups which was the...
to help develop its youth sides. However, after the sacking of Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Claudio Ranieri
Claudio Ranieri
Claudio Ranieri, is an Italian football manager, currently in charge as head coach of Internazionale.He has also managed many other well-known clubs in Europe, including Cagliari, Napoli, Fiorentina, Valencia, Atlético Madrid, Chelsea, Parma, Juventus and Roma.-Early life:Ranieri attended St...
, he managed the first team for 14 games, as the Che, the previous league champions, eventually finished seventh
2004–05 La Liga
2004–05 season was composed of the following clubs:* Albacete Balompié* Athletic Bilbao* Atlético Madrid* FC Barcelona* Real Betis* Deportivo de La Coruña* Espanyol* Getafe CF* Levante UD* Málaga CF* Real Mallorca* CD Numancia* CA Osasuna...
.
López started the following season
2005–06 Segunda División
-Classification 2005–06:-Relegated to Segunda División B:* UE Lleida -- Relegated to Segunda División B - Group 3* Ferrol -- Relegated to Segunda División B - Group 1* Eibar -- Relegated to Segunda División B - Group 4...
with CD Tenerife
CD Tenerife
Club Deportivo Tenerife, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, in Tenerife . Founded in 1922, it currently plays in Segunda División B, holding home matches at Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez López, with a 24,000-seat capacity.-History:Club Deportivo Tenerife was founded in...
in level two, being fired after six games. Two years later, he joined Juan Ramón López Caro's staff at Celta de Vigo
Celta de Vigo
Real Club Celta de Vigo , simply referred to as Celta Vigo, is a Spanish professional football club based in Vigo, Galicia, currently playing in the Segunda División. It was founded on March 28, 1923 following the merger of Real Vigo Sporting and Real Fortuna Foot-ball Club.Nicknamed Los Celestes ,...
, in the same category. With the Galicians constantly batlling relegation until the last month of competition, he was named interim coach for the final six matches, eventually maintaining division status for the club; he was the third Celta manager in approximately one year.