Hugo Sánchez

Hugo Sánchez Márquez born 11 July 1958 is a Mexican former professional footballer and manager who played as a forward A prolific goalscorer known for his spectacular strikes and volleys he is widely regarded as the greatest Mexican footballer of all time one of the best players of his generation and one of the greatest strikers of all time In 1999 the International Federation of Football History and Statistics voted Sánchez the 26th best footballer of the 20th century and the best footballer from the CONCACAF region In 2004 Sánchez was named in the FIFA 100 list of the worlds greatest living players Sánchez is regarded as one of La Ligas best foreign imports and one of Real Madrids top strikers of all time He is the fifth highest scorer in the history of La Liga the fourth highest scoring foreign player after Cristiano Ronaldo Lionel Messi and Karim Benzema and is the seventh highest goalscorer in Real Madrids history He scored a total of 562 senior career goals for both club and country in 956 matches amassing a total of five Pichichi top goal scorer trophies in Spain Beginning his career at Pumas UNAM in 1976 he briefly went on loan to the San Diego Sockers of the North American Soccer League in 1979 during the Mexican Leagues offseason period In 1981 he moved to Spain to play for Atlético Madrid playing for the Colchoneros for four years before moving to crosstown rivals Real Madrid where he would spend the best years of his career winning numerous titles and accolades From 1977 to 1994 Sánchez was a member of the national team gaining 58 caps and scoring 29 goals He participated in three FIFA World Cup tournaments and was a part of the Mexico team that reached the quarterfinals of the 1986 World Cup Famous for his acrobatic goal celebrations throughout his club and international career Sánchez was the first notable exponent of the backflip As a manager he won two consecutive league championships with Pumas UNAM After managing Necaxa he was announced as coach of the Mexico national football team in 2006 but was fired in March 2008 due to poor results In 2009 Sánchez was named manager of Almería and helped to save the club from relegation