Fernando Morientes

Spanish footballer and manager (born 1976) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Fernando Morientes

Fernando Morientes Sánchez (Spanish pronunciation: [feɾˈnando moˈɾjentes ˈsantʃeθ]; born 5 April 1976) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a striker.

Quick Facts Personal information, Full name ...
Fernando Morientes
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Morientes in 2024
Personal information
Full name Fernando Morientes Sánchez[1][2]
Date of birth (1976-04-05) 5 April 1976 (age 49)[1]
Place of birth Cilleros, Spain[1]
Height 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)[1]
Position(s) Striker
Youth career
Sonseca
1992–1993 Albacete
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1993–1995 Albacete 22 (5)
1995–1997 Zaragoza 66 (28)
1997–2005 Real Madrid 183 (72)
2003–2004Monaco (loan) 28 (10)
2005–2006 Liverpool 41 (8)
2006–2009 Valencia 66 (19)
2009–2010 Marseille 12 (1)
2015 Santa Ana 3 (0)
Total 421 (143)
International career
1993–1994 Spain U18 12 (10)
1995 Spain U20 5 (1)
1995–1998 Spain U21 16 (4)
1996 Spain U23 2 (0)
1998–2007 Spain 47 (27)
Managerial career
2012 Huracán (youth)
2012–2014 Real Madrid (youth)
2015–2016 Fuenlabrada
Medal record
Representing  Spain
UEFA European Under-21 Championship
Winner1998 Romania
Runner-up1996 Spain
*Club domestic league appearances and goals
Close

He played for a number of clubs during his career, including Real Madrid, Monaco, Liverpool and Valencia. In La Liga, he scored 124 goals in 337 games over 15 seasons. He earned 11 major honours with the first club, including three Champions League trophies.

Morientes earned 47 caps for the Spain national team, representing the country in two World Cups (totalling five goals) and Euro 2004. He later worked briefly as a manager.

Club career

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Perspective

Early career

Born in Cilleros, Cáceres, Extremadura, Morientes moved to Sonseca in the Province of Toledo at the age of four.[3] He began his professional career at Albacete Balompié, making his La Liga debut on 7 November 1993 as a 75th-minute substitute for Alejandro in a 2–3 loss against CD Tenerife at the Estadio Carlos Belmonte,[4] and he made one more appearance that season, also from the bench.[5]

On 23 October 1994, soon after coming on as a first-half replacement for Alberto Monteagudo, Morientes scored his first professional goal, opening a 2–0 home win over Racing de Santander.[6] He got his first start a week later in a 5–1 loss at RCD Español,[7] and finished the campaign with a total of five goals in 20 league games; additionally, he found the net in each leg of a 3–2 aggregate win over holders Real Zaragoza in the last 16 of the Copa del Rey.[8]

Morientes signed with Zaragoza in 1995, where he spent another two seasons, often being partnered up front by Dani, a Real Madrid youth graduate.[9] He made his debut on 9 September away to Real Betis, scoring the team's goal after 48 minutes but being sent off seven minutes later for striking Jaime.[10] On 10 January of the following year, he scored his first professional hat-trick in a 3–2 win at Athletic Bilbao for the domestic cup;[11] his first such feat in the league followed on 3 February in a 4–1 victory over Valencia CF at La Romareda,[12] and eight days later he scored the first goal at SD Compostela and also received his marching orders with his team winning 2–1 (eventual 3–2 defeat).[13]

Real Madrid

Morientes' performances for Zaragoza caught the eye of Spanish giants Real Madrid, which bought the player in the summer of 1997 for approximately 6.6 million. Initially backing up established Predrag Mijatović and Davor Šuker, he finished as starter and managed 12 goals in his first year in 33 matches, squad-best (with the two players who fought with him for a starting berth netting ten apiece, as youth system prodigy Raúl); the team finished fourth in the league, but won the season's UEFA Champions League.

Morientes performed very well in the 1998–99 campaign, scoring 19 goals in the league and 25 in 38 appearances overall.[9] He continued to display top football in 1999–2000, netting 19 times and finishing as Real's top scorer in a year where he also helped to the capital side's second Champions League title in three years, scoring in the 3–0 defeat of Valencia CF in an all-Spanish final.[14] In the next season, he won the first of two league titles with the club and netted ten goals overall, including four in eight appearances in the Champions League in a semi-final exit to eventual winners FC Bayern Munich; he missed the last weeks due to injury.

In 2001–02, Real failed to win the league after losing out to Valencia. Morientes continued his scoring form, however, scoring 18 league goals in only 25 starts, with six substitute appearances. He also netted five in a 7–0 demolition of UD Las Palmas, missing out on a double hat-trick after missing from the penalty spot late in the match.[15] He finished second in the top scorers list, tied with Patrick Kluivert and behind Deportivo de La Coruña's Diego Tristán,[16] as the Merengues were successful in winning the Champions League after beating Bayer 04 Leverkusen – he played in the final and received a third winners medal.[17]

In the summer of 2002, Real Madrid signed Brazilian superstar Ronaldo from Inter Milan. This fueled rumours that Morientes would soon be leaving, with FC Barcelona and Tottenham Hotspur reportedly interested – the former were reportedly on the verge of signing the player for around €22 million, but the move fell through due to Barça's reluctance to match his wage demands. Eventually, he decided to stay, but as predicted he did not feature as much after the arrival of Ronaldo, who was preferred in the starting lineup along with Raúl. He eventually fell down the pecking order of strikers to Guti and Javier Portillo[18] and, during a February 2003 home win against Borussia Dortmund – 2–1 in the Champions League second group stage – was involved in a highly publicised spat with manager Vicente del Bosque, with the player allegedly insulting the coach after being called to enter the pitch as a third replacement in the dying minutes;[19][20] in the winter transfer window, despite continuous rumours of moves to Tottenham, Zaragoza, AS Roma and AC Milan, he remained at the club for remainder of the season as the side went on to win the league, with the player making a total of 19 appearances (with three starts) and scoring five goals.

Monaco loan and return

At the start of the 2003–04 season, it was evident Morientes was not part of Real's plans. After extensive but ultimately unsuccessful negotiations regarding a loan deal with Germany's FC Schalke 04, he was loaned to Ligue 1 side AS Monaco FC,[21] where he performed very well, netting ten times from 28 appearances in the league. It was in the Champions League, however, that he really made an impact, finishing as top scorer at nine goals:[22] Monaco met Real Madrid in the quarter-finals,[23] where he scored a vital away goal in the first leg (4–2 away loss); in the second match, he again found the net as his team won 3–1, taking the aggregate score to 5–5 (away goals rule victory).[24] He also scored in both games of the last-four win against Chelsea,[25][26] but could not prevent a 3–0 defeat in the final to FC Porto, played at the Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen.[27]

After returning to Real Madrid at the start of the 2004–05 campaign, Morientes' hopes of forcing his way into the squad were further dampened with the arrival of Michael Owen from Liverpool.[28] He featured in 13 scoreless league matches (all as a substitute), and was transferred to Liverpool in January 2005 for a fee of €9.3 million.[29] During his time at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium he played 272 games in all competitions, scoring 100 goals.[30]

Liverpool

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Morientes in action for Liverpool in August 2005

Morientes made his debut for Liverpool on 15 January 2005 against Manchester United, starting in a 0–1 home loss to the rivalsBBC Sport described his performance as "quiet".[31] He scored his first goal for the club on 1 February, equalising with a 20-yard strike in a 2–1 win at Charlton Athletic,[32] and he followed it four days later with his first goal at Anfield to open a 3–1 win over Fulham after nine minutes.[33] He was cup-tied for the Champions League campaign,[34] and did not feature in the victory against Milan in the final of the competition.[9]

On 10 August 2005, Morientes scored in each half of a 3–1 away win against PFC CSKA Sofia in the first leg of the third qualifying round for the season's Champions League.[35] His form in the league was inconsistent, but on 10 December he netted a five-minute brace in a 2–0 home defeat of Middlesbrough, their seventh in a row.[36] On 21 March 2006, he scored in a 7–0 rout of Birmingham City in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, finishing Steven Gerrard's cross three minutes after entering in place of Peter Crouch.[37] Liverpool went on to win the tournament, and the player replaced Harry Kewell early in the second half of the final against West Ham United.[38]

Morientes totalled 12 goals in 61 appearances, also winning the 2005 UEFA Super Cup and playing on the losing side in the 2005 Football League Cup final and the 2005 FIFA Club World Championship final.[39] He ultimately failed to live up to his reputation.[40]

Valencia

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Morientes colliding with Real Madrid's Iker Casillas in the 2008 Supercopa de España

Morientes joined Valencia in late May 2006 for a fee reported to be around £3 million.[41] Here, he started to regain his form, scoring on his league debut – a 2–1 home win against Betis[42]– and also netting a hat-trick in his first Champions League appearance against Olympiacos FC.[43] He linked up well with David Villa[44] and scored 12 goals in 24 games, and was also team-top scorer in the Champions League with seven; his good form throughout the season also earned him a recall to the national side.[45]

For 2007–08, Morientes and Villa were joined in the strike force by Nikola Žigić and Javier Arizmendi. The campaign, however, was disappointing, as the Che were knocked out of the Champions League after finishing fourth in the group, and manager Quique Sánchez Flores was dismissed following a poor run of form. He picked up an injury in December 2007 that ruled him out for almost three months, and he made his return to the side against Sevilla FC on 15 March 2008;[46][47] he also came off the bench to score the third and final goal in Valencia's 3–1 victory over Getafe CF in the final of the Copa del Rey the following month.[48]

Morientes missed out on a further few league games after he was hospitalised in April with abdominal pains and fever.[49] He was released from hospital in time for the final two matches of the season, but played no part in either.

Having begun the following campaign as an unused substitute in Valencia's first league game, and only coming on from the bench in the second, Morientes was handed his first start in a UEFA Cup match against C.S. Marítimo, and he scored the only goal in Portugal through a solo effort at the 12-minute mark.[50] His increasing age and the form of Villa and Juan Mata, however, led to only a handful of appearances in the league; as they were ousted in the round of 32, he still finished as their top scorer in European competition at three goals in seven matches.[51]

Marseille

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Morientes in a Champions League match against Real Madrid in September 2009

On 27 July 2009, Morientes agreed to a deal at France's Olympique de Marseille on a free transfer for one year, reuniting with former Monaco boss Didier Deschamps.[52] During his first and only season he was only the fourth of five strikers in the squad, his only Ligue 1 goal coming on 26 September in what his first start, opening a 3–2 loss at Valenciennes FC.[53]

Morientes was released on 1 July 2010, by mutual consent.[54] On 31 August, the 34-year-old announced his retirement from football.[55]

Coaching and brief return as player

Morientes started his career as manager with Huracán Valencia CF, taking charge of its youth academy.[56] In 2012 he returned to Real Madrid, being appointed at the Juvenil B team in the youth academy.[57]

In January 2015, at 38, Morientes returned to playing, signing with DAV Santa Ana in the Madrid regional championships.[58] In June, he became manager of CF Fuenlabrada, but was sacked the following 17 February with the team 11th in Segunda División B.[59]

International career

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Perspective

Morientes was a reliable performer for the Spain national team since 1998, scoring a brace in the first five minutes of his debut against Sweden on 25 March[60] and adding a further two in each of his next two games, against Northern Ireland[61] and Bulgaria respectively. He ranked fourth on the Spanish all-time topscorer's list with 27 goals in 47 appearances, behind former Real Madrid teammate Raúl, former Valencia teammate Villa and former Madrid captain Fernando Hierro (who took the majority of Spain's free kicks and penalties), although his goals-to-games ratio was higher than Raúl and Hierro.[62]

Morientes netted five goals in the two FIFA World Cups he featured in, with two goals in 1998[63] and three in 2002. In the latter edition he and Raúl played together up front, and both showed impressive form in the tournament; during the quarter-final match against South Korea the former scored a goal in extra-time that was disallowed, although replays suggested the goal was legitimate – Spain eventually lost the match on penalties.[64][65]

After being a surprise omission at UEFA Euro 2000, with coach José Antonio Camacho later admitting after being ousted in the quarter-finals that he had made a mistake by picking Ismael Urzaiz instead,[66] Morientes was selected for Euro 2004 in Portugal,[67] where he scored one of only two goals that the side could manage,[68] in a subsequent group-stage exit. He also played for the nation during the 2006 World Cup qualifiers; however, due to his poor club form for Liverpool, he was not chosen by national team coach Luis Aragonés in the final squad for the tournament, although he was part of an initial 31-man list.[69]

Following his return to form after moving to Valencia, Morientes was recalled to the national side. He scored his 27th goal for Spain in a Euro 2008 qualifier against Denmark on 24 March 2007. Injured four days later against Iceland in another qualifying fixture, he was not recalled again.[70]

Style of play

Morientes was regarded one of the top strikers of his generation, forming a notable and highly successful partnership with Raúl at Real Madrid. A quick, creative and hard-working player, he excelled in the air and was an accurate finisher with his head and with his feet, both inside and outside the area; he was also an accurate free kick taker,[71][72] and was capable of playing off another striker.[73][74][75]

In his later career, as he lost his pace, Morientes often played in a supporting role, using his strength and control to hold up the ball for teammates.[71]

Media

Morientes was featured in the EA Sports' FIFA video game series: he was on the cover for the Spanish edition of FIFA 99, and also appeared in FIFA Football 2005.[76]

Morientes competed in the third season of Mask Singer: Adivina quién canta as "Gorila", being declared joint winner with Ana Torroja as "Ratita".[77]

Career statistics

Club

More information Club, Season ...
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Continental Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Albacete 1993–94[78] La Liga 20210041
1994–95[78] La Liga 20562001[c]0277
Total 225830010318
Zaragoza 1995–96[78] La Liga 2913335[d]22[e]03918
1996–97[78] La Liga 3715314016
Total 66286452207934
Real Madrid 1997–98[78] La Liga 33122010[f]44516
1998–99[78] La Liga 3319564[f]01[e]04325
1999–2000[78] La Liga 29125014[f]63[g]15119
2000–01[78] La Liga 226108[f]41[h]03210
2001–02[78] La Liga 33185011[f]32[i]05121
2002–03[78] La Liga 195217[f]000286
2003–04[78] La Liga 10000010
2004–05[78] La Liga 130216[f]2213
Total 18372228611961272100
Monaco (loan) 2003–04[79] Ligue 1 2810230012[f]94222
Liverpool 2004–05[79] Premier League 1330020153
2005–06[79] Premier League 285511010[f]32[j]0469
Total 4185130103206112
Valencia 2006–07[78] La Liga 24123010[f]73719
2007–08[78] La Liga 226118[f]1318
2008–09[78] La Liga 201627[k]31[i]1347
Total 661910325111110234
Marseille 2009–10[79] Ligue 1 12120005[f]0191
Santa Ana 2014–15 Preferente 3030
Career total 42114355223011544122606211
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  1. Appearance in La Liga relegation play-offs
  2. Appearances in UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
  3. Appearance(s) in UEFA Super Cup
  4. Appearances in UEFA Champions League
  5. Appearances in FIFA Club World Cup
  6. Appearance in Intercontinental Cup
  7. Appearance(s) in Supercopa de España
  8. One appearances in UEFA Super Cup, one appearance in FIFA Club World Cup
  9. Appearances in UEFA Cup

International

More information National team, Year ...
Appearances and goals by national team and year[80][62]
National teamYearAppsGoals
Spain 199867
199962
200000
200143
2002115
200333
200484
200542
200620
200731
Total4727
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Scores and results list Spain's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Morientes goal.[80][62]
More information No., Date ...
List of international goals scored by Fernando Morientes
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
125 March 1998Balaídos, Vigo, Spain Sweden1–04–0Friendly
22–0
33 June 1998El Sardinero, Santander, Spain Northern Ireland3–14–1Friendly
44–1
524 June 1998Félix Bollaert, Lens, France Bulgaria3–06–11998 FIFA World Cup
64–1
75 September 1998Antonis Papadopoulos, Larnaca, Cyprus Cyprus2–32–3Euro 2000 qualifying
818 August 1999Polish Army, Warsaw, Poland Poland1–12–1Friendly
910 October 1999Carlos Belmonte, Albacete, Spain Israel1–03–0Euro 2000 qualifying
1028 March 2001Mestalla, Valencia, Spain France2–02–1Friendly
111 September 2001Mestalla, Valencia, Spain Austria2–04–12002 World Cup qualification
123–0
1313 February 2002Lluís Companys, Barcelona, Spain Portugal1–11–1Friendly
1417 April 2002Windsor Park, Belfast, Northern Ireland Northern Ireland5–05–0Friendly
157 June 2002Jeonju World Cup, Jeonju, South Korea Paraguay1–13–12002 FIFA World Cup
162–1
1716 June 2002Suwon World Cup, Suwon, South Korea Republic of Ireland1–01–12002 FIFA World Cup
1830 April 2003Vicente Calderón, Madrid, Spain Ecuador2–04–0Friendly
193–0
204–0
2131 March 2004El Molinón, Gijón, Spain Denmark1–02–0Friendly
225 June 2004Alfonso Pérez, Getafe, Spain Andorra1–04–0Friendly
2316 June 2004Bessa, Porto, Portugal Greece1–01–1UEFA Euro 2004
2418 August 2004Gran Canaria, Las Palmas, Spain Venezuela1–03–2Friendly
253 September 2005El Sardinero, Santander, Spain Canada2–02–1Friendly
2612 November 2005Vicente Calderón, Madrid, Spain Slovakia5–15–12006 World Cup qualification
2724 March 2007Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid, Spain Denmark1–02–1Euro 2008 qualifying
Close

Honours

Real Madrid[81]

Monaco

Liverpool

Valencia

Marseille

Spain U21

Individual

References

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