Daniel "Dani" Ponz Folch (born 19 December 1973) is a Spanish retired

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a

goalkeeper In many team sports that involve scoring goal (sport), goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie, or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or i ...

, and a

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

Career

Born in Sollana,

Valencian Community The Valencian Community is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community after Andalusia, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid wit ...

, Ponz played for hometown side Sollana CF before retiring at the age of 29. After working as a fitness and goalkeeping coach, he began his managerial career in charge of EMFU L'Alcúdia's youth categories in 2005. In 2010, after managing the youth sides of CF Torre Levante and

Levante UD Levante Unión Deportiva, S.A.D. () is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football club in Valencia, in the Valencian Community, namesake autonomous community. Founded on 6 September 1909, the club will compete in La Liga for the 2025– ...

, Ponz was named manager of

Tercera División Tercera División () was the fourth tier of the Spanish football league system. Until 1977, it was the third tier of the Spanish football league system. Founded in 1929, it was below the ''Primera División'' (also known as La Liga), the ''Segund ...

side

Atlético Saguntino Atlético Saguntino (Spanish for 'Athletic Club of Sagunto') is a Spanish football team based in Sagunto, in the Valencian Community. Founded in 1951, they play in , holding home games at ''Camp Nou de Morvedre'', with a 4,000-seat capacity. Hi ...

. In July 2012, he was appointed at the helm of fellow league team

UD Alzira Unión Deportiva Alzira is a Spanish football team based in Alzira, in the autonomous community of Valencia. Founded in 1946, it plays in , holding home games at '' Estadio Luis Suñer Picó'', with a capacity of 5,000 seats. History From 1943 o ...

. Ponz departed Alzira on 21 July 2014, but returned to the club the following 11 February. On 4 July 2017, he left to become manager of

CD Eldense Club Deportivo Eldense is a Spanish football team based in Elda, in the autonomous community of Valencia. Founded in 1921, the club plays in the Segunda División, and holds home matches at '' Estadio Municipal Nuevo Pepico Amat'', which has a ...

also in division four. Ponz was sacked by the ''Azulgranas'' on 18 December 2017, and returned to Saguntino on 6 June of the following year. He was dismissed from the latter on 16 April 2019, with five matches to go in the campaign. On 1 August 2020, Ponz returned to Alzira for a third spell. He achieved promotion to Segunda División RFEF in his first season, and left the club on 31 May 2022; in the process, he also became the manager who managed the club in the most number of matches. On 21 February 2023, Ponz was appointed manager of

Primera Federación The Primera Federación, officially the Primera Federación Versus e-Learning for sponsorship reasons (formerly known as Primera RFEF). is the third tier of the Spanish football league system beginning with the 2021–22 season. It is administe ...

side

Unionistas de Salamanca CF Unionistas de Salamanca Club de Fútbol is a Spanish football club in Salamanca, in the autonomous community of Castile and León. Founded in 2013, the club plays in , holding home games at ''Campo de Fútbol Municipal Reina Sofía'' with a 4895- ...

. After two seasons narrowly missing out a play-off spot, he opted to leave the club on 25 May 2024, following the expiration of his contract. On 25 June 2024, Ponz returned to Eldense on a one-year contract, with the club now in

Segunda División The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Segunda División, commonly known as Segunda División or La Liga 2, and officially known as LaLiga HyperMotion for sponsorship reasons, is the men's second professional association football division of the Spa ...

. His first professional match occurred on 19 August, a 2–1 home win over

CD Tenerife Club Deportivo Tenerife, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Tenerife, in the Canary Islands. Founded in 1922, the club plays in the Segunda División, holding home matches at the Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez L� ...

. On 18 January 2025, Ponz was sacked after a 4–1 loss to

Cádiz CF Cádiz Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. is a Spanish professional football club based in Cádiz, Andalusia. Founded in 1910, the club competes in Segunda División, holding home games at Nuevo Mirandilla, with a seating capacity of 20,724. Salvadoran ...

Managerial statistics

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ponz, Dani 1973 births Living people People from Ribera Baixa Footballers from the Province of Valencia Spanish men's footballers Men's association football goalkeepers Spanish football managers Segunda División managers Primera Federación managers Segunda Federación managers Tercera División managers UD Alzira managers CD Eldense managers Unionistas de Salamanca CF managers