Guillermo Amor Martínez (; born 4 December 1967) 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 ...

who played as a versatile

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

. After spending most of his professional career with

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ...

, winning several accolades in a ten-year tenure, he ended it in Scotland with Livingston. Over 12 seasons, he amassed

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men' ...

totals of 375 matches and 48 goals. Amor won nearly 40

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Ja ...

for

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' ( Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

during the 1990s, representing the nation in one

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

and one European Championship.

Playing career

Club

Born in

Benidorm Benidorm is a town and municipality in the province of Alicante, Valencia, on the Mediterranean coast of Spain. Benidorm has been a tourist destination within Spain since 1925, when its port was extended and the first hotels were built, though ...

Alicante Alicante ( ca-valencia, Alacant) is a city and municipality in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is the capital of the province of Alicante and a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city was 337,482 , the second-largest in th ...

Valencian Community The Valencian Community ( ca-valencia, Comunitat Valenciana, es, Comunidad Valenciana) is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous comm ...

, Amor was a product of

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional Football team, football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish footb ...

's youth academy, and made his first-team debut in the 1988–89 season under

Johan Cruyff Hendrik Johannes Cruijff (, internationally known as Johan Cruyff; 25 April 1947 – 24 March 2016) was a Dutch professional football player and manager. As a player, he won the Ballon d'Or three times, in 1971, 1973 and 1974. Cruyff was a ...

, going on to become one of the

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid ...

team's most influential players as they achieved four consecutive

titles and the

1991–92 European Cup The 1991–92 European Cup was the 37th season of the European Cup football club tournament. It was the first European Cup to have a group stage, from which the winning clubs progressed to the final. 1991–92 was the tournament's last edition bef ...

(he did not play in the final against U.C. Sampdoria, however, after being booked in the last group stage match with

S.L. Benfica Sport Lisboa e Benfica (), commonly known as Benfica, is a professional football club based in Lisbon, Portugal, that competes in the Primeira Liga, the top flight of Portuguese football. Founded on 28 February 1904 as ''Sport Lisboa'', B ...

). In 1993–94, as the club conquered the last of a successive four leagues, he appeared in all games except one, scoring a career-best eight goals. Additionally, on 5 April 1990, he opened the scoring in the

Copa del Rey The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footb ...

final against

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...

, helping to a 2–0 win at the Mestalla Stadium. Amor left ''Barça'' at the end of the 1997–98 campaign, with another national championship won, deemed surplus to requirements by new manager

Louis van Gaal Aloysius Paulus Maria "Louis" van Gaal (; born 8 August 1951) is a Dutch former football player and manager. At club level, he served as manager of Ajax, Barcelona, AZ Alkmaar, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, as well as having three spel ...

as longtime teammate Albert Ferrer, having played 421 matches overall only behind club greats

Xavi Xavier Hernández Creus (born 25 January 1980), known as Xavi is a Spanish professional football manager and former player who is the manager of La Liga club Barcelona. Widely considered one of the greatest midfielders of all time, Xavi was r ...

, Migueli and Carles Rexach. He subsequently had his first abroad experience, appearing sparingly for

Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Copp ...

side

ACF Fiorentina ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as Fiorentina (), is an Italian professional football club based in Florence, Tuscany, Italy. The original team was founded by a merger in August 1926, while the actual club was refounded in August 2002 fo ...

over two years and then returning to Spain with

Villarreal CF Villarreal Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. ( ca-valencia, Vila-real Club de Futbol, S.A.D.), usually abbreviated to Villarreal CF or simply Villarreal, is a professional football club based in Villarreal, in the Castellón province of eastern Spain, ...

as the latter had just returned to the top division. Amor retired from football after a short spell with Scotland's Livingston, for which he signed in January 2003, making his debut on the 28th in a 3–1 away victory over

Partick Thistle Partick Thistle Football Club are a professional football club from Glasgow, Scotland. Despite their name, the club are based at Firhill Stadium in the Maryhill area of the city, and have not played in Partick since 1908. The club have been mem ...

. The ''Livi Lions'' eventually narrowly avoided relegation from the

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

International

Amor represented

on 37 occasions, scoring four goals. His debut came in an

UEFA Euro 1992 The 1992 UEFA European Football Championship was hosted by Sweden between 10 and 26 June 1992. It was the ninth UEFA European Championship, which is held every four years and supported by UEFA. Denmark won the 1992 championship, having qualifi ...

qualifier 2–3 loss in

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

on 14 November 1990, and he went on to appear for the nation at both the

Euro 1996 The 1996 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 96, was the 10th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by European nations and organised by UEFA. It took place in England from 8 to 30 ...

and the

1998 FIFA World Cup The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the football world championship for men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. The country was chosen as the host nation by FIFA for th ...

. In the former competition, on 18 June, he scored against

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, a ...

in a 2–1 win, netting in the 84th minute and helping the team to the quarter-finals in England. Amor's last

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...

was a sour one, as Spain were downed by lowly

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ...

on 5 September 1998 in a Euro 2000 qualifier (3–2).

Coaching career

After retiring, Amor served a four-year spell at former club Barcelona, being responsible for the youth categories after

Joan Laporta Joan Laporta Estruch (; born 29 June 1962) is a Spanish politician and current president of FC Barcelona. Laporta is a lawyer (he graduated from the University of Barcelona) with his own firm, Laporta & Arbós, which has a number of notable Sp ...

was named president in 2003. He left after the board of directors decided not to renew his contract, but returned in July 2010 as technical director of football training. In late August 2014, Amor was invited to Australia by one of his former colleagues and friend, former Barcelona youth academy coach and manager of

Adelaide United FC Adelaide United Football Club is a professional Association Football, soccer club based in Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. The club participates in the A-League Men under North American professional sports league organization#Systems ar ...

, Josep Gombau. He spent a month observing and consulting the latter with Adelaide's training, after which he signed a one-year contract to become the technical director. On 24 July 2015, following the resignation of Gombau due to family reasons, Amor was appointed as head coach prior to the start of the season. He only achieved his first win on the ninth matchday, in a 1–0 win against

Perth Glory FC Perth Glory Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Perth, Western Australia. It competes in the country's premier men's competition, A-League Men, under licence from Australian Professional Leagues. Founded in 1 ...

, but went on to lead the team to a club-record 13 clean sheets, including being unbeaten in the last ten home games and winning the last four away. Amor led Adelaide to

the double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * ...

on 1 May 2016, after a 3–1 defeat of

Western Sydney Wanderers FC Western Sydney Wanderers Football Club (colloquially known as Western Sydney, or simply as Wanderers) is an Australian professional soccer club based in the Western Sydney region of Sydney, New South Wales. It competes in the country's premie ...

in the

Grand Final Primarily in Australian sports, a grand final (sometimes colloquially abbreviated to "grannie") is a game that decides a sports league's premiership (or championship) winning team, i.e. the conclusive game of a finals (or play-off) series. Sy ...

. On 10 May of the following year he left the

Hindmarsh Stadium Hindmarsh Stadium (currently known as Coopers Stadium due to sponsorship from Adelaide-based company Coopers Brewery) is a multi-purpose stadium in Hindmarsh, an inner western suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is the home of the Australi ...

, returning to Barcelona as head of youth football alongside former teammate

José Mari Bakero José María Bakero Escudero (born 11 February 1963) is a Spanish former professional footballer, and a manager. Having played mainly for Real Sociedad and Barcelona, he began his career as a forward (not being a prolific goalscorer) but was c ...

Personal life

On 16 December 2007, Amor was involved in a serious traffic collision while travelling from

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area al ...

. Released from hospital after only a week, he later fully recovered. Amor's son, also called Guillermo (born 2001), played youth football in England with

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road ...

Career statistics

Club

International goals

Honours

Player

Barcelona *

: 1990–91, 1991–92,

1992–93 Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 ''Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since th ...

, 1993–94, 1997–98 *

: 1989–90, 1996–97, 1997–98 *

Supercopa de España The Supercopa de España or the ''Spanish Super Cup'' is a super cup tournament in Spanish football. Founded in 1982 as a two-team competition, the current version has been contested since 2019–20 by four teams: the winners and runners-up of ...

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the ...

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment building in Amsterdam after two of its engines ...

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nelson Ma ...

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 800, causing the plane to crash and killing everyone on b ...

European Cup The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competi ...

: 1991–92 *

UEFA Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tourn ...

: 1988–89, 1996–97 *

UEFA Super Cup The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions; the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's official name was original ...

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of ...

Manager

Adelaide United *

A-League A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professional men's soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's premier men's competit ...

Premiership: 2015–16 *

Championship: 2016

Individual

* A-League Coach of the Year: 2015–16 * PFA Manager of the Year: 2015–16

Managerial statistics

References

External links

*
FC Barcelona profile
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Amor, Guillermo 1967 births Living people People from Benidorm Sportspeople from the Province of Alicante Spanish footballers Footballers from the Valencian Community Association football midfielders La Liga players Segunda División players FC Barcelona Atlètic players FC Barcelona players Villarreal CF players Serie A players ACF Fiorentina players Scottish Premier League players Livingston F.C. players Spain youth international footballers Spain under-21 international footballers Spain international footballers UEFA Euro 1996 players 1998 FIFA World Cup players Catalonia international guest footballers Spanish expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Italy Expatriate footballers in Scotland Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Italy Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Scotland Spanish football managers Adelaide United FC managers Spanish expatriate football managers Expatriate soccer managers in Australia Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Australia FC Barcelona non-playing staff