Rafael Berges Martín (born 21 January 1971) is a Spanish former

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

left-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categ ...

, currently 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 ...

Playing career

Club

Born in

Córdoba Córdoba most commonly refers to: * Córdoba, Spain, a major city in southern Spain and formerly the imperial capital of Islamic Spain * Córdoba, Argentina, the second largest city in Argentina and the capital of Córdoba Province Córdoba or Cord ...

, Andalusia, Berges started playing for local

Córdoba CF Córdoba Club de Fútbol (), is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football club based in Córdoba, Andalusia, Córdoba, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1954 after the dissolution of RCD Córdoba. Currently it plays ...

in the lower leagues. In the 1991–92 campaign he joined

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� ...

, going on to spend two years in

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known as the Primera División or La Liga, and officially known as LaLiga EA Sports for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Spain and the highest ...

at the

Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez López Estadio Heliodoro Rodriguez Lopez also Estadio de Tenerife is a association football, football stadium in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain. It is the home ground of CD Tenerife. With a capacity of 22,824 seats, it is the 27 ...

. Signing with

RC Celta de Vigo Real Club Celta de Vigo (; ), commonly known as Celta Vigo, is a Spanish professional football club based in Vigo, Galicia, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of Spanish football. Nicknamed ''Os Celestes'' (The Sky Blues), the club was fou ...

in 1993, Berges went on to make nearly 200 overall appearances and score seven league goals for the

Galicians Galicians ( or ''pobo galego''; ) are an ethnic group primarily residing in Galicia, northwest Iberian Peninsula. Historical emigration resulted in populations in other parts of Spain, Europe, and the Americas. Galicians possess distinct cu ...

. He took part in no games in his final two seasons, however, due to recurrent injuries. At the end of 2001–02, aged 31, Berges retired with his first club Córdoba, now in the

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 second spell was cut short, again due to several physical problems.

International

Berges was the first-choice for

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

at the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics (, ), officially the Games of the XXV Olympiad (, ) and officially branded as Barcelona '92, were an international multi-sport event held from 25 July to 9 August 1992 in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Beginning in 1994 ...

, as the nation won the gold medal on home soil. He scored twice, including in the 2–0 semi-final win over

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

Coaching career

Berges took up coaching in 2005, starting with

Córdoba CF B Córdoba Club de Fútbol "B" is a Spanish football team based in Córdoba, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1951 as Club Atlético Almagro, it is the reserve team of Córdoba CF and currently plays in , holding home games at ' ...

. Among other lowly sides, he would also manage

UD Almería Unión Deportiva Almería, S.A.D. () is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish professional football club based in Almería, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded on 26 July 1989 and known as ''Almería Club de Fútbol'' until 2001 ...

's reserves. On 14 June 2012, Berges was named Córdoba's main squad head coach, replacing

Rayo Vallecano Rayo Vallecano de Madrid, S.A.D. (), often abbreviated to Rayo (Spanish for "thunderbolt"), is a Spanish professional football club based in the Villa de Vallecas district of Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish foot ...

-bound

Paco Jémez Francisco "Paco" Jémez Martín (born 18 April 1970) is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a central defender. He is the current manager of Ibiza. Over 11 seasons, he played 269 La Liga matches in representation of thre ...

. He was relieved of his duties on 7 April of the following year, with the team ranking ninth in the second division. In the 2014–15 and 2016–17 campaigns, Berges was in charge of third-tier clubs

Real Jaén Real Jaén Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football team based in Jaén, Spain, Jaén, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1929 it plays in , holding home matches at ''Nuevo Estadio de La Vict ...

and

UD Logroñés Unión Deportiva Logroñés, S.A.D. is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football team based in Logroño, in the autonomous community of La Rioja (Spain), La Rioja. Founded in 2009, it currently plays in , holding home matches at ''Estad ...

, respectively. He went on to work in

Liga 1 (Indonesia) Liga 1 (), officially known as BRI Liga 1 for sponsorship reasons, is the men's top professional football division of the Indonesian football league system. Administered by PT Liga Indonesia Baru (), Liga 1 is contested by 18 clubs and operate ...

, with

PS Mitra Kukar Persatuan Sepakbola Mitra Kutai Kartanegara (simply known as a PS Mitra Kukar) is an Indonesian professional football club based in Tenggarong, Kutai Kartanegara, East Kalimantan. They currently compete in the Liga 4. History This club was fou ...

and Badak Lampung FC.

Honours

Spain U23 *

Summer Olympic Games The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The 1896 Summer Olympics, inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, ...

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Berges, Rafael 1971 births Living people Spanish men's footballers Footballers from Córdoba, Spain Men's association football fullbacks La Liga players Segunda División players Segunda División B players Córdoba CF players CD Tenerife players RC Celta de Vigo players Spain men's under-21 international footballers Spain men's under-23 international footballers Footballers at the 1992 Summer Olympics Olympic footballers for Spain Medalists at the 1992 Summer Olympics Olympic medalists in football Olympic gold medalists for Spain Spanish football managers Segunda División managers Segunda División B managers Tercera División managers Córdoba CF B managers UD Almería B managers Córdoba CF managers Real Jaén managers UD Logroñés managers Badak Lampung F.C. managers Spanish expatriate football managers Expatriate football managers in Indonesia Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Indonesia