Miguel Ángel Benítez

Miguel Ángel Benítez Pavón (born 19 May 1970), also known as Peque Benítez, is a Paraguayan retired footballer who played as a forward.

Miguel Ángel Benítez
Personal information
Full name Miguel Ángel Benítez Pavón
Date of birth (1970-05-19) 19 May 1970
Place of birth Santísima Trinidad, Paraguay
Height 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Playing position(s) Forward
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1990–1991 Villa Elisa
1992–1993 Calpe
1993–1995 Atlético Madrid 10 (0)
1994 → Almería (loan)
1995 → Mérida (loan) 23 (10)
1995–2001 Espanyol 147 (28)
2002–2003 Olimpia 41 (8)
2003–2004 Almería 9 (1)
2004–2005 Universitario 7 (0)
2006 Sportivo Luqueño 24 (2)
2006 Olimpia 9 (1)
2007 Guaraní
National team
1996–1999 Paraguay 30 (11)
Teams managed
2008–2009 Silvio Pettirossi
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only
This article uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Benítez and the second or maternal family name is Pavón.

He is best known for his spell with Spain's Espanyol, where he played for seven years. Altogether he spent one full decade in that country, representing three other teams and appearing in more than 200 official games overall.

A Paraguayan international in the late 1990s, Benítez represented the nation at the 1998 World Cup.

Club career

Benítez was born in Santísima Trinidad (Asunción). After playing for modest clubs in his country he arrived in Spain at the age of 23, purchased by Atlético Madrid, but appeared very rarely for the Colchoneros, being often demoted to its reserves and also being loaned twice, notably to CP Mérida which he helped promote from the second division by scoring a team-best ten goals in only five months.

Released by Atlético in the 1995 summer, Benítez signed with fellow La Liga side RCD Espanyol, going on to experience his best years: alternating between the starting XI and the bench, he amassed 166 competitive appearances for the Catalans, helping them to the 2000 conquest of the Copa del Rey.

Already in his 30s and dealing with some injuries, Benítez left Espanyol in January 2002, returning to his country and signing with Asunción's Club Olimpia. In his first year with Olimpia he helped the team to win Copa Libertadores, and the following season he won Recopa Sudamericana. In the years until his retirement he appeared for several clubs, and also returned to Spain, playing with UD Almería in the second level.

Benítez started his coaching career in 2008, taking charge of lowly Club Silvio Pettirossi as it was experiencing its first season in the Primera División – short-lived, as the side dropped down two tiers in as many years.

International career

Courtesy of his solid Espanyol performances, Benítez gained all of his 30 caps for the Paraguayan national team. He was selected for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, playing in all four matches as the country reached the round-of-16 and netting in the 3–1 group stage win over Nigeria.[1]

Benítez was also selected for the 1999 Copa América, played on home soil, scoring three times: this included one in Paraguay's 1–1 quarter-final clash against Uruguay, where he also missed the decisive penalty shootout attempt.[2]

International goals
#DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.10 November 1996Defensores del Chaco, Asunción, Paraguay Ecuador1–01–01998 World Cup qualification
2.12 January 1997Guillermo Soto Rosa, Mérida, Venezuela Venezuela0–10–2
3.10 September 1997Defensores del Chaco, Asunción, Paraguay Bolivia1–02–1
4.8 February 1998Defensores del Chaco, Asunción, Paraguay Poland1–04–0Friendly
5.18 March 1998Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico Mexico0–11–1
6.29 March 1998Yale Bowl, New Haven, United States Colombia1–11–1
7.24 June 1998Stade de Toulouse, Toulouse, France Nigeria1–21–31998 FIFA World Cup
8.2 July 1999Defensores del Chaco, Asunción, Paraguay Japan1–04–01999 Copa América
9.3–0
10.10 July 1999Defensores del Chaco, Asunción, Paraguay Uruguay0–11–1
11.17 November 1999Domingo Burgueño, Maldonado, Uruguay Uruguay0–10–1Friendly

Honours
Espanyol
Olimpia
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References
  1. Paraguay wins to explode into second round; The Washington Post, 24 June 1998
  2. Copa América 1999 Archived 9 July 2015 at the Wayback Machine; at RSSSF
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