Rafael García (footballer, born 1974)

José Rafael García Torres (born 14 August 1974) is a former Mexican footballer and is a football manager.

Rafael García
Personal information
Full name Jose Rafael García Torres
Date of birth (1974-08-14) August 14, 1974
Place of birth Mexico City, Mexico
Height 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Playing position(s) Midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1992–1998 UNAM 134 (19)
1998–2004 Toluca 214 (27)
2004–2006 Cruz Azul 32 (2)
2005–2006 → Atlas (loan) 27 (0)
2007–2008 Veracruz 19 (0)
National team‡
1996–2006 Mexico 52 (3)
Teams managed
2009 Atlas Reserves and Academy
2013–2015 Atlas (Assistant)
2015–2016 Chiapas (Assistant)
2016–2017 América (Assistant)
2017 Puebla
2018 Pyramids (Assistant)
2019 Toluca (Assistant)
2020 Atlas (Assistant)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 3 May 2007
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 23 June 2006

As a player, he was a participant in the 2002 FIFA World Cup in South Korea/Japan and the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.[1]

Club career

A midfielder comfortable in the center or on the left side, García began his club career with UNAM in 1992.[2] During the 1994-95 season, he established himself in the Pumas lineup, appearing in 32 matches and scoring 8 goals.[2] In the summer of 1998 he left for Toluca, beginning a six-year stint at the club. At Toluca, García won league titles during the Verano 1999,[3] Verano 2000,[4] and Apertura 2002[5] seasons, appearing in the finals on each occasion. Playing wide on the left alongside Fabián Estay and Víctor Ruiz in his early years with Toluca,[3] García later formed a central midfield trio with Israel López and Antonio Naelson.[5] In 2004, he moved to Cruz Azul, joined Atlas for one year in 2005, then returned to Cruz Azul briefly before finishing his top-division career in 2008 with Veracruz.[2]

International career

García also earned 52 caps for the Mexico national team, scoring three times.[6] He made his international debut on February 7, 1996 in a 2-1 loss against Chile.[7] In the 1996 U.S. Cup, he scored his first international goal with a bending free kick against the United States at the Rose Bowl.[8] García represented Mexico in four matches of the 1997 Copa América,[9] but missed the 1998 FIFA World Cup. After the appointment of Manuel Lapuente as national coach, García appeared at the 1999 Copa América[10] and the 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup, which Mexico won.[11] Recalled to the team for the 2002 World Cup, he played 14 minutes in the opening-round match against Italy.[12] García remained in the team under new coach Ricardo Antonio Lavolpe, helping Mexico to victory in the 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup and scoring in the quarterfinal against Jamaica.[13] Although he also played in the 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup[14] and five qualifying matches for the 2006 FIFA World Cup,[15] he did not play any matches in the 2006 competition itself. García made his final international appearance in a 2-1 loss to the Netherlands on June 1, 2006.[16]

At junior international levels, García competed for Mexico at the 1991 FIFA U-17 World Championship and 1993 FIFA World Youth Championship,[15] as well as the 1996 Summer Olympics.[17]

International goals
Scores and results list Mexico's goal tally first.[18]
GoalDateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.16 June 1996Rose Bowl, Pasadena, United States United States1–12–21996 U.S. Cup
2.20 July 2003Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico Jamaica2–05–02003 CONCACAF Gold Cup
3.31 March 2004Home Depot Center, Carson, United States Costa Rica1–02–0Friendly

Honours

Club
Toluca

International
Mexico
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References
  1. FIFA. "2006 FIFA World Cup Germany: Mexico". Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
  2. MedioTiempo. "Rafael García - Veracruz" Archived 2016-01-16 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
  3. MedioTiempo. "Toluca 2 (5-4) 2 Atlas" Archived 2013-11-10 at the Wayback Machine. June 6, 1999. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
  4. MedioTiempo. "Toluca 5 - 1 Santos" Archived 2010-05-26 at the Wayback Machine. June 3, 2000. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
  5. MedioTiempo. "Toluca 4 - 1 Morelia" Archived 2014-07-15 at the Wayback Machine. December 21, 2002. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
  6. Mexico - Record International Players - RSSSF
  7. Morrison, Neil. "International Matches 1996 - Intercontinental, January-March". RSSSF, February 2, 2005. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
  8. Jones, Grahame L. "Mexico Wins U.S. Cup '96; Americans Look Ahead". Los Angeles Times, June 17, 1996. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
  9. Tabeira, Martín. "Copa América 1997". RSSSF, August 2, 2007. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
  10. Tabeira, Martín. "Copa América 1999" Archived July 9, 2015, at the Wayback Machine. RSSSF, May 31, 2012. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
  11. Courtney, Barrie. "Intercontinental Cup for Nations 1999". RSSSF, December 21, 2005. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
  12. FIFA. "2002 FIFA World Cup Match Report: Mexico - Italy 1:1". June 13, 2002. Retrieved on March 29, 2013. Archived February 17, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
  13. Saaid, Hamdan. "CONCACAF Championship, Gold Cup 2003 - Full Details" Archived October 24, 2008, at the Wayback Machine. RSSSF, December 6, 2006. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
  14. Courtney, Barrie & Saaid, Hamdan. "CONCACAF Championship, Gold Cup 2005 - Full Details" Archived October 24, 2008, at the Wayback Machine. RSSSF, July 30, 2005. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
  15. FIFA. "FIFA Player Statistics: Rafael GARCIA". Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
  16. CONCACAF.com. "Mexico and Trinidad & Tobago drop friendlies to European squads". CONCACAF, June 1, 2006. Retrieved on March 29, 2013.
  17. "José García Biography and Statistics". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 2012-10-24. Retrieved 2009-11-12.
  18. "García, Rafael". National Football Teams. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
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