Miguel Ángel Angulo

Miguel Ángel Angulo Valderrey (Spanish pronunciation: [miˈɣel ˈaŋxel aŋˈɡulo]; born 23 June 1977) is a Spanish former professional footballer. Predominantly an attacking midfielder, he was also able to play as a right winger and even as a right back or a forward.

This article uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Angulo and the second or maternal family name is Valderrey.

Miguel Ángel Angulo

Angulo in June 2013
Personal information
Full name	Miguel Ángel Angulo Valderrey
Date of birth	(1977-06-23) 23 June 1977
Place of birth	Oviedo, Spain
Height	1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)
Playing position(s)	Midfielder, forward, defender
Club information
Current team	Valencia (assistant)
Youth career
1994–1995	Sporting Gijón
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1995	Sporting Gijón B	14	(4)
1996	Valencia B	15	(2)
1996–2009	Valencia	313	(43)
1996–1997	→ Villarreal (loan)	32	(9)
2009	Sporting CP	4	(0)
Total		378	(58)
National team
1994–1995	Spain U18	7	(4)
1997	Spain U20	7	(2)
1998–2000	Spain U21	14	(3)
2000	Spain U23	5	(1)
2004–2007	Spain	11	(0)
2000	Asturias	1	(0)
Teams managed
2015	Valencia (youth)
2015–	Valencia (assistant)
Honours Representing  Spain Men's Football 2000 Sydney Team Competition
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Basing his football in inexhaustible physical display, Angulo was much appreciated by trainers because of his versatility, and spent most of his career at Valencia where he won a total of seven major titles, including two La Liga championships and the 2004 UEFA Cup.

Club career

Valencia

Born in Oviedo, Asturias, Angulo began his football career with local Sporting de Gijón, joining Valencia CF in 1995 at the age of 18. After spending some time with the reserves he was loaned in the 1996–97 campaign to second division club Villarreal CF, before returning to Valencia in the following summer.

Never an undisputed starter, Angulo amassed more than 300 appearances in his first ten professional years at Valencia, being a very important element in the Che's La Liga conquest in 2002 and 2004 (scoring six goals in 48 games in the two seasons combined), while also starting in the 2004 UEFA Cup final which the club won over Olympique de Marseille;[1] due to the ageing of the previous starter, French Jocelyn Angloma, he played several matches as an attacking right back, as the team operated mainly in a 5–3–2 formation.[2]

In the summer of 2004, Angulo pulled out of a transfer to Arsenal after a last minute change of heart. His agent claimed this was due to the player's anxiety at moving to London – he had already completed part of his medical.[3] He continued to be heavily played in Valencia in the following three seasons combined, netting 15 times in 93 league contests;[4][5] on 15 December 2004, he was handed a seven-match ban by UEFA after being sent off in a UEFA Cup tie against SV Werder Bremen where he kicked Nelson Valdez and subsequently spat on Tim Borowski.[6]

On 20 December 2007, Angulo, along with Santiago Cañizares and David Albelda, was axed from the squad by new coach Ronald Koeman.[7] In late April of the following year, however, with Koeman's sacking, all three were reinstated by new manager Voro in a squad seriously threatened with relegation, with five remaining games. On 27 April he returned to action, playing five minutes in a 3–0 home win against CA Osasuna after having come on as a substitute for David Villa;[8] two weeks later he started his first post-reinstatement match, scoring in a 5–1 away routing of already relegated Levante UD.[9]

Sporting

In August 2009, after a mediocre campaign individually, Angulo was released by Valencia, thus ending a 14-year relationship. Late in the same month he agreed to a one-year contract with Sporting CP, but after just four months, he was released by the Lisbon club, grossly unsettled, and pondered his retirement,[10] which was confirmed the following week.[11]

International career

Angulo made his debut for Spain on 17 November 2004, in a 1–0 friendly win against England played in Madrid.[12] Going on to collect 11 caps, he never took part in any major competition's final stages, however.

Angulo also represented the nation at the 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship (five appearances) and the 2000 Summer Olympics (five), helping to a runner-up finish in the latter competition.[13][14]

Career statistics

Club

Source:[15]

Club	Season	League			Cup		Continental		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Sporting Gijon B	1995–96	Segunda División B	14	4	—				14	4
Valencia B	1995–96	Segunda División B	15	2	—				15	2
Villarreal (loan)	1996–97	Segunda División	32	9	5	1	—		33	10
Valencia	1997–98	La Liga	28	3	3	3	–	–	31	6
	1998–99		36	8	6	2	10	3	52	13
	1999–00		29	5	3	0	18	3	50	8
	2000–01		28	0	2	1	10	0	40	1
	2001–02		26	4	0	0	5	2	31	6
	2002–03		24	4	4	0	11	2	39	6
	2003–04		22	2	5	1	9	2	36	5
	2004–05		25	3	3	0	5	0	33	3
	2005–06		32	6	4	0	1	0	37	6
	2006–07		36	6	3	2	10	2	49	10
	2007–08		16	2	0	0	4	0	20	2
	2008–09		11	0	3	1	2	0	16	1
	Total		313	43	36	10	85	14	434	67
Sporting CP	2009–10	Primeira Liga	4	0	2	0	3	0	9	0
Career total			378	58	43	11	86	14	505	83

International

Source:[16]

Spain
Year	Apps	Goals
2004	1	0
2005	0	0
2006	3	0
2007	7	0
Total	11	0

Honours

Club

Valencia

• La Liga: 2001–02, 2003–04
• Copa del Rey: 1998–99
• Supercopa de España: 1999
• UEFA Cup: 2003–04
• UEFA Super Cup: 2004
• UEFA Intertoto Cup: 1998

International

Spain U18

• UEFA European Under-18 Championship: 1995

Spain U21

• UEFA European Under-21 Championship: 1998

Spain U23

• Summer Olympic silver medal: 2000[17]

References

1. "Valencia 2–0 Marseille". BBC Sport. 19 May 2004. Retrieved 27 June 2016.
2. "Angulo, 12 años de éxitos y polivalencia" [Angulo, 12 years of successes and versatility] (in Spanish). El Mundo. 31 August 2009. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
3. Angulo in Arsenal U-turn; BBC Sport, 31 August 2004
4. "Angulo renace en primavera" [Angulo is reborn in Spring] (in Spanish). El País. 14 April 2004. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
5. "Angulo encuentra la paz" [Angulo finds peace] (in Spanish). El País. 10 December 2006. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
6. "La UEFA se ceba con Angulo: siete partidos de suspensión" [UEFA gets tough with Angulo: seven-match suspension] (in Spanish). Diario AS. 15 December 2004. Retrieved 27 June 2016.
7. Koeman ratifica el despido de Albelda, Cañizares y Angulo (Koeman confirms Albelda, Cañizares and Angulo's sacking); La Vanguardia, 20 December 2007 (in Spanish)
8. Valencia 3–0 Osasuna; ESPN Soccernet, 27 April 2008
9. Levante 1–5 Valencia; ESPN Soccernet, 11 May 2008
10. Miguel Angel Angulo terminates contract with Sporting Lisbon, hints at retirement; Goal, 6 December 2009
11. Angulo cuelga las botas (Angulo hangs boots); Super Deporte, 10 December 2009 (in Spanish)
12. "La fiesta española acabó mal" [Spanish party ended badly] (in Spanish). UEFA. 18 November 2004. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
13. "Sidney 2000: Oro negro" [Sidney 2000: Black gold] (in Spanish). Recuerdos de Nigeria. 26 May 2009. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
14. Miguel Ángel Angulo – FIFA competition record
15. {{Miguel Ángel Angulo at FootballDatabase.eu
16. "Miguel Ángel Angulo". European Football. Retrieved 27 June 2016.
17. "FOTO INTERACTIVA: La medalla de plata más épica, en Sídney" [INTERACTIVE PHOTO: The most epic silver medal, in Sydney] (in Spanish). Royal Spanish Football Federation. 20 January 2015. Retrieved 13 August 2019.

External links

• Miguel Ángel Angulo at BDFutbol
• CiberChe biography and stats (in Spanish)
• Miguel Ángel Angulo at National-Football-Teams.com