# Javier Aguirre

Javier Aguirre Onaindía (Spanish pronunciation:; born 1 December 1958), nicknamed El Vasco (The Basque), is a Mexican football manager and former footballer who played as a midfielder. He is currently manager of the Mexico national team.
Aguirre played for Mexico at the 1986 World Cup, and is currently manager of the team for his third time, coaching them previously on twice occasions, he took them to the World Cup in 2002 and 2010. He also won the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup and led them to the final of the 2001 Copa América. Later, he managed Japan and Egypt.
At club level, Aguirre led six clubs in Spain's La Liga. He finished fourth with Osasuna in 2006 and Atlético Madrid in 2008. He took Atlético and Mallorca to Copa del Rey finals, losing in 2005 and 2024 respectively. He also won the CONCACAF Champions League with Monterrey in 2021.

## Early and personal life

Aguirre was born in Mexico City on 1 December 1958, and nicknamed El Vasco as his parents were both from the Basque Country of Spain. His mother was from the town of Guernica and his father was from Ispaster, and they migrated to Mexico in 1950. He qualified for a Spanish passport, which aided his career due to its strength compared to the Mexican one. He gave his three sons Basque names: Iker, Ander and Iñaki.

## Playing career
### Club

Aguirre made his professional debut for Club América in 1979. Following a short period with the Los Angeles Aztecs, he returned to Club América, contributing to their championship victory in the 1983–84 season by scoring in the final. He then transferred to Atlante, where he played for two years before moving to Spanish club Osasuna. In 1987, Aguirre returned to Mexico to join Guadalajara, where he accumulated over 100 appearances before retiring.

### International

Aguirre made 59 appearances for the Mexico national team between 1983 and 1992, scoring 13 goals. He played in the FIFA World Cup on home soil in 1986, and was sent off in the quarter-final defeat to West Germany; the game went to penalties after a 0–0 draw. He was the first Mexican to be sent off at a World Cup.

## Managerial career
### Early years

After his retirement, Aguirre took up managing, first at Atlante and then Pachuca, where he won his first title as manager, the Invierno 1999 championship.

### First spell with Mexico

On 22 June 2001, Aguirre became the manager of the Mexico national team, replacing Enrique Meza; the team were fifth in their qualifying group for the 2002 FIFA World Cup after losing 3–1 away to Honduras, in a run of one win in 12 games. In his first game on 1 July, El Tri beat rivals the United States at home with a single Jared Borgetti goal. Mexico qualified in second place behind Costa Rica after a 3–0 win at the Estadio Azteca against the Hondurans on 11 November.
In July 2001, Aguirre led Mexico at the 2001 Copa América in Colombia. They defeated Brazil, Chile and Uruguay before losing the final by a single goal to the hosts. A year later at the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan, his side won their group at Italy's expense before losing 2–0 to the US in the Round of 16.

### Osasuna

On 6 June 2002, while leading Mexico at the World Cup, Aguirre joined La Liga club Osasuna after previous manager Miguel Ángel Lotina quit for Celta de Vigo; he had previously played for the Navarrese club. In his first season in Pamplona, the club reached the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey, losing 4–2 on aggregate to Recreativo de Huelva.
In 2004–05, Aguirre went one better, guiding Osasuna to the cup final, where they lost 2–1 after extra time to Real Betis. In the following league season, the Rojillos beat Sevilla FC to a joint-best 4th place and their first qualification to the UEFA Champions League, having led the table after 11 games.

### Atlético Madrid

On 24 May 2006, days after Osasuna finished the season in fourth, Aguirre signed a one-year contract to replace Pepe Murcia at Atlético Madrid. After a fourth-place finish in 2008 confirmed a place in the Champions League, he extended his deal by another year.
Aguirre was dismissed from the Vicente Calderón Stadium on 2 February 2009, after a run of two points from five games. He was replaced by the team's former goalkeeper Abel Resino, who arrived from CD Castellón.

### Second spell with Mexico

On 3 April 2009, Aguirre was officially appointed as the new manager of the Mexico national team, replacing Sven-Göran Eriksson. He was officially presented in a press conference two weeks later. At the press conference, he stated: "I am not a savior. My aim is that we regain our identity and convince people that we can achieve this together". His annual salary was reported to be US$1,635,000.
On 6 June 2009, Aguirre debuted in a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier against El Salvador, losing 2–1. However, he rebounded four days later with a 2–1 win over Trinidad and Tobago.
On 9 July 2009, Aguirre was ejected in an incident during the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup match versus Panama. During a play along the sideline, Aguirre kicked Panamanian player Ricardo Phillips, triggering Phillips to push Aguirre, causing ejections for both Aguirre and Phillips and delaying the match for over 10 minutes due to the refusal of the player from Panama to leave the field. Aguirre apologized to the Mexican fans, media, football players and staff, but never extended such courtesy to Philips or the Panamanian team. He was suspended for three games and the Mexican Football Federation was fined US$25,000 by CONCACAF.
On 26 July 2009, Aguirre led Mexico to its fifth Gold Cup title and its first win against the United States outside of Mexico since 1999. He then led Mexico to a comeback win over the same opposition at the Estadio Azteca on 12 August 2009 and followed it up by winning 3–0 in Costa Rica, putting Mexico closer to a qualifying spot for the World Cup that seemed to be an impossible task at the time when Eriksson was sacked. On 10 October 2009, Mexico beat El Salvador in the Estadio Azteca 4–1, qualifying Mexico for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
After that, in their last hexagonal game against Trinidad and Tobago, they tied 2–2, ending the World Cup qualifying journey.
On 30 June 2010, Aguirre resigned as coach of Mexico following their failure to reach the quarter-finals of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Mexico finished second in Group A, ahead of hosts South Africa and France, but their progress was halted in the round of 16 where they were defeated 3–1 by Argentina.
Aguirre's decision-making during the qualifying stages and during the World Cup garnered criticism, with journalist José Ramón Fernández calling him the worst coach at the World Cup after France's Raymond Domenech. His insistence on playing team-less striker Guillermo Franco, while keeping Manchester United striker Javier Hernández on the bench bewildered many fans and commentators. Aguirre came under additional criticism for his refusal to explain his decisions.
During the run up to the World Cup Aguirre expressed his desire to coach in the Premier League in England, but did not receive any offers.

### Real Zaragoza

On 17 November 2010, Aguirre became the manager of Real Zaragoza. On 29 December 2011, he was relieved of his duties following the club's descent into the relegation spots.

### Espanyol

On 28 November 2012, Aguirre was appointed manager of Espanyol, who were 20th in the La Liga table at the time. On 16 May 2014, Aguirre announced his departure. He was succeeded by Sergio.

### Japan

In August 2014, Aguirre became the new manager of the Japan national team, replacing Alberto Zaccheroni, who had resigned following the World Cup. At the 2015 AFC Asian Cup, Japan won all three of its group matches, scoring seven goals and conceding none, though was knocked out in the quarter-final by the United Arab Emirates.
On 3 February 2015, the Japan Football Association announced the termination of Aguirre's contract. This decision followed the confirmation that Spanish anti-corruption investigators had indicted Aguirre for alleged involvement in an ongoing match-fixing investigation.

### Al Wahda

On 18 June 2015, Aguirre was hired as new manager of the Al-Wahda FC from United Arab Emirates. On 21 May 2017, after leading Al Wahda to the President's Cup championship victory, Aguirre decided to step down as manager.

### Egypt

In July 2018, Aguirre was on a four-man shortlist for the vacant Egyptian national team manager job. He was appointed manager in August 2018. During the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, which was hosted in Egypt, the national team was eliminated by South Africa in the Round of 16. As a result, Aguirre was sacked along with the whole technical and administrative staff of the national team for the disappointing result.

### Leganés

In November 2019, Aguirre returned to La Liga, taking over Leganés after the dismissal of Mauricio Pellegrino. In July 2020, he stepped down from his position after the club was relegated on the final day of the season.

### Monterrey

In December 2020, Aguirre returned to Liga MX for the first time since 2001, signing a two-year deal at Monterrey. On 26 February 2022, he was dismissed from his position after a run of disappointing results.

### Mallorca

On 24 March 2022, Aguirre returned to La Liga. He joined Mallorca, who were one point above the relegation zone with nine games remaining. Mallorca avoided relegation on the last day of the season.
Aguirre led Mallorca to the Copa del Rey final. They lost to Athletic Bilbao on penalties after a 1–1 draw at the Estadio de La Cartuja in Seville. On 22 May 2024, Aguirre and Mallorca parted ways.

### Third spell with Mexico

On 22 July 2024, the Mexican Football Federation announced Aguirre as the new manager of the national team.
In November 2024, Aguirre was hit by a beer can, leaving him bloodied after his team’s 2-0 loss to Honduras in the Nations League quarter-final. Despite the injury, Aguirre downplayed the incident, focusing on congratulating the victors. The Mexican Football Federation condemned the attack, urging CONCACAF to act, while CONCACAF promised an investigation. Rueda also expressed disappointment over the violence. The incident was also condemned by FIFA President Gianni Infantino, calling it "horrible" and called for an investigation of the incident.

## Managerial statistics

    As of match played 20 November 2024
Managerial record by team and tenure :
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Ref |
| Team | Nat | From | To | G | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % | Ref |
| Atlante | | 1 February 1996 | 30 June 1996 | 11 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 12 | 17 | −5 | 018.18 | |
| Pachuca | | 10 September 1998 | 20 June 2001 | 110 | 44 | 27 | 39 | 153 | 149 | +4 | 040.00 | |
| Mexico | | 21 June 2001 | 1 July 2002 | 27 | 17 | 3 | 7 | 40 | 19 | +21 | 062.96 | |
| Osasuna | | 1 July 2002 | 19 May 2006 | 177 | 66 | 49 | 62 | 207 | 221 | −14 | 037.29 | |
| Atlético Madrid | | 23 May 2006 | 2 February 2009 | 131 | 61 | 31 | 39 | 206 | 147 | +59 | 046.56 | |
| Mexico | | 3 April 2009 | 30 June 2010 | 32 | 19 | 7 | 6 | 60 | 24 | +36 | 059.38 | |
| Zaragoza | | 18 November 2010 | 29 December 2011 | 45 | 13 | 10 | 22 | 43 | 68 | −25 | 028.89 | |
| Espanyol | | 28 November 2012 | 27 May 2014 | 69 | 22 | 18 | 29 | 79 | 88 | −9 | 031.88 | |
| Japan | | 24 July 2014 | 2 February 2015 | 10 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 19 | 10 | +9 | 060.00 | |
| Al-Wahda | | 18 June 2015 | 20 May 2017 | 78 | 34 | 21 | 23 | 154 | 108 | +46 | 043.59 | |
| Egypt | | 1 August 2018 | 7 July 2019 | 12 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 25 | 7 | +18 | 075.00 | |
| Leganés | | 4 November 2019 | 20 July 2020 | 30 | 9 | 11 | 10 | 30 | 36 | −6 | 030.00 | |
| Monterrey | | 7 December 2020 | 26 February 2022 | 53 | 23 | 17 | 13 | 75 | 44 | +31 | 043.40 | |
| Mallorca | | 24 March 2022 | 22 May 2024 | 97 | 34 | 28 | 35 | 103 | 106 | −3 | 035.05 | |
| Mexico | | 22 July 2024 | Present | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 2 | +7 | 060.00 | |
| Career Total | Career Total | Career Total | Career Total | 887 | 362 | 230 | 295 | 1,215 | 1,046 | +169 | 040.81 | — |

## Honours
### Player

América
* Mexican Primera División: 1983–84

### Manager

Pachuca
* Mexican Primera División: Invierno 1999
Osasuna
* Copa del Rey runner-up: 2004–05
Al-Wahda
* UAE President's Cup: 2016–17
* UAE League Cup: 2015–16
Monterrey
* CONCACAF Champions League: 2021
Mallorca
* Copa del Rey runner-up: 2023–24
Mexico
* CONCACAF Gold Cup: 2009
* Copa América runner-up: 2001