Javi Gracia
Spanish footballer and manager (born 1970) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Javier "Javi" Gracia Carlos (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈxaβi ˈɣɾaθja];[lower-alpha 1] born 1 May 1970) is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a defensive midfielder.
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Javier Gracia Carlos[1] | ||
Date of birth | (1970-05-01) 1 May 1970 (age 53)[1] | ||
Place of birth | Pamplona, Spain | ||
Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[1] | ||
Position(s) | Defensive midfielder | ||
Youth career | |||
1977–1982 | Osasuna | ||
Chantrea | |||
Athletic Bilbao | |||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1989–1992 | Bilbao Athletic | 100 | (12) |
1992–1993 | Lleida | 38 | (12) |
1993–1995 | Valladolid | 65 | (2) |
1995–1999 | Real Sociedad | 106 | (12) |
1999–2002 | Villarreal | 82 | (6) |
2003–2004 | Córdoba | 39 | (0) |
Total | 430 | (44) | |
International career | |||
1989–1990 | Spain U20 | 3 | (0) |
1991 | Spain U21 | 1 | (0) |
Managerial career | |||
2004–2005 | Villarreal (youth) | ||
2007–2008 | Pontevedra | ||
2008–2010 | Cádiz | ||
2010–2011 | Villarreal B | ||
2011 | Olympiacos Volou | ||
2011–2012 | Kerkyra | ||
2012–2013 | Almería | ||
2013–2014 | Osasuna | ||
2014–2016 | Málaga | ||
2016–2017 | Rubin Kazan | ||
2018–2019 | Watford | ||
2020–2021 | Valencia | ||
2021–2022 | Al Sadd | ||
2023 | Leeds United | ||
*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
He totalled 430 matches across both major levels of Spanish football, in a 15-year professional career. After retiring he began working as a manager, going on to coach several clubs in Spain, Greece and Russia before being appointed at Watford in January 2018.[2]
Gracia led Watford to their second FA Cup final in their history in 2019, but was sacked later the same year.[3] From June 2020 to May 2021 he worked with Valencia, and a year later he won the Qatar Stars League during a brief spell at Al Sadd before managing Leeds United for three months in 2023.