Rafael Martín Vázquez

Rafael Martín Vázquez

Personal information
Date of birth	25 September 1965 (1965-09-25)
Place of birth	Madrid, Spain
Height	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Playing position	Midfielder
Youth career
	Escolapios
1980–1983	Real Madrid
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1983	Castilla	14	(3)
1983–1990	Real Madrid	179	(35)
1990–1992	Torino	52	(2)
1992	Marseille	7	(1)
1992–1995	Real Madrid	73	(7)
1995–1997	Deportivo La Coruña	17	(2)
1997–1998	Club Celaya	10	(0)
1998	Karlsruher SC	5	(0)
National team
1983–1984	Spain U18	10	(2)
1984–1988	Spain U21	15	(1)
1987	Spain U23	2	(1)
1984	Spain amateur	1	(0)
1987–1992	Spain	38	(1)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Not to be confused with Martin Vasquez.

This name uses Spanish naming customs; the first or paternal family name is Martín and the second or maternal family name is Vázquez.

Rafael Martín Vázquez (born 25 September 1965) is a retired Spanish footballer who played mostly as an attacking midfielder, with above-average skills.

He represented most notably Real Madrid, having represented it in two different spells, amassing La Liga totals of 252 games and 42 goals for the club, but also played abroad with some success in Italy, being unlucky in his other three foreign adventures.

Martín Vázquez appeared for Spain in one World Cup and one European Championship, gaining nearly 40 caps.

Club career

Born in Madrid, Martín Vázquez joined the youth teams of Real Madrid in 1980 at the age of 15, and made his debuts for the first team three years later, going on to achieve fame as part of the Quinta del Buitre, which still included Míchel, Emilio Butragueño, Miguel Pardeza and Manolo Sanchís. In 1989–90, as Real achieved a club and La Liga record of 107 goals, he netted a career-best 14 goals, second only in the team to Hugo Sánchez's 38 successful strikes.

After the arrival of Romanian Gheorghe Hagi, Martín Vázquez decided to accept the offer of Torino FC, but failed to settle in Italy during his two-season spell (although he did help the team reach the 1992 UEFA Cup final). He then moved to Olympique de Marseille, but only lasted two months in France, after which a return to Real Madrid was arranged. In his two stints with the merengues, he won six leagues, two UEFA Cups and two King's Cups.

As injuries hit him, Martín Vázquez eventually retired from football at the end of 1998, after unassuming spells with Deportivo de La Coruña, Club Celaya (where he teamed up with Butragueño) and Karlsruher SC (German second division). Afterwards, he worked with Real Madrid as a youth coach, while also keeping fit with the club's veteran team.

International career

Martín Vázquez played 38 times for Spain, including at UEFA Euro 1988 and the 1990 FIFA World Cup. His debut came on 23 September 1987, in a friendly match with Luxembourg.

International goals

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	4 September 1991	Carlos Tartiere, Oviedo, Spain	Uruguay	1–0	2–1	Friendly

Honours

Real Madrid

• UEFA Cup: 1984–85, 1985–86
• Spanish League: 1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1994–95
• Spanish Cup: 1988–89, 1992–93
• Spanish League Cup: 1984–85
• Spanish Supercup: 1988, 1989, 1993

Torino

• UEFA Cup: Runner-up 1991–92

External links

• BDFutbol profile
• National team data (Spanish)
• Rafael Martín Vázquez at National-Football-Teams.com
• Rafael Martín Vázquez – FIFA competition record
• International appearances; at RSSSF
• Real Madrid biography (Spanish)
• Fussballdaten stats (German)