Miguel ngel Salgado Fernandez (better known as Michel Salgado) is a Spanish footballer who became famous for playing on the right flank of defense for Real Madrid. Michel is rightfully considered one of the best right-backs in the history of not only the “royal” club and the Spanish national team, but of all world football.
Michel Salgado: rating, statistics
Fans gave Salgado the nickname Il Due, which means “two” in Italian. He received such a title for his, on the one hand, selfless actions in defense, and, on the other hand, for constant effective connections to the attack. Steve McManaman, Michel’s fellow for Real Madrid, said that Salgado is the most severe person in the world, a “real psychopath” in his field, both in matches and in training.
Michel Salgado spent more than 15 years in Spain, for which he appeared in 343 La Liga games, scoring 7 goals, simultaneously winning four La Liga and twice Champions League. The footballer also represented the Spanish national team, having played more than 50 matches for it, including at the 2006 World Cup and the 2000 European Championship. Injuries prevented him from playing at the 2002 World Cup and Euro 2004.
"Celta"
The future football player was born on October 22, 1975 in the town of As Neves (province of Pontevedra, Autonomous Community of Galicia). Michel Salgado, whose biography is given in this article, played in only 4 football clubs. He began his professional career in Celta from the town of Vigo, located in Michel's native province. Having passed all levels of youth teams, including playing for several Spanish national teams of different age categories, Michel Salgado played his debut match in La Liga on January 22, 1995. In it, the club from Vigo lost 0-4 to the club, in which later the novice defender will become a legend - Real Madrid. During the season, he was leased to Salamanca from Segunda, and after returning he became the first number in his position.
During appearances for Celta, Salgado was involved in an incident with Madrid-based Atletico Juninho Paulista: in February 1998, the right-back defender severely injured the Madrid midfielder, after which he missed 6 months and did not end up at the 1998 World Cup.
During the years of playing for the club from Vigo, Michel scored 3 goals, and in the 1998-1999 season he made an invaluable contribution to the success of Celta, which finished 5th and received a ticket to the UEFA Cup.
"Real"
In 1999, Salgado was bought by Real for 11 million euros. In the first season for the Royal Club, Michel became the best in his position, having played in 29 league games, and also helped Madrid win the UEFA Champions League. For 7 years, he was the undisputed first number on the right flank of the defense of Real Madrid, until in the 2006-2007 season a new young player of the Academy of the “royal” club pressed him to the bench.
After that, Michel Salgado played not so much, but in the same season he played 16 of La Liga's 30 matches, but mainly because of Pepe's injury, as a result of which Ramos was moved to the defense center. In the next two seasons, he played very rarely (only 17 matches for all time). The last match for the “creamy” Salgado played in the final game of the 2008-2009 season against Osasuna, which ended with a score of 1-2 not in favor of Real Madrid.
Blackburn Rovers
At the age of almost 34, Salgado moved to Blackburn Rovers, who played in the English Premier League. Michel played his first Premier League match in September against Wolverhampton and came on as a substitute. The legendary defender scored the first and last goal for Blackburn in the English League Cup match against Peterborough United (the game ended with the score 5-2 in favor of Rovers).
In January 2011, Michel agreed to extend the contract, but due to frequent injuries, the club's management in 2012 activated the option to automatically terminate the contract, since during this time the player played less than 10 games in the 2011-2012 season. After that, Michel Salgado, the “ram protector,” decided to end his professional career.
International career
Michel Salgado, whose performance statistics at the international level is not as impressive as the club, having passed all the levels of the youth national teams of Spain, played his first match for the adult national team on September 5, 1998 in the infamous qualifying match for the 2000 European Championship against Cyprus, which ended with a score of 2-3 in favor of the Cypriots. He was an integral part of the country’s national team at the 2000 European Championships and also replaced the 2006 World Cup matches, after which he gave way to his younger Real Madrid friend Sergio Ramos and completed his appearances for the Spanish national team.
Very frequent injuries prevented Salgado from playing for both Real Madrid and the Spanish national team in full force. At the last moment, the player was injured before making applications for the 2002 World Cup, held in Japan and South Korea, and the 2004 European Championship, held in Greece, as a result of which he missed these tournaments. In addition to playing for Spain, Salgado defended the colors of the Galicia national team with players such as Diego Lopez, Pablo Alvarez and Ricardo Cabanas.