Manuel Negrete Arias

Manuel Negrete Arias (born 11 March 1959) is a Mexican former professional footballer and manager, who played as a midfielder.

Club career Negrete became a professional football player in 1980 with Pumas. His style of play gave him instant recognition among Mexican soccer fans, with Negrete becoming a household name quickly. After the 1986 World Cup, Negrete continued playing in the Mexican Football League, and then reached the European soccer leagues by joining Sporting CP in Portugal and then moving to Sporting Gijón in Spain.

International career At the 1986 FIFA World Cup, Negrete participated in five games and scored one goal in the round of 16 against Bulgaria in the 35th minute, the first of a 2–0 win. The goal has been described as one of the most spectacular in World Cup history by many football fans and journalists which, in April 2018, voted it in FIFA's website as the World Cup's greatest goal. Negrete received a high ball outside the penalty area, controlled it, let the ball bounce once on the ground and combined with Javier Aguirre; the latter returned the ball on the first touch, while keeping it on the air, and Negrete shot it on a scissor kick into the bottom right corner of goalkeeper Borislav Mihaylov.

Career statistics International goals Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition 1. August 16, 1984 Helsinki Olympic Stadium, Helsinki, Finland 3–0 3–0 Friendly 2. March 1, 1984 Puskás Ferenc Stadion, Budapest, Hungary 1–0 2–0 Friendly 3. September 18, 1984 Estadio Universitario, San Nicolás, Mexico 1–1 1–1 Friendly 4. November 11, 1984 National Stadium, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago 1–0 2–0 Friendly 5. February 5, 1985 Estadio La Corregidora, Querétaro, Mexico 2–0 5–0 Friendly 6. February 5, 1985 Estadio La Corregidora, Querétaro, Mexico 5–0 5–0 Friendly 7. June 15, 1985 Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico 1–0 2–0 Azteca Cup 8. October 11, 1985 March 28 Stadium, Benghazi, Libya 1–1 1–3 Friendly 9. December 7, 1985 Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico 1–0 2–0 1985 Mexico Cup 10. March 6, 1986 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States 1–0 1–1 Friendly 11. June 15, 1986 Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico 1–0 2–0 1986 FIFA World Cup 12. February 21, 1989 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States 1–0 2–1 1989 Friendship Cup

Post-playing career Negrete has led a more quiet life in Mexico since he retired from playing. He worked as coach of the Pumas youth teams, and later went to Club León as an assistant coach. He became head coach after the firing/resignation of Mario Alberto Garcia.

Honours Pumas Mexican Primera División: 1980–81 CONCACAF Champions' Cup: 1980, 1982, 1989 Copa Interamericana: 1981

Atlante Mexican Primera División: 1992–93

Individual Mexican Primera División Golden Ball: 1984–85 South American Player of the Year Nomination: 1986