Madridistas remember Steve McManaman (Liverpool, 48 years old) for her eternal smile, for her carrot-colored hair and, above all, for two iconic goals that at the time helped Madrid to increase its prestige in Europe. 2-0 to Valencia in the final in Paris that gave rise to the Eighth brilliantly, with a forward semi-volley-scissor that surprised Cañizares, and the Vaseline goal that he signed at the Camp Nou against Barça in the semifinals of the 2002 Champions League, waiting room for the Ninth in Glasgow.
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Macca, as his teammates nicknamed him since his triumphant times at Liverpool, was a midfielder who left the English profile. He was not large and did not like to play long balls. He had good treatment of the ball, he was very smart tactically and if he had to play for the team he was one of the most supportive. That is why he could be in the Madrid that won the Champions League after revolutionizing Lorenzo Sanz Madrid of the Ferraris, building a team with fewer egos, and that’s why was able to ride alongside the Galactics (Figo, Zidane, Ronaldo, Raúl, Roberto Carlos, Casillas …) to raise the Novena in 2002 with his valuable role in the Glasgow final (he replaced Figo in the absence of half an hour and helped with his pressure work to keep the 2 -1 who finally awarded the title). In fact, McManaman boasted at that time for being the first English player in history to lift the Champions League playing outside the Islands. And he came to be on a podium of top British players playing out there, behind Kevin Keegan and the welsh John Charles.
–McMamanan, with the Ninth.
REUTERS
McManaman He left Liverpool in 1999 for free, in a highly praised Lorenzo Sanz operation by convincing him not to renew his contract with the ‘Reds’ and thus be able to get to the Bernabéu without paying any transfer. And that Barcelona, tempted by Liverpool, came to offer 3,000 million old pesetas to take away from Madrid, but Van gaal He discarded it for accusing him of having little physical and little goal. In his beloved Liverpool he won a Cup and a League Cup, but that was too small. In Madrid he exploded as a player and his resume sailed at the same speed: two Champions, an Intercontinental Cup, a European Super Cup and two Leagues from Spain. Had to leave in 2003 as a result of the busy night of the Txistu, in celebration of the 29th league title. In fact, Steve and Ronaldo Nazario were the only ones absent in the official events of the following day in La Almudena, Town Hall and headquarters of the Community.
He jumped into the world of television …
Del Madrid, where he played 152 games (with 16 goals and 31 assists), he went to Manchester CityBut he only held two courses there and decided to hang up his boots for lack of incentives (he was only 33 years old). He resigned from the benches and ventured into the world of communication, taking advantage of his self-confidence in the colloquium and his soccer experience. He was a commentator for Setanta Sports, ESPN and BT Sports, a paid sports thematic channel in which he currently works. That has allowed him to come often to his longed-for Bernabéu to comment on Champions League games.
TO Macca It is considered ‘Spanish medium’. He married his wife Victoria Edwards in the cathedral of Palma de Mallorca and for 14 years they have had a magnificent home in Son Vida, a splendid neighborhood in the Balearic capital. They have spent every summer there with their three children and that is why on the island marriage is well known and very integrated. When his activities with BT Sports allow him, they spend long stages on the island that saw the birth of Rafa Nadal, with whom he has a good relationship. Macca He is an atypical Englishman who, unlike other compatriots, can boast of having triumphed in Spanish football and having left his mark. Two Champions (Eighth and Ninth) can attest to this …
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