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Carlos García (footballer, born 1984)

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Carlos García (footballer, born 1984)

Carlos García
García playing for Maccabi Tel Aviv in 2015
Personal information
Full name Carlos García Badías
Date of birth (1984-04-29) 29 April 1984 (age 42)
Place of birth Barcelona, Spain
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position Centre-back
Team information
Current team
 Jong Ajax (head coach)
Youth career
1999–2003 Espanyol
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2002–2004 Espanyol B 30 (1)
2003–2005 Espanyol 3 (0)
2004–2005 → Poli Ejido (loan) 34 (1)
2005–2012 Almería 195 (1)
2009–2010 → Betis (loan) 33 (1)
2012–2016 Maccabi Tel Aviv 115 (7)
2016–2017 Alanyaspor 9 (0)
Total 419 (11)
International career
2000–2001 Spain U16 13 (0)
2001 Spain U17 3 (0)
2002–2003 Spain U19 4 (0)
2002–2003 Spain U20 9 (0)
2004–2006 Spain U21 5 (0)
2005 Spain U23 4 (0)
Managerial career
2017–2018 Maccabi Tel Aviv (assistant)
2018–2019 Chongqing Dangdai Lifan (assistant)
2020 Ecuador (assistant)
2020–2021 Shenzhen (assistant)
2022 Beitar Tel Aviv Bat Yam
2022–2023 Udinese (technical assistant)
2024 Chicago Fire (assistant)
2025 Flamurtari
2026 Jong Ajax (assistant)
2026 Ajax (assistant)
2026– Jong Ajax
Medal record
Men's Football
Representing  Spain
UEFA European Under-16 Championship
Winner2001 England
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Carlos García Badías (born 29 April 1984) is a Spanish football manager and former professional footballer who played as a central defender. He is the current head coach of Eerste Divisie club Jong Ajax.

He spent most of his playing career with Almería, playing 208 competitive matches for the club and appearing in three La Liga seasons. Additionally, he had a four-year spell with Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Israeli Premier League.

Playing career

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Club

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Espanyol and Almería

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Born in Barcelona, Catalonia, García was a product of local RCD Espanyol's youth ranks. He would only appear for the first team on three occasions, during the 2003–04 season (three defeats),[1][2][3] also serving a loan stint with Polideportivo Ejido in the Segunda División the following campaign.[4]

García stayed in Andalusia in 2005, being sold by Espanyol to second-division UD Almería.[5] He was a starter from the beginning, being instrumental in their first-ever La Liga promotion in the 2006–07 campaign.[6]

Deemed surplus to requirements by manager Hugo Sánchez, García was loaned to neighbours Real Betis for 2009–10's second-tier season.[7] After not being able to help the Verdiblancos return to the top flight he rejoined Almería,[8] being first-choice under new manager Juan Manuel Lillo and both his successors José Luis Oltra and Roberto Olabe, scoring once[9] in 33 games as they were eventually relegated after a four-year stay.[10]

Maccabi Tel Aviv and Alanyaspor

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García moved abroad for the first time in his career in June 2012, signing a three-year contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C. in the Israeli Premier League.[11] In his first season he was teamed up in the centre of defence with Eitan Tibi, with the pair performing solidly as the club won the national championship after a ten-year drought.[12]

Aged 29, García made his debut in European competition in the 2013–14 campaign, featuring in both the UEFA Champions League qualification matches[13][14] and the UEFA Europa League group stage.[15][16] In the domestic front he was part of the squad that set a new league record for minutes without conceding a goal, surpassing Hapoel Haifa FC's 585 from 1999.[17]

García retired in 2017 at the age of 33, after one season in the Turkish Süper Lig with Alanyaspor.[18]

International

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García was part of the Spain under-16 squad at the 2001 UEFA European Under-16 Championship in England, winning the tournament alongside top scorer Fernando Torres.[19] Two years later, he contributed seven starts for the under-20s as they finished runners-up to Brazil in the FIFA World Cup.[20][21]

Managerial career

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Immediately after retiring from playing, García returned to Maccabi Tel Aviv as assistant coach to compatriot Jordi Cruyff.[22] The pair worked together again in the Chinese Super League, serving as assistant manager at Chongqing Dangdai Lifan F.C. and Shenzhen FC.[23][24] García also reunited briefly with Cruyff in 2020 during his stint with the Ecuador national football team.[25]

In January 2022, García took on his first head coaching role with Liga Leumit side Beitar Tel Aviv Bat Yam FC.[26] He subsequently returned to assistant roles, working with Serie A's Udinese Calcio[27] and Major League Soccer's Chicago Fire FC.[28][29]

On 27 June 2025, García was appointed head coach of Albanian Kategoria Superiore side Flamurtari FC,[30] leaving the club by mutual agreement in October 2025.[31]

In February 2026, García joined Dutch side AFC Ajax, initially appointed as assistant coach for reserve team Jong Ajax in the Eerste Divisie. Shortly thereafter in March 2026, he stepped up to serve as assistant manager for the senior Ajax team alongside Óscar García. Following organizational restructuring ahead of the 2026–27 campaign, García was appointed head coach of Jong Ajax on 1 July 2026.

Honours

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Maccabi Tel Aviv

Spain U16

Spain U23

Spain U20

References

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  1. ↑ Clemente propone y Ronaldo dispone (Clemente proposes and Ronaldo disposes); El País, 6 October 2003 (in Spanish)
  2. ↑ El Valencia arrolla al Espanyol (Valencia crush Espanyol); El País, 20 October 2003 (in Spanish)
  3. ↑ El Madrid se dispara en Montjuïc (Madrid shoot for the sky at Montjuïc); El País, 22 February 2004 (in Spanish)
  4. ↑ El Almería pretende quitarle al Poli Ejido a Carlos García (Almería want to rob Poli Ejido of Carlos García); ABC, 12 July 2005 (in Spanish)
  5. ↑ El central Carlos García nuevo jugador de la U. D Almería (Stopper Carlos García new player of U.D Almería); ABC, 19 July 2005 (in Spanish)
  6. ↑ Carlos García, al club de los '100' de la UD Almería (Carlos García, to UD Almería's '100' club) Archived 12 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine; Ideal, 25 March 2008 (in Spanish)
  7. ↑ Carlos García pasa el reconocimiento previo a su cesión al Betis (Carlos García undergoes medical prior to Betis loan); Marca, 25 June 2009 (in Spanish)
  8. ↑ El Almería confirma la vuelta de Carlos García (Almería confirm return of Carlos García); Marca, 1 July 2010 (in Spanish)
  9. ↑ L'Almeria aconsegueix el primer triomf com a local de la temporada davant l'Osasuna (3–2) (Almeria get first home win of season against Osasuna (3–2)); Ara, 23 January 2011 (in Catalan)
  10. ↑ Carlos García: "Bajar es fracasar en lo personal y en lo colectivo" (Carlos García: "To be relegated is a personal and collective failure"); Marca, 5 May 2011 (in Spanish)
  11. ↑ Carlos García pasa el reconocimiento del Maccabi Tel-Aviv y firma tres años (Carlos García passes medical at Maccabi Tel-Aviv and signs for three years); Almería 360, 13 June 2012 (in Spanish)
  12. ↑ Maccabi Tel Aviv ends 10-year drought, wins Israeli soccer championship; Haaretz, 22 April 2013
  13. ↑ Slick Stocker gives Basel slender lead; UEFA, 30 July 2013
  14. ↑ Maccabi revival comes too late to halt Basel; UEFA, 6 August 2013
  15. ↑ Maccabi Tel-Aviv battle back to beat Bordeaux; UEFA, 3 October 2013
  16. ↑ Eintracht cruise to Maccabi Tel-Aviv success; UEFA, 24 October 2013
  17. ↑ Juan Pablo: "I came for the championship", Walla!, 29 October 2013 (in Hebrew)
  18. ↑ Oficial: El Alanyaspor ficha a Carlos García (Official: Alanyaspor sign Carlos García); Nuevo Fútbol, 4 July 2016 (in Spanish)
  19. 1 2 La cantera vuelve a coronarse (Youth system crowned again); Última Hora, 7 May 2001 (in Spanish)
  20. ↑ España en los mundiales sub’20: Emiratos Árabes Unidos 2003 (Spain in under'20 World Cups: United Arab Emirates 2003); Cuadernos de Fútbol, April 2015 (in Spanish)
  21. 1 2 Spain denied at final hurdle; UEFA, 19 December 2003
  22. ↑ Carlos appointed as assistant coach; Maccabi Tel Aviv FC, 29 December 2017
  23. ↑ La Superliga china arranca con mucho acento español (Chinese Superleague gets started with heavy Spanish accent); Diario AS, 27 February 2019 (in Spanish)
  24. ↑ Pleno español en el 'play-out' de la Superliga china (Spaniards win it all in Chinese Superleague play-out); Diario AS, 3 November 2020 (in Spanish)
  25. ↑ Cruyff y la FEF acuerdan reducción salarial (Cruyff and EFF agree on pay cut); El Telégrafo, 30 March 2020 (in Spanish)
  26. ↑ Carlos Garcia has been appointed coach of Betar Tel Aviv / Bat Yam; Time News, 7 January 2022
  27. ↑ “En mi época, los chicos querían ir al Espanyol antes que al Barça” ("In my time, kids wanted to go to Espanyol instead of Barça"); Diario AS, 18 June 2023 (in Spanish)
  28. ↑ "Head coach Frank Klopas names coaching staff for 2024 season". Chicago Fire FC. 19 January 2024. Retrieved 19 January 2024.
  29. ↑ "Chicago Fire FC announces first team coaching staff moves". Chicago Fire FC. 8 November 2024. Retrieved 8 January 2025.
  30. ↑ Flamurtari me trajner spanjoll, zyrtarizohet Carlos Garcia (Flamurtari with a Spanish coach, Carlos García is made official); Televizioni Klan, 27 June 2025 (in Albanian)
  31. ↑ Jo vetëm Carlos Garcia, te Flamurtari pritet një tjetër shkarkim (EMRI) (Not only Carlos García, another dismissal is expected at Flamurtari (NAME)); Klikoje, 8 October 2025 (in Albanian)
  32. 1 2 3 "Sports shorts: In-form yellow-and-blue visits Sakhnin". The Jerusalem Post. 31 December 2017. Retrieved 10 April 2025.
  33. ↑ "Mediterranean Games 2005 (Spain)". RSSSF. Retrieved 27 September 2016.
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