View source for Ubaldo Fillol

{{Short description|Argentine footballer}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2024}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name = Ubaldo Fillol
| image = Fillol panini card.jpg
| caption = Fillol as displayed in a 1978 Panini card
| full_name = Ubaldo Matildo Fillol
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=y|1950|7|21}}
| birth_place = [[San Miguel del Monte]], <br>[[Buenos Aires Province|Buenos Aires]], Argentina
| height = 1.81 m
| position = [[Goalkeeper (association football)|Goalkeeper]]
| currentclub = 
| youthyears1 = 
| youthclubs1 = 
| years1 = 1965–1971
| years2 = 1971–1973
| years3 = 1973–1983
| years4 = 1983–1984
| years5 = 1984–1985
| years6 = 1985–1986
| years7 = 1986–1989
| years8 = 1989–1991
| clubs1 = [[Quilmes Atlético Club|Quilmes]]
| clubs2 = [[Racing Club de Avellaneda|Racing Club]]
| clubs3 = [[Club Atlético River Plate|River Plate]]
| clubs4 = [[Argentinos Juniors]]
| clubs5 = [[Clube de Regatas do Flamengo|Flamengo]]
| clubs6 = [[Atlético Madrid]]
| clubs7 = [[Racing Club de Avellaneda|Racing Club]]
| clubs8 = [[Club Atlético Vélez Sársfield|Vélez Sársfield]]
| caps1 = 57
| caps2 = 59
| caps3 = 360
| caps4 = 17
| caps5 = 34
| caps6 = 17
| caps7 = 71
| caps8 = 42
| goals1 = 0
| goals2 = 0
| goals3 = 0
| goals4 = 0
| goals5 = 0
| goals6 = 0
| goals7 = 0
| goals8 = 0
| totalcaps = 657
| totalgoals = 0
| nationalyears1 = 1974–1985
| nationalteam1 = [[Argentina national football team|Argentina]]
| nationalcaps1 = 58
| nationalgoals1 = 0
| manageryears1 = 2004
| managerclubs1 = [[Racing Club de Avellaneda|Racing Club]]
| medaltemplates = {{MedalCountry|{{fb|ARG}}}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[FIFA World Cup]]}}
{{Medal|W|[[1978 FIFA World Cup|1978 Argentina]]|}}
}}
'''Ubaldo Matildo Fillol''' ({{IPA|es|uˈβaldo maˈtildo fiˈʎol|}}; born 21 July 1950), nicknamed ''el Pato'' (in English: "the Duck"), is an Argentine football coach and former [[goalkeeper (association football)|goalkeeper]]. He took part in the [[1974 FIFA World Cup|1974]], [[1978 FIFA World Cup|1978]] (where he won the championship with his team and was voted Best Goalkeeper) and [[1982 FIFA World Cup|1982]] World Cups representing the [[Argentina national football team|Argentina national team]]. He also played in the South American qualifiers for the [[1986 FIFA World Cup|1986 World Cup]], but he was finally not chosen for the final team that played (and won) in Mexico. He is usually considered to be one of the greatest goalkeepers and is commonly cited among the best Argentine goalkeepers ever.<ref>{{cite web |title=Greatest Argentine Soccer Players of All Time |url=https://soccermavericks.com/greatest-argentine-soccer-players-of-all-time/ |website=Soccer Mavericks |access-date=29 December 2023}}</ref><ref>[https://www.infobae.com/2012/07/20/660246-nacia-ubaldo-fillol-el-mejor-arquero-la-historia-del-futbol-argentino/ Nacía Ubaldo Fillol: ¿el mejor arquero en la historia del fútbol argentino?], Infobae, 20 Jul 2012</ref><ref>[http://www.goalkeepersaredifferent.com/keeper/greatsframe.htm Goalkeeping Greats] at goalkeepersaredifferent.com</ref>

==Playing career==
Born in [[San Miguel del Monte]], Fillol took his first steps as goalkeeper in an amateur club of the city, where he spent four years. Former River Plate player and manager [[Renato Cesarini]] would be his mentor after seeing him play at the regional league. In 1965 Fillol arrived to [[Quilmes Atlético Club|Quilmes A.C.]] to play at club's youth divisions. At the age of 18, Fillol debuted in [[Argentine Primera División|the Argentine top division]] playing for Quilmes vs. [[Club Atlético Huracán|Huracán]] on 1 May 1969. He soon drew public attraction due to his agility and quick reflexes that allowed him to make acrobatic saves.<ref>[http://www.elgrafico.com.ar/2016/06/14/C-10261-20-arqueros-que-hicieron-historia.php 20 arqueros que hicieron historia] by Martín Estévez on ''El Gráfico'', 14 Jun 2016</ref><ref name=primer>[http://www.elprimergrande.com/noticia/pato-fillol-cumple-67-racing-club-el-primer-grande/# El pato Fillol cumple 67] on El Primer Grande, 21 Jul 2017</ref>

In the [[1970 Argentine Primera División|1970 Metropolitano championship]] Fillol stopped the first penalty in his career to [[Club de Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata|Gimnasia y Esgrima LP]] forward Delio Onnis. That same year Quilmes would be relegated to [[Primera B Metropolitana|Primera B]], where Fillol played 23 matches with the club. In 1972 Fillol was signed by [[Racing Club de Avellaneda]], debuting in the [[1972 Argentine Primera División|1972 Metropolitano tournament]]. In that championship, Fillol set a record of six [[penalty shot|penalties]] saved, the highest in Argentine football for a single season.<ref name=primer/>

[[File:Fillol river.jpg|thumb|left|140px|Fillol in River Plate, where he stayed ten years]]
In 1973 Fillol was transferred to [[Club Atlético River Plate|River Plate]], where he would play for most of his career. At River Plate, Fillol won seven titles, including the [[1975 Argentine Primera División|1975 Metropolitano tournament]], the club's first title in 18 years. In 1977 Fillol was awarded the [[footballer of the Year of Argentina]], being the first goalkeeper ever to receive the distinction.

He was called up for the [[Argentina national football team|Argentina national team]], where he was part of the roster at the [[1974 FIFA World Cup|1974 World Cup]] (the other goalkeepers were [[Daniel Carnevali]] and [[Miguel Ángel Santoro]]). Fillol's most notable performance with Argentina was in [[1978 FIFA World Cup|1978]], when Argentina won its first World Cup and Fillol was chosen as the best goalkeeper of the competition.

In 1983, after a conflict with River Plate management (during which he considered retiring) Fillol was transferred to [[Argentinos Juniors]] by request of former River coach [[Ángel Labruna]], who was managing Argentinos at the time. Fillol played 17 matches there.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20161104045137/http://www.argentinosjuniors.com.ar/futbol/profesional/noticias/20160919_6097 Noticias] on Argentinos Juniors website</ref> In November that year, he moved to Brazil to play for [[Clube de Regatas do Flamengo|Flamengo]]. There, he won the [[Taça Guanabara]] with the club in 1984.

Fillol's debut in European football was in 1985 when he was transferred to [[Atlético Madrid]] at the age of 35. With Fillol as goalkeeper, the club won the [[1985 Supercopa de España]]. In 1986 Fillol returned to [[Racing Club de Avellaneda|Racing]], where he won the first edition of the [[Supercopa Sudamericana]] in [[1988 Supercopa Sudamericana|1988]], which was also the club's first international title since the [[1967 Intercontinental Cup]]

{{Quote box|align=right|width=30%|quote=The best goalkeeper I've ever seen was Ubaldo Fillol"|source=<small>[[Diego Maradona]] remembering Fillol's retirement, 22 December 2017</small><ref>[http://losandes.com.ar/article/view?slug=maradona-aseguro-que-fillol-fue-el-mejor-arquero-que-vio-en-su-vida Maradona aseguró que Fillol fue el mejor arquero que vio en su vida], Los Andes, 22 December 2017</ref>|quoted=yes}}

At the age of 40, Fillol retired from football ending his career in [[Club Atlético Vélez Sársfield|Vélez Sarsfield]] in the last match of the [[1990–91 Argentine Primera División|1990 Apertura]] championship, a 2–1 win over River Plate at the [[Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti|Estadio Monumental]] on 22 December 1990.<ref>[https://www.telam.com.ar/notas/202012/539305-futbol-30-anios-retiro-pato-fillol-river-velez.html Se cumplen 30 años del retiro de Ubaldo Matildo Fillol] on Télam, 22 Dec 2020</ref><ref>[https://www.rsssf.org/tablesa/arg91.html Argentina 1990-91] by Pablo Ciullini on [[RSSSF]]</ref> Fillol had an outstanding performance, even stopping a penalty from forward [[Rubén da Silva]]. Fillol also held the record of 26 penalties stopped, the highest in Argentine football, sharing this record with [[Hugo Gatti]].<ref>[https://tn.com.ar/deportes/after-play/fillol-fue-la-despedida-sonada_076981 Fillol: "Fue la despedida soñada"], TN.com.ar</ref>

==Coaching career==
[[File:Ubaldo Fillol 2006.jpg|thumb|140px|Fillol during his tenure as goalkeeping coach in Argentina, 2006]]
After his retirement, Fillol served as goalkeeping coach for the [[Argentina national football team|Argentine national team]] until he became the head coach for Racing Club in 2003.<ref>[http://www1.rionegro.com.ar/arch200312/31/d31j01.php Asumió Fillol y prometió actuar con firmeza], Rio Negro Online, 31 Dec 2003</ref> After a short tenure as Racing manager, Fillol returned to his role as goalkeeping coach for Argentina, also working at the [[2006 FIFA World Cup]].<ref name=primer/> Nevertheless, Fillol left his charge when [[José Pekerman]] resigned as Argentina manager.<ref>[http://www.tycsports.com/noticias/El-Pato-Fillol-podria-volver-a-entrenar-a-los-arqueros-20061102-0017.html El Pato Fillol podría volver a entrenar a los arqueros], TyC Sports, 2 Nov 2006</ref>

Fillol continued his career coaching goalkeepers at River Plate, but he resigned after a match against [[San Lorenzo de Almagro|San Lorenzo]] in which [[Juan Pablo Carrizo]] refused to accept his gesture of support after a mistake that allowed the rival team to score a goal. Fillol alleged he felt "humillated" by Carrizo and showed his desire to continue in the club but only working with youth players, as he had done before.<ref>[http://www.elterritorio.com.ar/nota4.aspx?c=0727888234758595 Fillol, el entrenador de arqueros de River renunció a su cargo] on El Territorio news, 24 May 2011</ref> Finally, Fillol would return to River Plate in 2014, serving as director of club's goalkeepers section.<ref>[https://www.diariopopular.com.ar/futbol/otra-gloria-vuelve-river-fillol-sera-entrenador-arqueros-n181177 Otra gloria vuelve a River: Fillol será entrenador de arqueros], Diario Popular, 17 Jan 2014</ref>

==Rivalry==
For his [[Club Atlético River Plate|River Plate]] career, he was the counterpart of [[Hugo Gatti|Hugo Orlando Gatti]], another great Argentine goalkeeper who played in the nemesis team, [[Boca Juniors]]. Fillol was always the image of professionalism and seriousness; "Madman" Gatti, on the other hand, looked eccentric, unorthodox.

==Trivia==
At the 1978 World Cup, Fillol wore the number 5 jersey, instead of 1 which is the standard for goalkeepers. This happened because Argentina, at that time, gave players their numbers alphabetically. The number 1 jersey was worn by offensive midfielder [[Norberto Alonso]]. For the same reason, Fillol wore the number 7 jersey at the 1982 tournament while [[Osvaldo Ardiles]] (another midfielder) wore the number 1. This practice was last permitted in 1986, when FIFA stated that the number 1 shirt should only be worn by goalkeepers.

==Honours==
[[File:Racing supercopa 1988.jpg|thumb|right|160px|Fillol celebrating the [[1988 Supercopa Libertadores]] won with Racing Club]]

'''River Plate'''
*[[Argentine Primera División|Primera División]] (7): [[1975 Argentine Primera División#Campeonato Metropolitano|1975 Metropolitano]], [[1975 Argentine Primera División#Campeonato Nacional|1975 Nacional]], [[1977 Argentine Primera División#Campeonato Metropolitano|1977 Metropolitano]], [[1979 Argentine Primera División#Campeonato Metropolitano|1979 Metropolitano]], [[1979 Argentine Primera División#Campeonato Nacional|1979 Nacional]], [[1980 Argentine Primera División#Campeonato Metropolitano|1980 Metropolitano]], [[1981 Argentine Primera División#Campeonato Nacional|1981 Nacional]]
*[[Copa Libertadores]] runner-up: [[1976 Copa Libertadores|1976]]

'''Flamengo'''
* [[Taça Guanabara]]: 1984
* [[Taça Rio]]: 1985

'''Atlético Madrid'''
*[[Supercopa de España]]: [[1985 Supercopa de España|1985]]
*[[UEFA Cup Winners' Cup]] runner-up: [[1986 European Cup Winners' Cup final|1985–86]]

'''Racing Club'''
* [[Supercopa Libertadores]]: [[1988 Supercopa Sudamericana|1988]]

'''Argentina'''
* [[FIFA World Cup]]: [[1978 FIFA World Cup|1978]]

'''Individual'''
* [[Footballer of the Year of Argentina]]: 1977
* [[FIFA World Cup awards#All-Star Team|FIFA World Cup All-Star Team]]: 1978
* [[South American Player of the Year|Silver ball South American Player of the Year]]: 1978, 1983, 1984
* [[El Gráfico (Argentina)|El Grafico]]{{efn|Americas footballer of the year by El Grafico was an award that included over 130 journalists/tv broadcasters from all over the Americas continent}} 3d Best South American Player of the Year: 1981<ref>{{cite news|title=El Grafico 1981 votes
|url=https://www.elgrafico.com.ar/articulo/1089/35708/1981-zico-para-todo-el-mundo|publisher=elgrafico}}</ref>{{efn|Fillol finished 3d, while Zico was second (524 pts) and [[Diego Maradona]] first (572 pts)}}
* [[Argentine Football Association|AFA Team of All Time]] (published 2015)<ref>{{cite web |title=La Selección de Todos los Tiempos |trans-title=The Team of All Time |publisher=Argentine Football Association |language=es |date=4 January 2016 |url=http://www.afa.com.ar/3023/la-seleccion-de-todos-los-tiempos |access-date=29 January 2018}}</ref>
* [[International Federation of Football History & Statistics|IFFHS]] Argentina All Times Dream Team (Team B): 2021<ref>{{cite web|url=https://iffhs.com/posts/1239|title=IFFHS ALL TIME ARGENTINA MEN'S DREAM TEAM|date=26 August 2021}}</ref>
* South American Team of the 20th Century

==See also==
*[[Ubaldo Fillol Award]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{twitter|id= ubaldofillol}}
*{{FIFA player|44105}}
*{{NFT player|pid=18329}}
*[http://www.planetworldcup.com/LEGENDS/fillol.html Biography] at planetworldcup.com
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060106025959/http://www.superfutbol.com.ar/jugadores/ArgentinaFillol.htm Biography]

{{Navboxes
|title= Awards
|bg= gold
|list1=
{{1978 FIFA World Cup Team of the Tournament}}
{{Argentine Footballer of the Year}}
{{South American Team of the 20th Century}}
}}
{{Navboxes
|title= Argentina squads
|bg= #6AB5FF
|fg= white
|bordercolor= silver
|list1=
{{Argentina Squad 1974 World Cup}}
{{Argentina Squad 1978 World Cup}}
{{Argentina Squad 1982 World Cup}}
{{Argentina Squad 1983 Copa América}}
}}
{{Racing Club managers}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fillol, Ubaldo}}
[[Category:1950 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Footballers from Buenos Aires Province]]
[[Category:Argentine men's footballers]]
[[Category:Argentinos Juniors footballers]]
[[Category:Club Atlético River Plate footballers]]
[[Category:Racing Club de Avellaneda footballers]]
[[Category:Quilmes Atlético Club footballers]]
[[Category:Club Atlético Vélez Sarsfield footballers]]
[[Category:CR Flamengo footballers]]
[[Category:La Liga players]]
[[Category:Atlético Madrid footballers]]
[[Category:Men's association football goalkeepers]]
[[Category:1974 FIFA World Cup players]]
[[Category:1978 FIFA World Cup players]]
[[Category:1982 FIFA World Cup players]]
[[Category:1983 Copa América players]]
[[Category:FIFA World Cup–winning players]]
[[Category:Argentina men's international footballers]]
[[Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Brazil]]
[[Category:Argentine beach soccer players]]
[[Category:Argentine football managers]]
[[Category:Racing Club de Avellaneda managers]]
[[Category:Argentine Primera División players]]
[[Category:Argentine expatriate men's footballers]]
[[Category:Argentine people of French descent]]
[[Category:Argentine expatriate sportspeople in Brazil]]
[[Category:Argentine expatriate sportspeople in Spain]]
[[Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Spain]]
[[Category:20th-century Argentine sportsmen]]
[[Category:Occitan sportspeople]]