View source for Vicente Engonga

{{Short description|Spanish football player and manager}}
{{family name hatnote|Engonga|Maté|lang=Spanish}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2021}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name = Vicente Engonga
| image = 
| fullname = Vicente Engonga Maté
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1965|10|20|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Barcelona]], Spain
| height = 1.81 m
| position = [[Central midfielder]]
| youthyears1 = 
| youthclubs1 = [[Gimnástica de Torrelavega|Gimnástica]]
| years1 = 1984–1986
| clubs1 = [[Gimnástica de Torrelavega|Gimnástica]]
| caps1 = 51
| goals1 = 2
| years2 = 1986–1991
| clubs2 = [[CF Sporting Mahonés|Sporting Mahonés]]
| caps2 = 112
| goals2 = 3
| years3 = 1991–1992
| clubs3 = [[Real Valladolid|Valladolid]]
| caps3 = 37
| goals3 = 2
| years4 = 1992–1994
| clubs4 = [[RC Celta de Vigo|Celta]]
| caps4 = 72
| goals4 = 0
| years5 = 1994–1997
| clubs5 = [[Valencia CF|Valencia]]
| caps5 = 69
| goals5 = 2
| years6 = 1997–2002
| clubs6 = [[RCD Mallorca|Mallorca]]
| caps6 = 149
| goals6 = 4
| years7 = 2002–2003
| clubs7 = [[Real Oviedo|Oviedo]]
| caps7 = 11
| goals7 = 1
| years8 = 2003
| clubs8 = → [[Coventry City F.C.|Coventry City]] (loan)
| caps8 = 8
| goals8 = 0
| totalcaps = 509
| totalgoals = 14
| nationalyears1 = 1997–2000
| nationalteam1 = [[Cantabria autonomous football team|Cantabria]]
| nationalcaps1 = 2
| nationalgoals1 = 0
| manageryears1 = 2008–2009
| managerclubs1 = [[Equatorial Guinea national football team|Equatorial Guinea]]
| manageryears2 = 2011
| managerclubs2 = [[RCD Mallorca B|Mallorca B]]
| nationalyears2 = 1998–2000
| nationalteam2 = [[Spain national football team|Spain]]
| nationalcaps2 = 14
| nationalgoals2 = 1
}}
'''Vicente Engonga Maté''' (born 20 October 1965) is a Spanish retired professional [[association football|footballer]] who played mainly as a [[central midfielder]] but occasionally as a [[sweeper (association football)|sweeper]].

He played for six clubs in his career, having his longest and most successful spell at [[RCD Mallorca|Mallorca]] despite arriving there aged 32. In total, he appeared in 327 [[La Liga]] matches and scored eight goals over 11 seasons.

Engonga was a [[Spain national football team|Spanish international]] for two years, and represented the team at [[UEFA Euro 2000|Euro 2000]].

==Club career==
Born in [[Barcelona]], [[Catalonia]] of [[Equatorial Guinea]]n descent,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/africa/6635239.stm|title=Footballers step-out of 'Eel's' shadow|publisher=[[BBC Sport]]|date=8 May 2007|access-date=28 May 2007}}</ref> Engonga spent his childhood in the [[Cantabria]] region, where his father was a footballer.<ref name=Minutos>{{cite news|url=http://blogs.20minutos.es/quefuede/2009/01/11/quao-fue-de-engonga/|title=Qué fue de… Engonga|trans-title=What happened to… Engonga|newspaper=[[20 minutos]]|last=Casado|first=Edu|language=es|date=11 January 2009|access-date=30 June 2010}}</ref> He started his senior career with local lower league side [[Gimnástica de Torrelavega]], and then joined [[CF Sporting Mahonés]].

In 1991, Engonga moved to [[Real Valladolid]] in [[La Liga]]. In his [[1991–92 La Liga|first year]] the club were [[Promotion and relegation|relegated]] to the [[Segunda División]] and he left for [[RC Celta de Vigo]], with whom he was a [[1993–94 Copa del Rey|finalist]] in the 1994 [[Copa del Rey]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.geocities.com/Colosseum/Park/2490/REY94.htm|title=Copa del Rey 1994|trans-title=1994 Spanish Cup|publisher=Geocities|language=es|access-date=2 June 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091020145859/http://geocities.com/Colosseum/Park/2490/REY94.htm|archive-date=20 October 2009}}</ref>

Engonga was bought by league powerhouse [[Valencia CF]] in summer 1994, spending three seasons at the [[Mestalla Stadium]]. After a shaky start, he made 35 appearances in [[1996–97 La Liga|1996–97]], although the ''Che'' finished tenth.

Subsequently, Engonga signed with [[RCD Mallorca]] under [[Héctor Cúper]]'s supervision, along with five other former teammates including [[Iván Campo]]. He displayed his best football at the [[Balearic Islands]] side, helping them win the [[1998 Supercopa de España]] after beating [[FC Barcelona]] 3–1 on aggregate. Also that year, they [[1998–99 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup|reached]] the [[1999 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Final|final]] of the [[UEFA Cup Winners' Cup]], losing 2–1 to [[S.S. Lazio]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://en.archive.uefa.com/competitions/ecwc/news/kind=4/newsid=490842.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100503062028/http://en.archive.uefa.com/competitions/ecwc/news/kind=4/newsid=490842.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=3 May 2010|title=1998/99: Lazio leave it late|publisher=UEFA|date=19 May 1999|access-date=17 June 2015}}</ref>

During the [[2000–01 La Liga|2000–01 campaign]], Engonga scored twice in 31 league games as his team earned a third-place finish, [[2001–02 UEFA Champions League|qualifying]] for the [[UEFA Champions League]] for the first time. In their first match in the competition, he scored the only goal to defeat [[Arsenal F.C.|Arsenal]] at [[Iberostar Stadium|Son Moix]], an 11th-minute [[Penalty kick (association football)|penalty]] after [[Ashley Cole]] was [[Ejection (sports)|sent off]] for fouling [[Albert Luque]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2001/sep/12/championsleague.sport|title=Cole sent off as Gunners slump|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|last=Brodkin|first=Jon|date=12 September 2001|access-date=4 June 2015}}</ref>

In 2002, Engonga's contract expired and he joined second-tier [[Real Oviedo]] where he played for six months before moving abroad in late January 2003, signing a six-month [[Loan (association football)|loan deal]] with English club [[Coventry City F.C.|Coventry City]] in the [[Football League Championship|Football League Division One]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/c/coventry_city/2711303.stm|title=Coventry snap up Engonga|publisher=BBC Sport|date=13 February 2003|access-date=30 June 2010}}</ref> At the end of [[2002–03 Football League First Division|the season]] the 37-year-old retired, going on to work with Mallorca in several coaching capacities.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.diariodemallorca.es/rcd-mallorca/2014/08/07/cuerpo-tecnico-leyenda/952708.html|title=Un cuerpo técnico de leyenda|trans-title=A technical staff for the ages|newspaper=[[Diario de Mallorca]]|last=Bauzà|first=Jaime|language=es|date=7 August 2014|access-date=30 January 2019}}</ref>

==International career==
On 23 September 1998, aged nearly 33, Engonga made his debut with the [[Spain national football team|Spain national team]], playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–0 [[Exhibition game|friendly]] win over [[Russia national football team|Russia]] in [[Granada]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://hemeroteca.mundodeportivo.com/preview/1998/09/24/pagina-2/406292/pdf.html|title=Camacho debuta con épica|trans-title=Camacho has epic debut|newspaper=[[Mundo Deportivo]]|last=Galindo|first=Jesús|language=es|date=24 September 1998|access-date=23 October 2012}}</ref> He was the second-oldest player to debut for the country after [[Ferenc Puskás]], who was 34 and had previously represented [[Hungary national football team|Hungary]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.es/hemeroteca/historico-15-11-2006/abc/Deportes/navarro-el-tercer-debutante-mas-viejo_1524265396776.html|title=Navarro, el tercer debutante más "viejo"|trans-title=Navarro, third "oldest" debutant|newspaper=[[ABC (newspaper)|ABC]]|last=Garde|first=Luis|language=es|date=15 November 2006|access-date=30 May 2015}}</ref>

Engonga scored his only goal on 5 May 1999 in a friendly against [[Croatia national football team|Croatia]], equalising an eventual 3–1 victory in [[Seville]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://hemeroteca.mundodeportivo.com/preview/1999/05/06/pagina-2/416722/pdf.html|title=España sigue disfrutando|trans-title=Spain continue to enjoy themselves|newspaper=Mundo Deportivo|last=Román|first=Rogelio|language=es|date=6 May 1999|access-date=30 May 2015}}</ref> He was picked for the [[UEFA Euro 2000]] squad, making a late [[Substitute (association football)|substitute]] appearance in a 2–1 group stage defeat of [[Slovenia national football team|Slovenia]] at the [[Amsterdam Arena]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.uefa.com/uefaeuro/history/news/0254-0d7b32059095-c2276088c50c-1000--etxeberria-spares-spain-s-blushes-against-slovenia-in-eu/|title=Etxeberria spares Spain's blushes against Slovenia|publisher=UEFA|date=6 October 2003|access-date=30 May 2015}}</ref> which was the last of his 14 [[Cap (sport)|caps]].

Engonga was the first Spanish-born black player to play for the national team.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.si.com/more-sports/2011/11/23/jonas|title=Jonas Ramalho helping to dispel longstanding Athletic Bilbao myth|publisher=[[Sports Illustrated]]|last=Lowe|first=Sid|date=23 November 2011|access-date=10 January 2020}}</ref> During his career, he also represented the unofficial [[Cantabria autonomous football team|Cantabria autonomous team]]<ref name=Minutos/> between 1997 and 2000.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Herrero |first=Sergio |date=8 June 2011 |title=The brief dream of Cantabrian football |url=https://www.eldiariomontanes.es/v/20110607/deportes/futbol/breve-sueno-futbol-cantabro-20110607.html |access-date=12 November 2024 |work=El Diario Montañes - News from Cantabria and Santander}}</ref>

In August 2008, Engonga was appointed manager of [[Equatorial Guinea national football team|Equatorial Guinea]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.soitu.es/soitu/2008/08/04/info/1217872569_408897.html|title=Vicente Engonga deja el Mallorca para dirigir a Guinea Ecuatorial|trans-title=Vicente Engonga leaves Mallorca to coach Equatorial Guinea|publisher=Soitu|language=es|date=4 August 2008|access-date=7 September 2008}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Engonga's younger brother, [[Óscar Engonga|Óscar]], was also a professional midfielder. He played most of his career in the lower leagues of Spain, but was at Valladolid at the same time as Vicente.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.marca.com/primera-plana/2018/10/20/5bc75fec46163f2c5b8b45fa.html|title=La saga de los Engonga|trans-title=The Engonga saga|newspaper=[[Marca (newspaper)|Marca]]|last=Sánchez|first=Guillermo|language=es|date=20 October 2018|access-date=30 January 2019}}</ref>

Engonga's nephew, [[Igor Engonga|Igor]], was selected by Equatorial Guinea for the [[2015 Africa Cup of Nations]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://elpais.com/deportes/2013/11/14/actualidad/1384460451_044279.html|title=Del cole a jugar contra La Roja|trans-title=From school to playing against ''La Roja''|newspaper=[[El País]]|last=Rodrigálvarez|first=Eduardo|language=es|date=14 November 2013|access-date=30 January 2019}}</ref>

== Career statistics ==

=== International ===
'''Appearances and goals by national team and year'''
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
!National team
!Year
!Apps
!Goals
|-
|-
| rowspan="4" |[[Spain national football team|Spain]]
|1998
|3
|0
|-
|1999
|5
|0
|-
|2000
|6
|0
|-
!Total
!14
!1
|-
| rowspan="3" |[[Cantabria autonomous football team|Cantabria]]
|1997
|1
|0
|-
|2000
|1
|0
|-
!Total
!2
!0
|-
! colspan="2" |Career total
!16
!1
|}

===International goals===
:''Scores and results list Spain's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Engonga goal.''
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ List of international goals scored by Vicente Engonga
|-
!scope="col"|No.
!scope="col"|Date
!scope="col"|Venue
!scope="col"|Opponent
!scope="col"|Score
!scope="col"|Result
!scope="col"|Competition
|-
| align="center"|1 || 5 May 1999 || [[Estadio de La Cartuja|La Cartuja]], [[Seville]], Spain || {{fb|CRO}}|| align="center" |1–1 || align="center"|3–1 || [[Friendly (association football)|Friendly]]<ref>{{cite news |date=6 May 1999 |title=España vence a Croacia en la inauguración del Estadio Olímpico de Sevilla |trans-title=Spain defeat Croatia in opening of Sevilla Olympic Stadium |url=http://www.elmundo.es/elmundo/1999/mayo/06/deportes/seleccion.html |access-date=23 January 2016 |newspaper=[[El Mundo (Spain)|El Mundo]] |language=es}}</ref>
|}

==Honours==
'''Celta'''
*[[Copa del Rey]] runner-up: [[1993–94 Copa del Rey|1993–94]]

'''Valencia'''
*Copa del Rey runner-up: [[1994–95 Copa del Rey|1994–95]]

'''Mallorca'''
*[[Supercopa de España]]: [[1998 Supercopa de España|1998]]
*Copa del Rey runner-up: [[1997–98 Copa del Rey|1997–98]] 
*[[UEFA Cup Winners' Cup]] runner-up: [[1998–99 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup|1998–99]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{BDFutbol|2580}}
*{{BDFutbol manager|2580}}
*{{Soccerbase}}
*{{NFT player|14899}}
*{{Eu-Football.info|5484}}

{{Spain squad UEFA Euro 2000}}
{{Equatorial Guinea national football team managers}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Engonga, Vicente}}
[[Category:1965 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Spanish sportspeople of Equatoguinean descent]]
[[Category:Spanish men's footballers]]
[[Category:Footballers from Barcelona]]
[[Category:Footballers from Cantabria]]
[[Category:Men's association football midfielders]]
[[Category:La Liga players]]
[[Category:Segunda División players]]
[[Category:Segunda División B players]]
[[Category:Tercera División players]]
[[Category:Gimnástica de Torrelavega footballers]]
[[Category:CF Sporting Mahonés players]]
[[Category:Real Valladolid players]]
[[Category:RC Celta de Vigo players]]
[[Category:Valencia CF players]]
[[Category:RCD Mallorca players]]
[[Category:Real Oviedo players]]
[[Category:English Football League players]]
[[Category:Coventry City F.C. players]]
[[Category:Spain men's international footballers]]
[[Category:UEFA Euro 2000 players]]
[[Category:Spanish expatriate men's footballers]]
[[Category:Expatriate men's footballers in England]]
[[Category:Spanish expatriate sportspeople in England]]
[[Category:Spanish football managers]]
[[Category:Segunda División B managers]]
[[Category:RCD Mallorca B managers]]
[[Category:Equatorial Guinea national football team managers]]
[[Category:20th-century Spanish sportsmen]]