José Milton Melgar

Bolivian footballer (born 1959)
Milton Melgar
Personal information
Full name José Milton Melgar Soruco
Date of birth (1959-09-20) September 20, 1959 (age 64)
Place of birth Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia
Height 1.76 m (5 ft 9+12 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1979–1985 Blooming 189 (46)
1985–1988 Boca Juniors 92 (3)
1988–1989 River Plate 23 (0)
1989–1990 Bolívar 22 (3)
1990 Oriente Petrolero 40 (5)
1991 Blooming 21 (1)
1992 Everton (VdM) 31 (2)
1993 The Strongest 25 (0)
1994–1995 Cobreloa 21 (2)
1995 Bolívar 20 (0)
1996 Real Santa Cruz 22 (2)
1997 Blooming 20 (1)
Total 526 (65)
International career
1980–1997 Bolivia 89 (6)
Managerial career
2000 Oriente Petrolero
2000 Blooming
2002–2003 Bolivia U-20
2003 Oriente Petrolero
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

José Milton Melgar Soruco (born September 20, 1959) is a retired Bolivian football midfielder. In 2006, he was appointed by the Bolivian Government under President Evo Morales as Minister of Sports, but he resigned a year later. He currently runs his own youth football academy in his hometown.[1]

Playing career

Club

At the club level, Melgar played for Blooming, Bolívar, Oriente Petrolero and Real Santa Cruz in Bolivia, as well as Everton (VdM) and Cobreloa in Chile.

He also played in Argentina for the two giants and fierce rivals Boca Juniors and River Plate.

In addition, during his career, he also had 53 Copa Libertadores appearances with 2 goals scored.

International

Melgar was capped 89 times and scored 6 international goals for Bolivia between 1980 and 1997.[2] His tally of 89 caps was a national record until January 31, 2002, when it was broken by Marco Sandy who obtained his 90th cap in a friendly match against Brazil. Melgar played all three matches at the 1994 FIFA World Cup,[3] and his club at that time was The Strongest.

International Goals
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 31 August 1983 Estadio El Campín, Bogotá, Colombia  Colombia 2–1 2–2 Copa América
2. 20 August 1989 Estadio Hernando Siles, La Paz, Bolivia  Peru 1–1 2–1 World Cup Qualifier
3. 8 August 1993 Estadio Hernando Siles, La Paz, Bolivia  Uruguay 3–0 3–1 World Cup Qualifier
4. 22 August 1993 Estadio Hernando Siles, La Paz, Bolivia  Venezuela 2–0 7–0 World Cup Qualifier
5. 22 August 1993 Estadio Hernando Siles, La Paz, Bolivia  Venezuela 7–0 7–0 World Cup Qualifier
6. 14 May 1995 Estadio Félix Capriles, Cochabamba, Bolivia  Paraguay 1–1 1–1 Friendly

Managerial career

Following his retirement, Melgar pursued a managerial career. In 2000, he made his official debut as manager with Oriente Petrolero. Later in the year he also managed Blooming. In October 2002 he assumed his duties as the U-17 and U-20 national teams, but his stint was unsuccessful.

Club titles

Season Club Title
1984 Blooming Liga de Fútbol Profesional Boliviano
1990 Oriente Petrolero Liga de Fútbol Profesional Boliviano
1993 The Strongest Liga de Fútbol Profesional Boliviano

References

  1. ^ Escuela de Fútbol Milton Melgar Archived 2010-01-12 at the Wayback Machine (in Spanish)
  2. ^ José Milton Melgar - International Appearances - RSSSF
  3. ^ José Milton Melgar – FIFA competition record (archived)

External links

  • José Milton Melgar at National-Football-Teams.com
José Milton Melgar international tournaments
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Bolivia squad1983 Copa América
Bolivia
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Bolivia squad1987 Copa América
Bolivia
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Bolivia squad1989 Copa América
Bolivia
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Bolivia squad1991 Copa América
Bolivia
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Bolivia squad1993 Copa América
Bolivia
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Bolivia squad1994 FIFA World Cup
Bolivia
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Bolivia squad1995 Copa América
Bolivia
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Bolivia squad1997 Copa América runners-up
Bolivia
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Oriente Petroleromanagers
(c) = caretaker manager
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Club Bloomingmanagers
(c) = caretaker manager