Manuel Meana (21 October 1901 – 1 August 1985) was a Spanish footballer.[1] He was capped for Spain 7 times and was part of Spain's squad for the football tournament at the 1924 Summer Olympics, but he did not play in any matches.[2] Under the presidency of Santiago Bernabéu he was the creator and first director of the Real Madrid Sports City, a position he held until his retirement.[citation needed]

Manuel Meana
Personal information
Full name Manuel Meana Vallina
Date of birth (1901-10-21)21 October 1901
Place of birth Gijón, Spain
Date of death 1 August 1985(1985-08-01) (aged 83)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1917–1927 Sporting de Gijón
International career
1918 Cantabric 2 (0)
1921–1924 Spain 7 (1)
1922–1925 Asturias +5 (1)
Medal record
Prince of Asturias Cup
 Cantabria
Silver medal – second place 1918 Prince of Asturias Cup Team
 Asturias
Gold medal – first place 1922–23 Prince of Asturias Cup Team
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Club career

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Born in Gijón, Meana began to play football in his hometown club, Sporting de Gijón, making his debut at El Molinón on 2 September 1917 against RCD Espanyol.[3]

International career

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In May 1918, he was summoned to play for the Cantabric national team, a side consisting of players from the provinces of Asturias and Cantabria, being a member of the team that participated in the 1918 Prince of Asturias Cup, an inter-regional competition organized by the RFEF.[4]

He made his international debut on 9 October 1921 (aged 19) in a friendly match against Belgium that ended in a 2–0 win.[5] He played in seven matches for the Spain national football team from 1921 to 1924,[6] and scored just once, netting the first-ever goal in the Iberian derby when he scored the opening goal of a 3–1 win over Portugal on 18 December 1921, which is also the first-ever goal that Portugal ever conceded.[7]

Being Sporting de Gijón player, he was eligible to play for the Asturias national team, and he was part of the team that reached the final of the 1922-23 Prince of Asturias Cup, an inter-regional competition organized by the RFEF. In the final against Galicia, they fell 0-1 behind early in the match, and it was Meana who equalized still in the first-half, which paved the way for José Luis Zabala to score a second-half brace to seal the title with a 3–1 win.[8] This was his only goal for Asturias, but its also the most important in the team's history.

Managerial career

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In 1928, despite still being a player, he trained Sporting de Gijón, and he managed to lead them to the semifinals of the Copa del Rey. He repeated his stay on the Gijón bench in two other stages: 1939-40 and 1948-49.

International goals

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Goals for Spain

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Spain score listed first, score column indicates score after each Meana goal.
List of international goals scored by Manuel Meana[5]
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 18 December 1921 Campo de O'Donnell, Madrid, Spain   Portugal 1–0 3–1 Friendly

Goals for Asturias

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Asturias score listed first, score column indicates score after each Meana goal.
List of international goals scored by Manuel Meana[8]
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 25 February 1923 Coia, Vigo, Spain   Galicia 1-1 3–1 1922-23 Prince of Asturias Cup Final

Honours

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International

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Cantabric
Asturias

Prince of Asturias Cup:

References

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  1. ^ "Manuel Meana". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  2. ^ "Manuel Meana". Olympedia. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  3. ^ "Manuel Meana". www.bdfutbol.com. Retrieved 16 June 2022.
  4. ^ "Squad of Cantabria 1918 Copa del Príncipe de Asturias". www.bdfutbol.com. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  5. ^ a b "Manuel Meana". EU-football.info. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  6. ^ "Manuel Meana". National Football Teams. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  7. ^ "Spain vs Portugal international football match report". EU-football.info. Retrieved 4 June 2022.
  8. ^ a b Vicente Martínez Calatrava (17 August 2009). "La Copa Príncipe de Asturias" [The Prince of Asturias Cup] (in Spanish). CIHEFE. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
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