Javier Luciano Margas Loyola (born 10 May 1969) is a Chilean former professional footballer who played as a defender.

Javier Margas
Personal information
Full name Javier Luciano Margas Loyola
Date of birth (1969-05-10) 10 May 1969 (age 55)
Place of birth Santiago, Chile
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s) Defender
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1988–1996 Colo-Colo 167 (10)
1996 Club América 9 (1)
1997–1998 Universidad Católica 21 (2)
1998–2001 West Ham United 24 (1)
Total 221 (14)
International career
1990–2000 Chile 63 (6)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Club career

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Colo-Colo

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Margas was born in Santiago de Chile. He experienced the most successful period in his career with his first club Colo-Colo, where he was part of four league championship winning squads. He was also part of the club's first Copa Libertadores win in 1991, and also won two other international tournaments.

Club América

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In 1996 Margas joined Club América in Mexico later returned to Chile in 1997.

Universidad Católica

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Margas then joined Universidad Católica, where he was part of the squad that won the 1997 Apertura.

West Ham United

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Margas' last years as a player were spent with West Ham United. He scored once during his spell with West Ham, in a 5–0 win over Coventry City in April 2000.[1] In 2001, Margas gained notoriety for disappearing from England without a trace and many weeks passed before he was found in his home country,[2] having effectively retired from football. He briefly trained with Universidad de Chile before ultimately retiring for good.

International career

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Margas played 63 times for the Chile national team.[3] He played in Chile's four games at the 1998 FIFA World Cup.

Personal life

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Margas was famous for dyeing his hair in different colours and shapes (most notably with the Chilean flag colours).

Since retiring from football, Margas has worked as a youth coach at Colo-Colo, appeared on a reality TV show called Expedición Robinson, ran his own business, and bought former dictator Augusto Pinochet's armoured car.[4]

His daughter, Catalina, was a Chile international footballer at under-17 level and took part in the 2008 South American U-17 Women's Championship.[5] His son, Luis, is a central defender from the Santiago Wanderers youth system and was called up to the first team in May 2023 at the age of seventeen.[6]

Career statistics

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Scores and results list Chile's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Margas goal.
List of international goals scored by Javier Margas
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
3 February 1996 Cochabamba, Bolivia   Bolivia 1–1 Friendly
2 June 1996 Barinas, Venezuela   Venezuela 1–1 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification
9 October 1996 Asunción, Paraguay   Paraguay 1–2 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification
7 November 1997 Antofagasta, Chile   Guatemala 4–1 Friendly
22 April 1998 Santiago, Chile   Colombia 2–2 Friendly
26 April 2000 Lima, Peru   Peru 1–1 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification

Honours

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Colo-Colo

Universidad Católica

West Ham

References

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  1. ^ Sills, Adam (22 April 2000). "'Genius' Di Canio oddly out of the reckoning". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
  2. ^ "Best and worst South American XI". Www.teamtalk.com. 28 July 2011. Archived from the original on 24 May 2014. Retrieved 12 May 2013.
  3. ^ rsssf: Chile record international footballers
  4. ^ "Javier Margas se adjudica en remate automóvil de Pinochet". www.emol.com. 29 August 2001. Retrieved 7 October 2011.
  5. ^ "Parentesco entre seleccionados". Partidos de La Roja (in Spanish). Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  6. ^ Arévalo, Joaquín (10 May 2023). "Hijo de Javier Margas sorprendió y recibió su primera citación en Santiago Wanderers". En Cancha (in Spanish). Retrieved 22 May 2023.
  7. ^ "Intertoto win gives Hammers Uefa spot". BBC. 24 August 1999. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
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