Martín Demichelis

Martín Gastón Demichelis (born 20 December 1980) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played usually as a centre-back, although he could also operate as a defensive midfielder.

He is the current head coach of Primera División club River Plate.

Demichelis spent most of his professional career with Bayern Munich in Germany (seven and a half years), winning 11 major titles with the team.

He also competed in his home country with River Plate, in Spain with Espanyol and Málaga and in England with Manchester City.

Born in Justiniano Posse, Córdoba, Demichelis started playing professionally in 2001, with Buenos Aires-based River Plate, having arrived at the club's youth system three years earlier.

He made his first-team – and first division – debut on 2 September 2001 in a game against Estudiantes, scoring his only goal for the team against Rosario Central.

On 28 April 2002, River Plate goalkeeper Ángel Comizzo was sent off with a minute of regulation time remaining against Racing Club, leaving Demichelis to take over in goal.

He faced a direct free kick that hit the wall and was countered for the only goal of the game by Nelson Cuevas, as River won the Clausura title.

Demichelis signed for Bayern Munich in the 2003 summer, for €4.5 million.

His first season in the Bundesliga was not very positive as he suffered a number of minor injuries, appearing in only 14 league games (21 in total) as the Bavarians finished in second position; in early 2004 he appeared in his only game with the reserves, against Stuttgarter Kickers.

Under new coach Felix Magath, Demichelis became a regular starter for Bayern, appearing in 75 official matches in two seasons combined as the team won back-to-back doubles, achieving a total of four during his spell.

New Bayern boss Ottmar Hitzfeld successfully reconverted Demichelis from a defensive midfielder into a central defender.

Demichelis was first called up for Argentina in 2005 to compete at the year's FIFA Confederations Cup in Germany, where he was unused by the runners-up.

He made his debut under José Pekerman on 12 November 2005 that year, in a 3–2 friendly loss to England at the Stade de Genève in Switzerland, playing as a defensive midfielder; he was not chosen for the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

In 2008–09 he netted a career-best four goals in 29 games, but the title was lost to VfL Wolfsburg.

However, the player often clashed with the new manager Louis van Gaal, starting immediately after the first matchday after being dropped from the starting XI for the 2010–11 opener against Wolfsburg, with Demichelis requesting that van Gaal omit him from the squad altogether, which the coach did; the player thereafter voiced to the press that it would be probable that he and the club went separate ways.

On 29 October 2010, benefitting from a run of injuries in the squad, Demichelis made one of his last appearances for Bayern, heading a goal in a 4–2 home win against SC Freiburg.

In late December 2010, Demichelis agreed to a deal with Spanish club Málaga, initially until the end of the 2010–11 season, with the latter retaining the option to extend the contract for a further two seasons.

He rejoined former River Plate manager Manuel Pellegrini, and made his La Liga debut on 8 January 2011, scoring in a 1–1 home draw against Athletic Bilbao.

During his first four months with Málaga, Demichelis was sent off twice, but also started in all the matches he was available, being essential – as another January 2011 signee, Júlio Baptista – as the club eventually avoided relegation.

On 22 August 2012, he scored the club's first-ever UEFA Champions League goal, netting the opener in the 2–0 playoff home win against Panathinaikos (also the aggregate score).

On 11 July 2013, Demichelis signed for Atlético Madrid on a one-year contract, after his deal with Málaga expired.

In December, he started legal action against the latter over "non-payments", relating to "€400,000 of unpaid wages as well as bonuses".

On 1 September 2013, Demichelis joined former Málaga boss Pellegrini and signed with Manchester City, penning a two-year contract for a reported £4.2 million.

He had been with Atlético for less than two months, and had yet to make an appearance.

Demichelis made his first appearance for his new club on 27 October 2013, starting in a 1–2 Premier League loss at Chelsea after recovering from a knee injury.

On 18 February of the following year, he was sent off against Barcelona in the club's Champions League round-of-16 0–2 home defeat, after fouling Lionel Messi and giving away a penalty.

Despite Demichelis's rocky start at City, Pellegrini kept faith in him.

He earned 51 caps for Argentina, representing the country in two World Cups – finishing second in 2014 – and the 2015 Copa América, where the team were also runners-up.

Demichelis began his coaching career as an assistant at Málaga and in the under-19 and reserve teams of Bayern Munich.

He won the Argentine Primera División in 2023, his first season in charge of River Plate.

On 15 March 2014, after club captain Vincent Kompany was sent off, he was instrumental in a 2–0 victory over Hull City.

The following weekend he scored his first goal, contributing to a 5–0 home win over Fulham; his good run of form in the last two months of the season helped his team win the league title, and also helped him rejoin the national side.

On 12 March 2015, Demichelis renewed his expiring contract until June of the following year.

A year later, he was charged by The Football Association for 12 breaches of their rules against gambling on matches, and accepted the charge; he was fined £22,058 for the breach.

On 10 June 2016, Demichelis was released.

On 10 August 2016, at nearly 36, Demichelis signed a one-year contract Espanyol in Spain's top flight.

On 10 January 2017, however, after only two appearances, he was released.

A week after his exit from Espanyol, Demichelis returned to Málaga's La Rosaleda Stadium, on a five-month deal.

On 15 May 2017, he announced his retirement.