Osvaldo Ardiles - Definition and Overview

Osvaldo César Ardiles (Ossie) (born August 3, 1952 in Córdoba, Argentina) was a football midfielder and is now a football coach for Tokyo Verdy 1969 of the J. League. A competitive and skilled midfielder, he became a cult hero, along with compatriot Ricky Villa and Glenn Hoddle, in England as a player for Tottenham Hotspur. As manager of Tottenham in the mid-90s, he played several matches using five forwards, a formation that hadn't been used in English football since the 1950s, because of its perceived weakness defensively.

Career Chronology

• 1969/1973 (National) Instituto (Cba)
• 1974 (National) Belgrano (Cba)
• 1975/78 Huracán
• 1978/82 Tottenham Hotspur (England)
• 1982/83 Paris Saint Germain (France)
• 1983/88 Tottenham Hotspur (England)
• 1988/89 Blackburn Rovers (England)
• 1989/91 Swindon Town F.C.(England) (as player manager).
• 1991/92 Newcastle United (England) as a manager.
• 1992/93 West Bromwich Albion F.C. (England) as manager during their promotion from the Second Division
• 1993/94 Tottenham Hotspur as manager.
• 1995 Guadalajara (Mexico) as a manager.
• 1996/1998 Japanese J-League team Shimizu S-Pulse as manager leading them to victory in the Nabisco Cup in 1996.
• 1999 Dinamo Zagreb
• 2000/2001 J-League team Yokohama F. Marinos as manager, leading the team to the J-League first-stage title
• 2001 Al-Ittihad, Saudi Arabia as manager.
• 2002/2003 Racing Club (Argentina)
• 2003/- present J-League team Tokyo Verdy 1969

Honours

• He won 63 caps for Argentina's national team, including the victorious World Cup winning squad of 1978.
• Osvaldo Ardiles won the FA Cup in 1981 and 1982 and the UEFA Cup with Tottenham Hotspurs as a player.
• Promoted Swindon to old Division One (now Premier League) in 1990 as manager although the team were relegated for financial irregularities.
• Promoted West Bromwich Albion to Division One as manager in 1993.
• Won Nabisco Cup with Shimizu S-Pulse as manager in [1996].
• Won Tokai Cup with Shimizu S-Pulse as manager in [1996] and [1998]
• Campion J-League First Stage with Yokohama Marinos in 2000 as manager.