Vicente Martín Sánchez Bragunde (Spanish pronunciation: [biˈsente ˈsantʃes]; born 7 December 1979) is a former Uruguayan professional footballer who played as a winger and is currently the manager of Cruz Azul U23. He was a Uruguayan international and scored the second-most goals of any player for Deportivo Toluca.

Vicente Sánchez
Personal information
Full name Vicente Martín Sánchez Bragunde
Date of birth (1979-12-07) 7 December 1979 (age 45)
Place of birth Montevideo, Uruguay
Height 1.69 m (5 ft 7 in)
Position(s) Winger
Team information
Current team
Cruz Azul U23 (manager)
Youth career
1998–1999 Sud América
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2000 Sud América 17 (0)
2000 Tacuarembó 11 (1)
2001 Nacional 9 (2)
2001–2007 Toluca 242 (85)
2008–2010 Schalke 04 50 (3)
2010–2012 América 49 (11)
2012–2013 Nacional 25 (4)
2013–2015 Colorado Rapids 55 (11)
2016 Defensor Sporting 10 (2)
2017 Houston Dynamo 21 (2)
2021 Rio Grande Valley FC 29 (2)
International career
2001–2008 Uruguay 31 (5)
Managerial career
2022 Pachuca (assistant)
2024– Cruz Azul U23
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 7 November 2021

Club career

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Sánchez was born in Montevideo. He played for Sud América, Tacuarembó, Deportivo Toluca, FC Schalke 04, América and Nacional.[1] On 18 January 2008, he joined German club Schalke, where he remained for two seasons.[2] He played in Mexico again for Club América. On 1 August 2010, he scored his first goal for Club América in a match versus Chiapas.[3]

Sánchez made the move to Major League Soccer on 6 August 2013 when he signed for Colorado Rapids.[4] On 14 September 2013, he scored his first goal for Colorado and forced an own goal in a 2–1 win over FC Dallas.[5]

Even with his playing time being carefully managed and his appearances limited to substitutions in the last half of most games, Sánchez was a bright spot in an otherwise lackluster 2015 season. Despite being a crowd favorite with the Colorado Rapids fans and the #2 scorer for the team, Sánchez's 2016 contract option was declined as the Colorado Rapids front office set out to acquire new talent in the form of players such as Marco Pappa, Shkëlzen Gashi, Jermaine Jones and Tim Howard. Sánchez went through the MLS Re-Entry Draft but was not selected by any other team.

He joined his hometown club Defensor Sporting for the 2016 Primera Division Clausura season and helped his team finish fourth, qualifying for the 2017 Copa Sudamericana.

Sánchez returned to MLS and joined the Houston Dynamo for the 2017 season. He helped the Dynamo reach the playoff and got the game winning assist in their opening game versus Sporting Kansas City.[6]

On 2 April 2021, it was announced that Sánchez would come out of retirement to play and coach for USL Championship side Rio Grande Valley FC.[7]

International career

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He played for Uruguay national football team in the 2007 Copa América and has won 31 caps for the national side, scoring five goals.[8]

International goals

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No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition Ref.
1 13 July 2004 Estadio Miguel Grau, Piura   Argentina 2–2 2–4 (L) 2004 Copa América
2 24 July 2004 Estadio Garcilaso de la Vega, Cuzco   Colombia 1–2 1–2 (W) 2004 Copa América
3 18 October 2006 Estadio Centenario, Montevideo   Venezuela 1–0 4–0 (W) Friendly
4 30 June 2007 Estadio Polideportivo, San Cristóbal   Bolivia 0–1 0–1 (W) 2007 Copa América
5 13 October 2007 Estadio Centenario, Montevideo   Bolivia 4–0 5–0 (W) 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification

Personal life

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Sánchez holds a U.S. green card which qualifies him as a domestic player for MLS roster purposes.[9]

Honours

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Toluca

Schalke 04

Uruguay

Individual

References

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  1. ^ "Vicente Sanchez löst seinen Vertrag bei den Königsblauen auf" (in German). FC Schalke 04. Archived from the original on 3 July 2010.
  2. ^ "Sanchez löst Vertrag bei Schalke" (in German). DFL. 30 June 2010. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
  3. ^ "mérica venció con facilidad a Jaguares, que adoleció de variantes" (in Spanish). ESPN FC. 1 August 2010. Retrieved 3 August 2013.
  4. ^ "Uruguayan international Vicente Sanchez signs with Colorado Rapids | MLSsoccer.com". Archived from the original on 14 August 2013.
  5. ^ "Match Recap: Colorado 2, FC Dallas 1 | Colorado Rapids". Archived from the original on 30 March 2014.
  6. ^ "Houston Dynamo vs. Sporting Kansas City - Football Match Commentary". ESPN. 26 October 2017. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  7. ^ "Toros Sign Veteran Forward Vicente Sanchez". Uslchampionship.com. 2 April 2021. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  8. ^ "Vicente Sánchez". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 3 August 2013.
  9. ^ "Vicente Sanchez Player Page". MLSSoccer.com. Retrieved 11 August 2015.
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