Manuel Amoros

Who is Manuel Amoros?

Manuel Amoros is a French retired football defender of Spanish descent. He was capped 82 times for France, and played in the European Championships finals of 1984 and 1992, and the World Cup finals in 1982 and 1986.

Amoros played most of his career for Monaco in the French first division. He missed his penalty in the 1991 European Cup Final for Marseille and subsequently Red Star Belgrade won the match 5–3 on penalties.

It was his stints with the Tricolor during the 1982 and 1986 World Cups in which he stood out. In the 1982 semi-final against West Germany, he hit the crossbar in the 89th minute, and in the penalty shoot-out he converted his kick before France were eventually eliminated.

In the 1984 European Championships held in France, Amoros showed an egregious side of him when, during the opening game against Denmark, he was sent off for head-butting the Danish midfielder Jesper Olsen. He was banned for three games. However, in the final against Spain, national coach Michel Hidalgo used him as a substitute in a game that Les Bleus won by 2–0 at the Parc des Princes.