Nolberto Solano
Template:Short description Template:Family name hatnote Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox football biography Nolberto Albino Solano Todco (born 12 December 1974) is a Peruvian football coach and former player who is the manager of San Marcos.
Solano spent much of his career in the Premier League, primarily with Newcastle United, and also with Aston Villa and West Ham United. He became the first Peruvian to play in the Premier League, and appear in the FA Cup final. He is considered a cult hero at the Tyneside club, and was also noted for his trumpet playing and formed his own salsa band named The Geordie Latinos.<ref name="icNewcastle">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> He has described himself as an "adopted Geordie."<ref name="The Guardian">Template:Cite news</ref>
Solano is a popular figure in his native Peru, where he is seen as one of the most famous Peruvians, appearing on telephone cards and having his wedding televised live.<ref name="Solano Tunes Of Glory">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Diego made me a star - ace Solano">Template:Cite news "Solano is a hero in Peru where his face appears in TV adverts. The 29-year-old winger is such a household name there that even his wedding was televised live."</ref> He played 95 times for the national team between 1994 and 2009, including at the Copa América of 1995, 1999 and 2004 and the 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Towards the end of his career, he went into coaching, and was first team coach at non-league side Newcastle Benfield, while contracted to Hartlepool United. He had short spells at Universitario and José Gálvez, and was manager of Internacional de Toronto for a few matches, before the club had its licensing agreement terminated. From 2015 to 2022, Solano was involved within the national team setup, as assistant manager to Ricardo Gareca and manager of the Olympic football team. In 2023, he briefly led AFC Eskilstuna in the Swedish Superettan, before another brief term as manager of Blyth Spartans in 2024.
Club careerEdit
Early careerEdit
Template:BLP unreferenced section Solano signed his first professional contract with the Peruvian Primera División side Sporting Cristal in 1992 at the age of 17. He made his league debut on 13 April 1992 in his team's 2–0 win against San Agustín. Towards the end of his first season at Sporting Cristal, he signed a one-year contract with Deportivo Municipal, before returning to Cristal at the end of 1993. He was part of the Sporting Cristal squad of the 1990s during which the club won the Peru Primera División Championships (1994, 1995 and 1996) and reached the finals of the 1997 Copa Libertadores. Along with Roberto Palacios, Flavio Maestri, Julinho and Jorge Soto, he was one of Sporting Cristal's most recognized players of the era.
Boca JuniorsEdit
In 1997, aged 22, he signed for Argentinian side Boca Juniors where he became a teammate of Diego Maradona, who nicknamed Solano the 'Maestrito'.<ref name="The Guardian" /> Solano said in 2004 that he would like to play for Boca Juniors again, but admitted he was perhaps too old for the ambition to be realized.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Newcastle UnitedEdit
In June 1998, Solano was close to a £3.75 million transfer to Arsenal with a £16,000 weekly wage.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In August, he signed for Newcastle United for £2.5 million, as one of Kenny Dalglish's final signings for the club.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Solano's first team debut for Newcastle came in a Premier League match against Chelsea on 22 August 1998, when he came on after 67 minutes as a substitute for goalscorer Andreas Andersson in a 1–1 away draw.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> His first of six goals that season equalised in a 3–1 home win over Wimbledon on 28 November,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and the last one was the decider in a 4–3 victory at Derby County on 3 April 1999.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 22 May, he started in the 1999 FA Cup final, which his team lost 2–0 to Manchester United at Wembley.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 2 January 2001, Solano scored the first goal of a 4–2 loss at Tottenham Hotspur, but was sent off nine minutes later for handling the ball on the goal line; Darren Anderton missed the resulting penalty.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He was given a red card again on 14 April in a loss at Ipswich Town for the same offence, conceding a penalty from which Marcus Stewart scored the only goal.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In June 2001, he signed a new five-year contract with the club.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A month later he scored what he later described as "the best goal of [his] career" with a solo effort against 1860 München.<ref name="Sol bids farewell">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> On 22 December, he scored the last-minute winner in a 4–3 comeback win at Leeds United, putting Newcastle in first place at the hosts' expense.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 26 April 2003, Solano's penalty was the only goal of the Tyne–Wear derby away to Sunderland. He took the spot kick due to Alan Shearer's injury earlier in the game.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Six months later in another local derby away to Middlesbrough, he was not named in the starting line-up or on the substitutes' bench, prompting him to drive home.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Aston VillaEdit
Solano joined Aston Villa in January 2004 for a fee of £1.5 million and signed a two-and-a-half-year contract with the club.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He attributed his leaving Newcastle to a "strained relationship" with manager Bobby Robson.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He made his debut in a 5–0 win over Leicester City on 31 January,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and was sent off on 24 April in a 2–1 win at Middlesbrough for slapping George Boateng.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 22 September 2004, Solano scored his first goal for Villa from a free kick in a 3–1 home win over Queens Park Rangers in the second round of the Football League Cup, having earlier assisted a goal by Juan Pablo Ángel.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A first league goal followed a month later in a 2–0 win against Fulham, also by a free kick at Villa Park.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He ended the 2004–05 season as top scorer,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and was elected the club's Player of the Year by the supporters, his teammates,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and the local press.
In what was Solano's last appearance for Villa, on 23 August 2005, he was sent off for striking Portsmouth's Richard Hughes in the face in a 1–1 draw at Fratton Park.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On transfer deadline day, Solano rejected a late offer to join Liverpool and agreed to return to Newcastle.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Return to Newcastle UnitedEdit
Solano returned to Newcastle United on 31 August 2005 for a fee believed by the BBC to be £1.5 million. He signed a contract originally for two years, but with the option for Newcastle to extend it for another year. Midfielder James Milner went in the other direction, joining Aston Villa on a season-long loan.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Solano revealed that Alan Shearer had played an influential role in arranging his return.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The first game of Solano's second spell was a 3–2 home derby win over Sunderland on 23 October.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The first goal of the spell, on his 31st birthday on 10 December, decided the game against Arsenal at St James' Park.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In the 2006–07 season, injuries to right-back Stephen Carr and others caused manager Glenn Roeder to play Solano at right-back instead of his usual right-wing position. However it was not an unfamiliar playing position to Solano, as he had started his football career in defence and had featured at right-back for his country. With his contract due to expire at the end of the season, Solano said he would be "crazy" to move on at the age of 32,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and duly signed a new one-year contract. However a few months later, he asked to leave the club to be closer to his family, who had moved to London.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> His one regret was that he had been unable to help the club win a trophy for the fans.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
West Ham UnitedEdit
Solano signed a one-year contract with West Ham United in August 2007.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He made his debut for West Ham in October 2007, coming on as a second-half substitute in the 3–1 home win against Sunderland, and was instrumental in West Ham's second goal, his shot being deflected into the Sunderland goal by goalkeeper, Craig Gordon.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> His first goal for West Ham was a free-kick and the fifth goal in West Ham's 5–0 away win against Derby County on 10 November 2007.<ref name="1st West Ham goal">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In the last game of the season on 11 May 2008 Solano scored his second free-kick goal, against Aston Villa, the match ended 2–2. He was released by West Ham when his contract expired at the end of the 2007–08 season having scored four goals in 23 appearances.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Larissa and UniversitarioEdit
Although Solano was rumoured to be interesting LA Galaxy,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> he became "one of the biggest signings in the club’s history" when he signed for Super League Greece club AEL in August 2008.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
He then returned to Peru with Universitario for its 2009 season, for whom he scored a crucial penalty against Alianza Lima in the play-off for the Peruvian Primera División title,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> helping the team to a 2–0 aggregate victory to seal the club's 25th league title and win the national championship.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Leicester CityEdit
Solano returned to England, where he trained with Colchester United<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and with Newcastle,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> before, on 22 January 2010, signing for Leicester City until the end of the season. He was reunited with Nigel Pearson, who had been assistant manager at Newcastle.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He made his debut as an 84th-minute substitute in a goalless draw against Newcastle at the Walkers Stadium on 30 January.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Solano played eleven league games, scoring in a 4–3 penalty shootout defeat to Cardiff City in the Championship play-off semi-final second leg.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He was offered a contract for a further six months, but chose to leave the club,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> preferring to follow Pearson to Hull City.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Hull CityEdit
Solano rejoined Pearson, who had recently taken over the manager's job at Hull City, signing a one-year deal.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Despite initial expectations that Solano would be with Hull City for only a single season before retiring, Solano revealed in April 2011, that he hoped that he would be able to extend his stay with the Tigers beyond the 2010–11 season, by combining a playing and coaching role, as Nick Barmby had done.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Hartlepool UnitedEdit
On 13 May 2011, Solano signed for Hartlepool United, having previously worked with their manager Mick Wadsworth at Newcastle.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 2 August, Solano scored in a friendly against Sunderland,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> rivals of his former club Newcastle United, and scored his first league goal for Hartlepool on 17 September at home against Bury.<ref>Template:Soccerbase season</ref> The following week, Solano scored their first goal direct from a free-kick in a 2–1 away win at AFC Bournemouth.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Following Wadsworth's sacking, his successor, first-team coach Neale Cooper, confirmed that Solano was not part of his plans, because he needed "players who will really graft, [and] that's not Nobby's game".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In April 2012, the club confirmed Solano had been advised not to play for the remainder of the season because of recurring illness.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In February 2012, Solano became first-team coach at Northern League side Newcastle Benfield while remaining a member of Hartlepool's playing squad.<ref name="retirement" />
International careerEdit
Solano earned 95 caps and scored 20 goals for Peru. His debut on 3 May 1994 was a 1–0 win over neighbours Colombia at the Miami Orange Bowl, and his first goal on 25 June 1995 was the only one of a friendly win over visitors Slovakia. He played at the Copa América in 1995 and 1999, scoring in a 3–3 quarter-final draw with Mexico and the subsequent penalty shootout defeat in the latter, as well as featuring at the 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
At the 2004 Copa América on home soil, Solano scored in group games against Venezuela (win) and Colombia (draw) in a run to the quarter-finals.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He said in June 2005 that his international career was over,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> but returned in September 2007.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He announced his international retirement in October 2009 with the team having not qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, and said that he wanted to be a manager so he could finally take Peru to a World Cup.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Managerial careerEdit
Solano took the first step into coaching as the part-time first-team coach of Newcastle Benfield in 2012.<ref name="retirement">Template:Cite news</ref>
In June 2012, he was confirmed as manager of Peruvian Primera División club Universitario.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> On 12 December, Universitario confirmed that Solano had left the club, despite the fact he guided the club into the top half of the table after being in the relegation zone when he first took charge.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
From three months from 23 April 2013, Solano was manager of José Gálvez of the same league. The team slipped from penultimate to last place in his brief spell.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In May 2014, Solano became the head coach of Canadian club Internacional de Toronto in League1 Ontario.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> However, on 22 July, the club had its licensing agreement terminated<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> due to issues regarding the payment of player salaries, ending his tenure.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In May 2015, Solano was hired as a technical assistant to Ricardo Gareca on the Peru national team.<ref name=":0">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He also led the U-23 team.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The team qualified for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, their first for 36 years, but after a playoff defeat to Australia on penalties in June 2022 denied them a second consecutive appearance, the entire coaching staff departed.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Solano was hired by AFC Eskilstuna, second-last in the Swedish second-tier Superettan, on 14 July 2023.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He was dismissed on 10 October, with the team unmoved in the table.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 3 May 2024, Solano returned to north–eastern England, when he was appointed as manager of Blyth Spartans on a one-year contract. The team had dismissed Jon Shaw after relegation from the National League North.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> He would work with Steve Howard, its sporting director.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 27 August 2024, Solano was sacked by Blyth Spartans following a winless start to the campaign in the Northern Premier League with his final game being a 4–1 loss to Morpeth Town.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name=":1">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Solano said he was "very disappointed" noting that he had only ten players available to prepare during the pre-season.<ref name=":1" />
AmbassadorEdit
Solano is an ambassador for Betsson in Latin America.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Personal lifeEdit
Solano qualified for a temporary work permit in the United Kingdom when he signed for Newcastle, as he was an international regular for Peru. He later obtained a Greek passport through an ancestor, to bypass the need for a work permit as a citizen of the European Union. In 2001, the police and the Football Association investigated Solano's Greek passport as potentially fake. After a four-year investigation, he was cleared of any wrongdoing.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Career statisticsEdit
ClubEdit
<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:NFT player</ref>
| Club performance | League | Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Club | Season | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Sporting Cristal | 1992 | Liga 1 | 4 | 0 | ? | ? | – | 8 | 0 | 12 | 0 | |
| 1993 | Liga 1 | 11 | 1 | ? | ? | – | – | 11 | 1 | |||
| Total | 15 | 1 | ? | ? | – | 8 | 0 | 23 | 1 | |||
| Deportivo Municipal | 1993 | Liga 1 | 27 | 7 | ? | ? | – | – | 27 | 7 | ||
| Sporting Cristal | 1994 | Liga 1 | 35 | 18 | ? | ? | – | – | 35 | 18 | ||
| 1995 | Liga 1 | 38 | 12 | ? | ? | – | 10 | 0 | 48 | 12 | ||
| 1996 | Liga 1 | 26 | 13 | ? | ? | – | 8 | 2 | 34 | 15 | ||
| 1997 | Liga 1 | 11 | 7 | ? | ? | – | 8 | 1 | 19 | 8 | ||
| Total | 110 | 50 | ? | ? | – | 26 | 3 | 136 | 53 | |||
| Boca Juniors | 1997–98 | Argentine Primera División | 32 | 5 | ? | ? | – | ? | ? | 32 | 5 | |
| Newcastle United | 1998–99 | Premier League | 29 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 38 | 6 |
| 1999–2000 | Premier League | 30 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 40 | 4 | |
| 2000–01 | Premier League | 33 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | – | 38 | 7 | ||
| 2001–02 | Premier League | 37 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 52 | 12 | |
| 2002–03 | Premier League | 31 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 1 | 45 | 8 | |
| 2003–04 | Premier League | 12 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 20 | 1 | |
| Total | 172 | 29 | 19 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 30 | 7 | 233 | 38 | ||
| Aston Villa | 2003–04 | Premier League | 10 | 0 | – | – | – | 10 | 0 | |||
| 2004–05 | Premier League | 36 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | – | 39 | 9 | ||
| 2005–06 | Premier League | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 3 | 0 | ||
| Total | 49 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 52 | 9 | ||
| Newcastle United | 2005–06 | Premier League | 29 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | 35 | 6 | |
| 2006–07 | Premier League | 28 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 11 | 0 | 44 | 4 | |
| 2007–08 | Premier League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 58 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 11 | 0 | 81 | 10 | ||
| West Ham United | 2007–08 | Premier League | 23 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 23 | 4 | |
| Larissa | 2008–09 | Super League Greece | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 14 | 1 | ||
| Universitario | 2009 | Liga 1 | 26 | 8 | – | 6 | 2 | 32 | 10 | |||
| Leicester City | 2009–10 | Championship | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 13 | 0 | |
| Hull City | 2010–11 | Championship | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 13 | 0 | |
| Hartlepool United | 2011–12 | League One | 14 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 16 | 2 | |
| Career total | 524 | 105 | 29 | 2 | 22 | 3 | 81 | 12 | 656 | 114 | ||
HonoursEdit
Sporting Cristal
- Peruvian First Division: 1994, 1995, 1996
- Copa Libertadores Runner-up: 1997
Newcastle United
Universitario de Deportes
- Peruvian First Division: 2009
Peru
- Kirin Cup: 1999, 2005
Individual
- Peruvian Player of the Year: 1992
- America's Ideal Team of the Year: 1997<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- South American Player of the Year: 1997 (2nd place)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- Most assists in the Premier League: 1999–2000 (shared)<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- Newcastle United Player of the Year: 2001–02<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>
ReferencesEdit
External linksEdit
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