Get to know the gaffers: Part 2 - Toluca manager Ignacio Ambriz

While the slightly wispy hair of Pachuca’s Guillermo “Guardiola” Almada looks as though one day he might emulate his namesake, Toluca boss Ignacio Ambriz does not need to worry. The thick, black, sometimes slicked-back style sits above a face of frown marks that looks at home screaming on the touchline.

At the end of the 2022 Clausura, many people wanted him out; it is unclear how many people actually told him. Toluca’s results had been shambolic and the club were so bad they were forced to pay a fine of 33 million pesos for their position in the table. But nobody pushed the big red button. Instead, they stuck by Ambriz, counting on his European experience and many years of international football at the top level.

The fact that his Toluca side have arrived at the Liga MX Final in 2022 is personal for Ambriz. Two terrible experiences: his short time in Spain and the huge sum of money the club paid due to bad performances, serve as food for, as Nacho himself puts it, “revenge”.

Ambriz grew up a talented central defender, and came up through the Necaxa youth team before making his first team debut as a 17-year-old in 1983. He spent his whole playing career of almost two decades in Mexico, where he wore the shirt of 6 different clubs, returning to his boyhood Necaxa on three separate occasions. In 1993, during his second spell with Los Rayos, he was called up to the Mexico squad for the Copa America by manager Miguel Mejía Barón. Mexico reached the final of the tournament with strong performances from Ambriz at the back but eventually lost to Argentina; two goals from a certain striker playing in Italy called Gabriel Batistuta. A few days after, Mexico entered the 1993 CONCACAF Gold Cup, which Mexico won, beating the USA 4-0 in the Azteca Stadium. Ambriz scored the opener with a long-range free-kick that set his side on the way to a comfortable victory.

A year later he was again called up to the squad, this time for the 1994 World Cup. Ambriz captained his side during during the tournament and led Mexico through the Group Stage games against Norway, Ireland and Italy, before losing on penalties to Bulgaria in the next round.

At club level, Ambriz followed up his international success by winning the Mexican League and Cup double in 1994/95 before winning the league again the following season.

After this point he featured less and less fro his club sides post-World Cup, and in the late 90s moved from Necaxa to Atlante, Puebla and Atlético Celaya before returning again. He would retire in 2001 after two final years at his hometown side.

After a two year hiatus, Ambriz returned to football, this time as a manager. He took on the Puebla job before Javier Aguirre called him up to be his assistant at Osasuna. Ambriz followed his compatriot throughout Spain and even ended up managing a match in the UEFA Champions League for Atlético Madrid, when Aguirre was suspended. Los Colchoneros drew 1-1 with Liverpool.

The trophies begin to fill up the cabinet

His first honours came with Club América, who won the CONCACAF Champions League in 2015-16. They beat Seattle Sounders, Santos Laguna and Tigres to claim the title. Unfortunately, Ambriz would not be allowed to celebrate the title by going to the Club World Cup (where they would lose against Real Madrid) as he was sacked soon after.

As is common throughout his career, Nacho returned home to Nexaca and promptly won the Copa Mexico in 2018, the trophy he won as a player in 1994. They beat Toluca (wink, wink) in the final. He moved to Club León where he won the First Division in 2020 and it looked as though Ambriz with his 4-4-2 was making a name for himself in Mexico.

Ambriz’s second spell in Spain

The call from SD Huesca in Spain’s north-east came in 2021. The Mexican was to try his luck in again Europe, this time on his own, but quickly found things tricky; the brutality hit and he was sharply removed from his position after achieving just 15 points from his first 12 games in charge.

Toluca took the plunge and opted for Ignacio after he was relieved of his duties on the Spanish peninsula. Since then, they have won 17 of 40 matches and managed to upset the odds when his ex-side Club América were knocked out of the tournament earlier in the month. Ambriz will look to end a 10-year title drought for tournament specialists Toluca when they face Almada and his impressive Pachuca side. “It is revenge against myself, I like it, I feel comfortable, it is through failure that I have strengthened myself”, he said pre-match.

For Part 1 of the manager mini-series, and to find out about Pachuca boss Guillermo “Pep Guardiola” Almada, click here.