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MICKAEL MADAR
Date of Birth: 8 May, 1968
Nationality: France (international)
Period at Deportivo: 1996 - 1997 (december)
Transfer: Free Transfer (1996, from AS Monaco)
Clubs: Deportivo (1996-1997), AS Monaco (1994-1996), Cannes (1992-1994), Sochaux (1990-1992), Laval (1989-1990), Sochaux (1987-1989)
Sold: Free Transfer (1997, to Everton)
Height: 185 cm
Weight: 80 kg
Position: Attacker (central)
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 French striker MICKAEL MADAR was considered a follow-up of legendary striker Bebeto when he joined Deportivo in 1996 on a free transfer coming from Monaco. But, like many others those years, his time at the club didn't prove to be a success and within one-and-a-half year he moved on to Everton blaming the club and coach Corral for the unsuccessful relationship.
His career had started at Sochaux where aged eighteen he made his debut on 25 March, 1987. He would play for them until 1992 and scored fourteen goals. In between he played one year at little Laval, where he scored nine goals. It attracted the attention of a bigger club, Cannes, where he would spent two seasons. After a total of twenty-six goals he moved to Monaco at the age of twenty-six.
At Monaco he scored another fifteen goals, made his debut in the France team in October 1995, before his contract ran out mid-1996. Before playing the EURO 1996 tournament with France he already agreed on a contract with Deportivo running until 1999 although he didn’t play a single minute during the end phase. But there were high hopes that he would become a decent successor of Bebeto who had left the club weeks earlier.
But Madar didn’t resemble Bebeto at all, especially not if one considers the physical part. Above all Madar’s game was based on strength and he can be called an opportunistic player scoring sufficient goals every season. His Liga debut he made on 31 August, 1996 during a 1-1 home draw with Real Madrid. He participated in fourteen out of the first seventeen Liga matches in which the results of Deportivo were pretty good.
On 23 October he produced his third Liga goal against Racing de Santander after goals against Betis Sevilla and Espanyol before. But on 10 November he was sent off against Tenerife after just sixteen minutes after hitting an opponent, an indication of his controversial personality. He scored a Copa goal on 27 November against Mallorca (3-0) but during the match against Sporting de Gijón on 22 December, 1996 he suffered a serious injury. It was then president Lendoiro decided to sign another striker in Renaldo. Without much other options this Brazilian player was used by John Toshack and, later, Carlos Alberto Silva while Madar had to recover from his injury. Only near the end of the season he returned to the team as he came on as a substitute during the final three Liga matches.
In the summer of 1997 two other strikers arrived at Riazor: Luizão and Bassir. Madar was sidelined after a pre-season incident with coach Silva and only came back to the squad after the Brazilian coach was fired. But the season already had become a difficult one for the Galicians. They were close to a relegation spot when on 2 November he came on as substitute in his Liga debut for that season. At Oviedo the team were 1-0 down, but Madar scored the equalizer in injury-time. He was given three starting places after it and even scored two other goals. But none of the seven matches he participated in were won.
After new argument with his coach, this time Corral, he was allowed to leave on a free transfer in December 1997. After twenty-four Liga matches and six goals he moved on to Everton but still had time to criticize his former coaches at the club. About Corral he said that “with a good coach Deportivo would do better as the players are suffering under him. I don’t think under his lead the performances will improve. Personally I felt at home in La Coruña and didn’t want to move, but I’ll have to do it because he doesn’t count on me”.
But his words about Carlos Alberto Silva were even more harsh as he called him “even worse than Corral. He ruined my sportive career by keeping me out of the squad. He said that I lacked respect for him, but in reality I only spoke the truth. I think it’s strange that after I came back from my injury, although I never had lost a match with Deportivo, he said he didn’t count on me”.
For his part, Corral hit back and said that “Madar has had problems with every coach - Toshack included. When I took charge of the team I thought he had been reflexive and I wanted to take him back, at a personal level and as a player. But now we can see he didn’t respond well at both levels and I don’t want to spend another second talking about him”.
Before making his debut for Everton the French striker commented that “here I want to prove that I am not dead”. Aged twenty-nine he scored during his debut on 10 January, 1998 against Crystal Palace (3-1). But strong Madar was quick to admit the difficulties he had adjusting to the English game. Talking after a match against Leicester City, where he scored an excellent early goal, Madar said: "Before I came here I was out for a year with a broken leg and I can't yet play a full 90 minutes at my best. It’s better that I give a good 70 minutes than an average 90. I know the fans wanted me to stay on, but I am tired."
But the season 1997-1998 was dismal for Everton and they only survived on goal difference. Walter Smith took over and the end of Madar at the club was near. Once again Madar blamed the coach as he said “the manager just doesn't like me and he’s only seen me play twice. I think they just want to get rid of me and get me off the wage bill. Anyway, my wife is very unhappy here and is desperate to leave. Living in Liverpool isn't the same as living in France or Spain. So it looks like I'll be going fairly soon”.
Smith’s reaction was that “I'd have no hesitation playing him if he'd just do as we ask him to do on the training ground. But he won't. He thinks he knows best. End of story”. Madar was allowed to move on again and joined Paris-Saint Germain exactly one year after his departure from La Coruña.
He would play at the big French club until 2001 but barely entered into the their plans. Still he was able to score twelve league goals before in 2001, aged thirty-three, he played his final matches at little Créteil.
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