Julio César Dely Valdés (born March 12, 1967) is a Panamanian former professional footballer who played as a striker. He is a twin brother of Jorge Dely Valdés and younger brother of Armando Dely Valdés.

Club career

Born in Colón, Dely Valdés began his professional career in 1987 in Argentina with Deportivo Paraguayo of Argentina (after trying out with the Argentinos Juniors' Squad), where he scored 28 goals. He then moved to Club Nacional de Football in Uruguay, where he scored more than 100 goals and won the Uruguayan Championship in 1992. In Europe, he played for Cagliari in Serie A and Paris Saint-Germain in the French Première Division with Brazilian players like Raí and Leonardo. Nicknamed Panagol, he then played in Spain's Primera División with Real Oviedo for three seasons and with Málaga for another three, where he became the most prolific goal scorer in Málaga's history in Primera División, before returning to Nacional. He retired in 2006 after two seasons with Panamanian club Arabe Unido.

International career

Dely Valdés made his debut for Panama in a May 1991 UNCAF Nations Cup match against Honduras and earned a total of 44 caps, scoring 18 goals. He represented his country in 27 FIFA World Cup qualification matches and was a member of the 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup team, that finished second in the tournament, losing the final against USA in a penalty shootout. He also played at the 2001 and 2003 UNCAF Nations Cups. Both he and his twin brother announced their international retirement in November 2004, but they both returned for a final Gold Cup tournament and World Cup qualification matches in 2005. His final international was an October 2005 FIFA World Cup qualification match against the United States, just as his twin brother Jorge.

Managerial career

Dely Valdés became a coach after his playing career ended. He signed with his former team, Málaga, as an assistant manager for head coach Antonio Tapia. He left the club on June 16, 2010, after the arrival of new Qatari owner Abdullah bin Nasser bin Abdullah Al Ahmed Al Thani. The entire team and staff was rebuilt, and Dely Valdés did not have his contract renewed. On September 14, 2010, Dely Valdés became head coach of the Panama national team after FEPAFUT chose him over the Colombian Luis Fernando Suarez. The contract was for 10 months which included the Copa Centroamericana and the CONCACAF Gold Cup with an optional extension to include the FIFA World Cup qualifiers. He appointed twin brother Jorge as his assistant. They led Panama to the final round of World Cup qualifying but ultimately fell short, after which the Dely Valdés brothers were not retained as managers. Julio was put in charge at Árabe Unido in August 2014 and was announced as the manager at Águila in El Salvador on December 31, 2014.

Career statistics

Honours

Nacional Paris Saint-Germain Malaga Individual