Marco Antonio Figueroa

Marco Antonio Figueroa Montero (born 21 February 1962) is a Chilean former footballer, currently manager for Nicaragua. He is commonly known as "El Fantasma" (Spanish word: "The phantom"). Figueroa played as a striker and spent the majority of his playing career at Mexico, after retiring in 1998, at the Chilean powerhouse Universidad Católica, aged 36.

Club career
Figueroa is considered an idol of Morelia after playing for the club between 1986 and 1990. He and his Chilean fellows Juan Carlos Vera and Ángel Bustos are well remembered as a prolific attacking trident.

Coaching career
In January 2001, he debuted as head coach at the Guatemalan successful club Comunicaciones, signing the next season for Atlético Celaya of the Liga de Ascenso, in where Figueroa had two spells, after of direct to Salamanca F.C. of the same country in the 2003 season. Three years later, with adobe steps at Querétaro and UAG Tecos, in September 2006, he signed a contract with Monarcas Morelia, his old club when was player, team in where also was an historic goalscorer during the 1980s and 90s.

Figueroa came back to his homeland in July 2008 signing for Cobreloa, another old club in his career, of this form returning to his country after ten years out in Mexico and Guatemala. After a successful season at the team of Calama, reaching the Clausura Tournament semi–finals, in December of that year, he reached an agreement with Universidad Católica for direct to that team in the next season. At Católica, Figueroa was runner–up in the 2009 Clausura Tournament, after a regular season in the last semester, despite reaching the semi–finals of the Apertura Tournament, being also named as the coach of the year according to El Gráfico. The next season, after a regular campaign with Católica in the first part of the league tournament and in the 2010 Copa Libertadores, he was fired of the club, but signed months later for O'Higgins.

On 11 April 2011, Figueroa signed a contract with the Primera B side Everton, replacing to Diego Osella, because the bad results that the Argentine coach reached in the first weeks of the Apertura Tournament of that division. At the club based in Viña del Mar, he was champion of the Clausura Tournament of that level, but not achieved the promotion, after of loss against Unión San Felipe and Rangers. The next season, he was fired from the club.

On 25 September 2018, Figueroa was re-appointed as head coach for O'Higgins.

Personal life
His son, Mateo, is a player from the Atlético Morelia youth system.

Player

 * Cobreloa
 * Primera División de Chile (1): 1992

Individual

 * Primera División de Chile Top–scorer (1): 1993
 * Monarcas Morelia all-time top scorer (130 goals)

Manager

 * Universidad Católica
 * Torneo Clausura (1): Runner–up 2009


 * Everton
 * Primera B (1): 2011 Apertura
 * Promotion playoffs (1): Runner-up 2011

Individual

 * ANFP Golden Ball (1): Best coach 2009