Argentine coach Martín Anselmi joins the Elche CF dugout, becoming the twelfth coach from Argentina. Anselmi's mission is to restore the prominence that his compatriots held for decades at the green-and-white club, a number surpassed only by Spanish coaches in the club's history.
Anselmi joins a list of renowned Argentine coaches who have managed the club, including Felipe Mesones, Roque Olsen, Alfredo Di Stéfano, Óscar Ruggeri, and Jorge Almirón. The connection between Elche and Argentine football peaked in the seventies with a massive influx of players, and was strengthened again with Christian Bragarnik's acquisition of ownership in 2019.
With no prior experience in European football, Anselmi arrives at the Martínez Valero aiming to improve the performance of recent Argentine coaches, such as Jorge Almirón and Sebastián Beccacece, who did not meet expectations.
Within the club's history, Felipe Mesones and Roque Olsen stand out for having managed the most matches, with 214 and 206 respectively. Other coaches like Néstor Rossi, Jorge D'Alessandro, and Gustavo Silva had more discreet tenures, the latter being remembered for the first relegation to Segunda División B.
Legendary figures such as Alfredo Di Stéfano and Óscar Ruggeri also passed through the club, although without leaving a sporting mark commensurate with their prestige. The list is completed by Héctor Rial and José Luis Acciari, who briefly managed a single match as interim.
Now, Anselmi faces the challenge of etching his name into the history of the Martínez Valero, alongside the successful Argentine coaches, rather than among those who barely left a footnote.
