Martín Gastón Demichelis (; born 20 December 1980) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played usually as a centre-back, although he could also operate as a defensive midfielder. He is the current head coach of River Plate. Demichelis spent most of his professional career with Bayern Munich in Germany (seven and a half years), winning 11 major titles with the team. He also competed in his home country with River Plate, in Spain with Espanyol and Málaga and in England with Manchester City. Demichelis earned 51 caps for Argentina, representing the country in two World Cups – finishing second in 2014 – and the 2015 Copa América, where the team were also runners-up. Club career River Plate Born in Justiniano Posse, Córdoba, Demichelis started playing professionally in 2001, with Buenos Aires-based Club Atlético River Plate, having arrived at the club's youth system three years earlier. He made his first-team – and first division – debut on 2 September 2001 in a game against Estudiantes de La Plata, scoring his only goal for the team against Rosario Central. On 28 April 2002, River Plate goalkeeper Ángel Comizzo was sent off with a minute of regulation time remaining against Racing Club de Avellaneda, leaving Demichelis to take over in goal. He faced a direct free kick that hit the wall and was countered for the only goal of the game by Nelson Cuevas, as River won the Clausura title. Bayern Munich Demichelis signed for FC Bayern Munich in the 2003 summer, for €4.5 million. His first season in the Bundesliga was not very positive as he suffered a number of minor injuries, appearing in only 14 league games (21 in total) as the Bavarians finished in second position; in early 2004 he appeared in his only game with the reserves, against Stuttgarter Kickers. Under new coach Felix Magath, Demichelis became a regular starter for Bayern, appearing in 75 official matches in two seasons combined as the team won back-to-back doubles, achieving a total of four during his spell. New Bayern boss Ottmar Hitzfeld successfully reconverted Demichelis from a defensive midfielder into a central defender. In 2008–09 he netted a career-best four goals in 29 games, but the title was lost to VfL Wolfsburg. However, the player often clashed with the new manager Louis van Gaal, starting immediately after the first matchday after being dropped from the starting XI for the 2010–11