Monito Rodríguez

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Rodríguez and the second or maternal family name is Pérez.

Roberto Rodríguez Pérez (born 1 April 1946) is a retired Mexican football player and manager. Nicknamed "Monito", he played as a forward for Zacatepec and América throughout the late 1960s and the 1970s, being part of the squad that won the 1970–71 Mexican Primera División. He was also part of the winning Mexican squad for the 1971 CONCACAF Championship.

Monito Rodríguez

Personal information
Full name	Roberto Rodríguez Pérez
Date of birth	(1946-04-01) 1 April 1946
Place of birth	Tlaquiltenango, Morelos, Mexico
Position	Forward
Youth career
1962–1966	Zacatepec
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1966–1969	Zacatepec
1969–1973	América
1973–1976	Zacatepec
International career
1971–1972	Mexico	16	(4)
Medal record Men's football Representing Mexico CONCACAF Championship 1971 Trinidad and Tobago Team
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Club career

Born as the youngest of 10 children in Tlaquiltenango, Rodríguez aspired to become a footballer at a young age. Despite initially not havinig enough time to practice playing for the sport, his speed and technical skill allowed talent scouts to notice and he began his career through his local club of Tlahuica. In 1962, he was accepted into the youth sector of Zacatepec in 1962 and was later promoted to the senior squad for the 1966–67 Mexican Segunda División. He remained with the club for the remainder of the 1960s until he was signed to América for the 1969–70 season. He remained there throughout the early 1970s, winning the 1970–71 Mexican Primera División throughout his tenure with the club. He returned to Zacatepec which had recently been promoted to the top-flight of Mexican football for their 1973–74 season and stayed for two further seasons until his retirement in the 1975–76 season.

International career

Rodríguez played for Mexico throughout 1971 and 1972, notably participating in the 1971 CONCACAF Championship where he was a part of the winning squad of the tournament.

Managerial career

Following his retirement, he began his activity as an auxiliary coach of several reserve teams affiliated with América within the second, third and fourth divisions. Notably, he served as the assistant coach to Jorge Silva Vieira when the first team won the league championship in the 1988–89 Mexican Primera División. In addition, he coached Mexico's youth national team for the 1985 FIFA U-16 World Championship held in China.