José María Rivas Martínez (12 May 1958 – 9 January 2016) was a football player from El Salvador.
Club career Nicknamed Mandingo, Rivas played several years for Independiente De San Vicente and Atlético Marte, with whom he won a League Championship in 1985. In 1990, he joined San Pedro of Belize and after leaving them had short spells at the end of his career in the Salvadoran second division with Huracán and Cojutepeque.
He won the 1985 Top league goal scorer award and also won the Golden Boot and Golden Ball in that year.
International career The moustached Rivas made his official debut for El Salvador in a March 1980 friendly match against Panama, played in 17 FIFA World Cup qualification matches and featured in all three of El Salvador's games at the 1982 FIFA World Cup in Spain. He scored 19 goals for the El Salvador national football team from 1980 to 1989. He scored 42 goals in 97 matches including non-official games.
His final international game was a November 1989 FIFA World Cup qualification match against the United States in St. Louis.
+ List of international goals scored by José María RivasNo.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition1 24 August 1980 Estadio Rommel Fernández, Panama City, Panama 1–0 3–1 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification2 5 October 1980 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador 2–0 4–1 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification3 26 July 1981 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador 3–0 4–0 Friendly4 22 April 1982 Estadio Olímpico Metropolitano, Tegucigalpa, Honduras 1–11–1 Friendly5 29 January 1984 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador 3–0 4–0 Friendly6 27 June 1984 Estadio Cuscatlán, El Salvador 1–0 3–1 Friendly7 29 July 1984 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador 3–0 5–0 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification8 5 August 1984 Estadio Juan Ramón Loubriel, Bayamón, Puerto Rico 3–0 3–0 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification9 9 October 1984 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States 1–0 1–3 Friendly10 4 December 1984 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States 2–0 2–1 Friendly11 12 December 1984 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador 1–0 1–1 Friendly123 February 1985Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador1–03–0Friendly132–01427 February 1985Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador1–03–01986 FIFA World Cup qualification153–016 10 March 1985 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador 1–1 1–2 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification17 7 October 1987 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States 1–0 1–0 Friendly18 25 June 1989 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador 2–3 2–4 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification
Retirement and illness After he retired, he was in charge of C.D. Árabe Marte and took the reins at FAS in 1999 along with José Luis Rugamas.
During his playing career, he had obtained his medical diplomas to become a doctor and was part of the El Salvador national football team medical staff. In June 2011, it became clear Rivas was seriously ill and needed a marrow operation, for which funds would be raised with a benefit match. A lot of former players were reunited to help Rivas. Rivas died of leukemia on 9 January 2016 at the age of 57.
References
External links - Atletico Marte - Atletico Marte