Antonio Soldevilla

Antonio "Toni" Soldevilla Castellsagué (born 19 December 1978) is a Spanish former footballer who played as a defender.

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

Toni Soldevilla
Personal information
Full name Antonio Soldevilla Castellsagué
Date of birth (1978-12-19) 19 December 1978
Place of birth L'Hospitalet, Spain
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s) Defender
Youth career
Español
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1995–1999 Espanyol B 76 (3)
1995–1996 → Hospitalet (loan) 5 (0)
1997–2005 Espanyol 116 (3)
2005–2006 Poli Ejido 7 (0)
2006–2007 Apollon Limassol 0 (0)
2007–2008 Amkar Perm 5 (0)
2009–2010 Marbella 8 (0)
2010 Caravaca 12 (1)
2011 Ontinyent 8 (1)
2011–2012 Pro Duta 28 (2)
2013 Alcoyano 13 (0)
2013–2014 Jove Español 13 (2)
2014–2015 Eldense 21 (1)
Total 312 (13)
National team
1997 Spain U18 3 (0)
1997 Spain U20 1 (0)
1998 Spain U21 1 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

He amassed La Liga totals of 116 games and three goals, all with Espanyol. He added 122 matches and five goals in Segunda División B where he represented a host of clubs, and also competed professionally in Russia and Indonesia.

Club career

Soldevilla was born in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Catalonia. Brought through the ranks of RCD Espanyol, he made his first-team debut on 19 February 1997 in a 0–2 La Liga home loss against Athletic Bilbao, being sent off in the game;[1] he would make 133 official appearances for the club with four goals, eventually becoming first-choice while partnering fellow youth graduate Alberto Lopo in the centre and also going on to captain the squad.[2]

However, Soldevilla grew unsettled and left it in 2005, citing personal reasons – he had already spent several months away from the game during the 2003–04 season.[3][4] He signed for second division side Polideportivo Ejido midway through 2005–06,[5] where he played only a handful of matches.

After an unsuccessful trial with Ipswich Town[6] and starting off 2006–07 in Cyprus with Apollon Limassol, Soldevilla became the first Spanish player in the Russian Premier League, signing for FC Amkar Perm for the start of the 2007 season.[7] He was released in early March 2008.[8]

In mid-December 2009, Soldevilla signed with UD Marbella in the third level following a one-month trial. He split the following season also in that tier, totalling 20 appearances with Caravaca CF and Ontinyent CF combined.

Honours
Espanyol

References
  1. El Athletic siembra de dudas Sarrià (Athletic shower Sarrià with doubts); El País, 20 February 1997 (in Spanish)
  2. Soldevilla da un paso más hacia su regreso (Soldevilla one step closer to returning); Diario AS, 14 October 2003 (in Spanish)
  3. El Espanyol no sabe dónde está Soldevilla (Espanyol do not know where Soldevilla is); Cadena SER, 29 December 2003 (in Spanish)
  4. Soldevilla vuelve al fútbol (Soldevilla returns to football); El País, 30 June 2004 (in Spanish)
  5. Poli Ejido anuncia fichaje de ex espanyolista Toni Soldevilla (Poli Ejido announce signing of former Espanyol player Toni Soldevilla) Archived 27 February 2014 at the Wayback Machine; Terra, 20 January 2006 (in Spanish)
  6. Ipswich hand midfielder contract; BBC Sport, 21 August 2006
  7. Soldevilla se convierte en el primer jugador español en la Liga rusa (Soldevilla becomes first Spanish player in Russian League); El País, 26 February 2007 (in Spanish)
  8. El técnico del Amkar ruso prescinde de Toni Soldevilla (Russia's Amkar coach deems Toni Soldevilla surplus to requirements) Archived 5 March 2014 at the Wayback Machine; Mundo Deportivo, 2 March 2008 (in Spanish)
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