Raúl García (footballer, born 1986)

Raúl García Escudero (Spanish pronunciation: [raˈul ɣaɾˈθi.a eskuˈðeɾo];[lower-alpha 1] born 11 July 1986) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Athletic Bilbao mainly as an attacking midfielder but also as a central midfielder.

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

Raúl García
García playing with Atlético Madrid in 2013
Personal information
Full name Raúl García Escudero
Date of birth (1986-07-11) 11 July 1986[1]
Place of birth Pamplona, Spain[1]
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[1]
Position(s) Midfielder
Club information
Current team
 Athletic Bilbao
Number 22
Youth career
Ardoi
Osasuna
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2004–2005 Osasuna B 28 (3)
2004–2007 Osasuna 68 (9)
2007–2015 Atlético Madrid 216 (27)
2011–2012 → Osasuna (loan) 33 (11)
2015– Athletic Bilbao 186 (54)
National team‡
2004–2005 Spain U19 7 (4)
2006–2009 Spain U21 20 (1)
2014– Spain 2 (0)
2004–2005 Navarre 2 (0)
2005 Basque Country 1 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 25 January 2021
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 19 November 2014

Formed at Osasuna, he spent most of his career at Atlético Madrid, scoring 45 goals in 326 games across all competitions over eight seasons and winning six major titles, including the 2014 national championship and the 2010 Europa League.

Club career

Osasuna

Born in Pamplona, García played for hometown's CA Osasuna during his first years as a professional. On 24 October 2004, he made his debut for the first team in a 0–3 away defeat against FC Barcelona, with his first chance being offered by Mexican coach Javier Aguirre.[2]

García scored five league goals (the first on 26 October 2005 in a 3–2 home win over Athletic Bilbao)[3] in his first full season as the Navarrese finished in fourth place in La Liga, starting in 28 of his 33 appearances at the age of just 19.

Atlético Madrid

In July 2007, after helping Osasuna to the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup with one goal in 12 games, García signed a five-year contract with Atlético Madrid, reuniting with former boss Aguirre upon the €13 million deal.[4]

In January 2010, García lost his starting position to newly signed Tiago Mendes, who had arrived on loan from Juventus FC.[5] However, he started the UEFA Europa League final against Fulham, as the Portuguese was cup-tied, playing the full 90 minutes and extra time in the 2–1 victory for the first honour of his career;[6] additionally, he appeared in the second half of the Copa del Rey's decider against Sevilla FC, a 0–2 loss.[7]

García (right) in action against Almería in September 2013

On 27 August 2010, García featured the entire match in the UEFA Super Cup against Inter Milan, giving away a penalty kick in the last minute for a foul on Goran Pandev; the shot was however saved by David de Gea, and the Colchoneros won it 2–0.[8] Again, he played significantly less minutes than Tiago, but still managed to collect 29 league appearances as Atlético finally qualified to the Europa League, and netted his only goal of the season in a 1–2 home loss to eventual champions Barcelona, heading in from a corner kick.[9]

After renewing his contract for a further three years, García was loaned to former club Osasuna for 2011–12,[10] where he began to appear more prominently as an attacking midfielder.[11] He scored 11 goals during the campaign, including twice against RCD Mallorca – both through headers from corners by Álvaro Cejudo (2–2)[12]– and one in a defeat of Barcelona (3–2),[13] finishing as team top scorer with four more goals than Ibrahima Baldé.[14]

On 9 April 2014, after playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–0 UEFA Champions League home defeat of Barcelona that qualified Atlético Madrid to the semi-finals for the first time in 40 years,[15] García became the club's most capped player in the competition with 22 appearances, surpassing Luis Aragonés.[16] On 19 August he scored a 88th-minute 1–1 equaliser against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu for the Supercopa de España, as his team went on to win the trophy 2–1 on aggregate and conquer it for the second time in their history.[17]

Athletic Bilbao

On 31 August 2015, after a transfer request, García signed a four-year contract with Athletic Bilbao which included a release clause of €40 million.[18] He scored in his first appearance, helping to a 3–1 home victory over Getafe CF where he featured 79 minutes.[19]

García made his 100th appearance for the club in October 2017.[20] In late May 2018, after he had scored ten league goals in each of his first two seasons,[21][22] he and Athletic agreed on a contract extension running to June 2020.[23]

On 20 July 2019, the 33-year-old García agreed to a one-year extension at the San Mamés Stadium until June 2021, with no release clause.[24] He scored a career-best 15 goals that campaign (seven penalties) – entering the league's record books after becoming the first player to find the net in every month of a calendar year – but his team could only finish 11th.[25][26]

García became only the 11th player in La Liga history to reach 500 games in the competition on 31 December 2020, in a 1–0 home Basque derby loss to Real Sociedad.[27]

International career

From 2006 to 2009, García played with Spain under-21s, earning a total of 20 caps in the category and representing the nation at the 2009 UEFA European Championship, in a group stage exit. He also appeared for the under-19 team.

On 29 August 2014, aged 28, García was named by full side manager Vicente del Bosque in a 23-man squad for matches against France and Macedonia in September.[28] He made his debut on 4 September, starting and playing 58 minutes in a 0–1 friendly loss to the former.[29]

In 2004 and 2005, García played in representative matches for both Navarre[30][31] and the Basque Country.[32]

Style of play

García was known for scoring from the bench and having good aerial ability.[11] A competent penalty taker,[33][34] he was also often deployed as a false 9 due to his movements off the ball.[35][36]

Career statistics

Club
As of 25 January 2021[37][38]
Club Season League National Cup[lower-alpha 2] Continental[lower-alpha 3] Other[lower-alpha 4] Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Osasuna B 2004–05 Segunda División B 283———283
Osasuna 2004–05 La Liga 2010——30
2005–06 335102[lower-alpha 5]0—365
2006–07 3345014[lower-alpha 6]1—525
Atlético Madrid 2007–08 La Liga 353509[lower-alpha 5]1—494
2008–09 3632010[lower-alpha 7]1—484
2009–10 2009012[lower-alpha 6]0—410
2010–11 291506[lower-alpha 5]01[lower-alpha 8]0411
2011–12 00002[lower-alpha 5]0—20
2012–13 305828[lower-alpha 5]21[lower-alpha 8]0479
2013–14 34107412[lower-alpha 7]4005318
2014–15 3154210[lower-alpha 7]22[lower-alpha 9]14710
2015–16 100000—10
Atlético total 2162740869104132946
Osasuna (loan) 2011–12 La Liga 331120——3511
Osasuna total 1012090161—12621
Athletic Bilbao 2015–16 La Liga 307219[lower-alpha 5]3004111
2016–17 3610337[lower-alpha 5]1—4614
2017–18 34102112[lower-alpha 5]3—4814
2018–19 33910——349
2019–20 351570——4215
2020–21 18311—2[lower-alpha 9]2216
Athletic total 186541662872223269
Career total 53110465141131863716139
  1. In isolation, García is pronounced [ɡaɾˈθi.a].
  2. Includes Copa del Rey
  3. Includes UEFA Europa League, UEFA Champions League
  4. Includes UEFA Super Cup, Supercopa de España
  5. Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  6. Appearances in UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League
  7. Appearances in UEFA Champions League
  8. Appearance in UEFA Super Cup
  9. Appearances in Supercopa de España

Honours

Atlético Madrid

Athletic Bilbao

Notes

    References
    1. "Raúl García". Eurosport. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
    2. Piñol, Àngels (25 October 2004). "El Barça no perdona a Osasuna" [Barça do not forgive Osasuna]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 April 2019.
    3. "Osasuna 2–2 Athletic Bilbao". ESPN Soccernet. 26 October 2005. Retrieved 25 March 2012.
    4. "Aguirre gets thumbs up from Atlético". UEFA. 19 July 2007. Retrieved 17 April 2014.
    5. Casáñez, Juan (24 May 2010). "Raúl García quiere quedarse y la Juve cederá algo por Tiago" [Raúl García wants to stay and Juve will compromise somewhat for Tiago]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 April 2018.
    6. McNulty, Phil (12 May 2010). "Atletico Madrid 2–1 Fulham". BBC Sport. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
    7. Besa, Ramón (19 May 2010). "Ganó el serio, cayó el alegre" [Serious won, playful lost]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 12 November 2016.
    8. "Rafa's reign off to slow start". ESPN Soccernet. 27 August 2010. Retrieved 9 March 2011.
    9. "Messi injury mars win". ESPN Soccernet. 19 September 2010. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
    10. "Raul García vuelve cedido a Osasuna" [Raul García returns to Osasuna on loan]. El Mundo (in Spanish). 16 August 2011. Retrieved 14 February 2012.
    11. "Raul Garcia – the silent assassin". Football España. 16 January 2014. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
    12. "Garcia and Hemed to the fore". ESPN Soccernet. 1 October 2011. Retrieved 14 February 2012.
    13. "Barca stunned by Osasuna". ESPN Soccernet. 11 February 2012. Retrieved 14 February 2012.
    14. "Raúl García y el mejor curso de su vida: 13 goles en Liga" [Raúl García and the best campaign of his life: 13 goals in League] (in Spanish). Be Soccer. 1 July 2020. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
    15. "Koke takes Atlético through at Barcelona's expense". UEFA. 9 April 2014. Retrieved 17 April 2014.
    16. Aznar, Luis (10 April 2014). "Raúl García se hace un hueco en la historia del Atlético" [Raúl García carves niche in Atlético's history]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 April 2014.
    17. "Atletico Madrid 1 Real Madrid 0; agg 2–1: Mario Mandzukic's goal wins the Spanish Super Cup". The Daily Telegraph. 23 August 2014. Retrieved 10 December 2014.
    18. McVitie, Peter (31 August 2015). "Official: Raul Garcia joins Athletic Bilbao from Atletico Madrid". Goal. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
    19. "Raúl García, debut y gol" [Raúl García, debut and goal]. Marca (in Spanish). 13 September 2015. Retrieved 15 September 2015.
    20. Basic, Robert (14 October 2017). "Las 100 batallas de Raúl García" [Raúl García's 100 battles]. El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 May 2018.
    21. Madhavan, Varun (30 July 2017). "Ernesto Valverde's 2016/17 Athletic Bilbao: Tactical analysis". Sportskeeda. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
    22. "Raúl García, operado de una arritmia" [Raúl García, surgery for arrhythmia]. Noticias de Gipuzkoa (in Spanish). 8 May 2018. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
    23. "Contract extension for Raúl García". Athletic Bilbao. 31 May 2018. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
    24. Herrán, Alfonso (20 July 2019). "Raúl García renueva un año, hasta 2021, sin cláusula" [Raúl García renews one year, until 2021, without clause]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 20 July 2019.
    25. Chanca, Marta (16 July 2020). "Raúl García, el segundo curioso caso de Benjamin Button en el Athletic" [Raúl García, the second curious case of Benjamin Button at Athletic]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 July 2020.
    26. Mejías, Noelia (23 July 2020). "De cabeza, desde fuera del área y con ambas piernas: el recital de goles de Raúl García en la 19/20" [With his head, from outside the box and with both legs: Raúl García's goal recital in 19/20] (in Spanish). El Desmarque. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
    27. Ortiz de Lazcano, Javier (31 December 2020). "Raúl García llega a los 500 partidos en Primera" [Raúl García reaches 500 games in Primera]. El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 1 January 2021.
    28. "These are the players called up for the matches against France and Macedonia". Royal Spanish Football Federation. 29 August 2014. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
    29. "France 1–0 Spain". BBC Sport. 4 September 2014. Retrieved 5 September 2014.
    30. "Euskadi y Navarra ganan" [Euskadi and Navarre win] (PDF). Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). 30 December 2004. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
    31. Monreal, Félix (27 December 2005). "Orbaiz y Gurpegi participan en la victoria de Navarra ante China" [Orbaiz and Gurpegi take part in Navarre win against China] (PDF). Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 1 January 2021.
    32. "FUTBOL: Camerún, sin Eto´o, vence a la selección de Euskadi" [FOOTBALL: Cameroon, without Eto'o, defeat the Euskadi national team]. La Opinión de Zamora (in Spanish). 29 December 2005. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
    33. Jiménez, Pepe (7 August 2019). "Los lanzadores de penaltis de LaLiga Santander: los jugadores que asegurarán puntos" [The LaLiga Santander penalty takers: the players who will guarantee you points] (in Spanish). El Desmarque. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
    34. Río, Endika (15 September 2019). "¿Qué porcentaje de acierto tiene Aduriz con los penaltis?" [What shooting percentage does Aduriz have with penalties?]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 July 2020.
    35. "Raúl García, un 'falso 9' que es muy '9'" [Raúl García, a 'false 9' who is quite a '9']. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). 31 January 2014. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
    36. Ugalde, Iñaki (5 November 2019). "El Athletic, mejor con falso nueve" [Athletic, better with a false nine]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 July 2020.
    37. "Raúl García". Soccerway. Retrieved 17 April 2014.
    38. Raúl García at ESPN FC
    39. "Atletico Madrid win La Liga". Sport 24. 17 May 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
    40. "Real Madrid – At. Madrid" (in Spanish). Royal Spanish Football Federation. 17 May 2013. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
    41. "Barcelona 0–0 Atletico Madrid: Catalans win Spanish Super Cup". BBC Sport. 29 August 2013. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
    42. "Falcao at double as Atlético march to title". UEFA. 9 May 2012. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
    43. "Chelsea 1–4 Atletico Madrid". BBC Sport. 1 September 2012. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
    44. "Madrid finally fulfil Décima dream". UEFA. 24 May 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
    45. Carnerero, Fernando (17 January 2021). "La Supercopa de Williams" [Williams' Supercup]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 17 January 2021.
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