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Borja Iglesias
Borja iglesias 2019001 (cropped).jpg
Iglesias with Betis in 2019
Personal information
Date of birth (1993-01-17) 17 January 1993 (age 32)
Place of birth Santiago de Compostela, Spain
Height 1.87 m
Playing position Striker
Club information
Current club Celta
(on loan from Betis)
Number 7
Youth career
2003–2007 Compostela
2007–2010 Valencia
2010–2011 Roda
2011–2012 Villarreal
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2012–2013 Villarreal C 29 (11)
2013–2017 Celta B 144 (73)
2014–2018 Celta 1 (0)
2017–2018 Zaragoza (loan) 39 (22)
2018–2019 Espanyol 37 (17)
2019– Betis 142 (39)
2024 Bayer Leverkusen (loan) 7 (0)
2024– Celta (loan) 20 (5)
National team
2022– Spain 2 (0)
  • Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 23:05, 19 January 2025 (UTC).

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 20:48, 28 March 2023 (UTC)

Borja Iglesias Quintas (born 17 January 1993) is a Spanish professional footballer. He plays as a striker for La Liga club Celta. He is currently on loan from Betis. Borja also plays for the Spain national team.

He started his career at Celta, mostly playing for their reserve team. He has played over 175 games in La Liga and scored more than 50 goals. He played for Espanyol and Betis. With Betis, he won the 2021–22 Copa del Rey, a major Spanish cup competition.

Iglesias played his first game for the Spanish national team in 2022.

Club Career Highlights

Starting Out: Villarreal

Borja Iglesias was born in Santiago de Compostela, Spain. He started playing football when he was very young. At age 10, he joined SD Compostela. Later, he played for youth teams at CD Roda and Valencia CF. He finished his youth training at Villarreal CF. In 2012, he began his senior career with Villarreal's C team.

Playing for Celta

On 9 July 2013, Iglesias joined RC Celta de Vigo. He signed a two-year contract and played for their reserve team, Celta B. On 3 January 2015, he played his first game for Celta's main team in La Liga. He came on as a substitute in a match against Sevilla FC.

On 11 December 2016, Borja scored two goals against Caudal Deportivo. This made him Celta B's all-time top scorer with 53 goals. He scored 32 goals in the third-tier league that season. This helped his team reach the play-offs.

On 6 July 2017, Iglesias went on loan to Segunda División club Real Zaragoza for one year. He scored his first goal for Zaragoza on 27 August, from a penalty kick. He scored two goals in several games, reaching 15 goals by March. He finished the season with 22 goals, making him one of the top scorers in the division. In one game, he was sent off (given a red card) just before half time.

Time at Espanyol

On 9 July 2018, Iglesias signed a four-year contract with RCD Espanyol. His contract included a buyout clause of €28 million. This means another club would have to pay €28 million to buy him. He played his first game for Espanyol on 18 August. In his next game, he scored a goal to help his team win against Valencia CF.

In July and August 2019, Iglesias scored three goals in two games against Ungmennafélagið Stjarnan. These goals helped Espanyol win in the qualifying rounds of the UEFA Europa League.

Moving to Betis

Borja iglesias presentación 002
Iglesias being presented by Betis in August 2019

On 14 August 2019, Iglesias moved to Real Betis for €28 million. He signed a five-year deal. At Betis, he joined his former Espanyol manager, Rubi. In his first season, he scored three goals. He also received a red card at the end of a goalless draw against CD Leganés. In the 2020–21 season, he scored 13 goals, helping Betis qualify for the Europa League.

On 3 March 2022, in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey, Iglesias scored a goal in stoppage time. This goal helped his team draw 1–1 with Rayo Vallecano and reach the final. In the final match on 23 April, he scored the first goal against Valencia. The game ended in a 1–1 draw, and Betis won on penalties. He was the top scorer in the tournament with five goals and was named the most valuable player in the final.

Iglesias started the 2022–23 season strongly, scoring six goals in his first six games. This earned him the award for La Liga Player of the Month for August. On 6 November, he received a straight red card in a game against Sevilla.

In the first part of the 2023–24 season, Iglesias scored only two goals in 18 games. On 27 January 2024, he went on loan to German club Bayer 04 Leverkusen until the end of the season. He played ten games for them and helped them win two domestic trophies. However, he did not score any goals during his loan spell.

On 19 July 2024, Iglesias returned to Celta on a loan deal for the season.

International Career

In September 2022, Borja Iglesias was called up to the Spanish national team for the first time. This was for UEFA Nations League games. He made his debut against Switzerland in a 2–1 loss. Even though he was the top Spanish goal scorer in 2022, he was not chosen for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

In August 2023, Borja Iglesias announced he would not play for Spain. This was because he disagreed with the president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation and wanted the president to resign.

Personal Life

Iglesias is known by the nickname Panda. This nickname comes from a song by the rapper Desiigner. In 2020, he gained attention for painting his fingernails black. He did this to show his support for the Black Lives Matter movement.

Career Statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup Europe Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Villarreal C 2012–13 Tercera División 29 11 29 11
Celta B 2013–14 Segunda División B 35 12 35 12
2014–15 Segunda División B 36 17 36 17
2015–16 Segunda División B 36 12 36 12
2016–17 Segunda División B 37 32 2 2 39 34
Total 144 73 2 2 146 75
Celta 2014–15 La Liga 1 0 0 0 1 0
2015–16 La Liga 0 0 1 0 1 0
2016–17 La Liga 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 1 0 1 0 2 0
Zaragoza (loan) 2017–18 Segunda División 39 22 2 1 2 0 43 23
Espanyol 2018–19 La Liga 37 17 6 3 43 20
2019–20 La Liga 0 0 0 0 3 3 3 3
Total 37 17 6 3 3 3 46 23
Betis 2019–20 La Liga 35 3 2 0 37 3
2020–21 La Liga 28 11 4 2 32 13
2021–22 La Liga 33 10 8 5 10 4 51 19
2022–23 La Liga 35 15 1 0 6 0 1 0 43 15
2023–24 La Liga 11 0 1 1 6 1 18 2
Total 142 39 16 8 22 5 1 0 181 52
Bayer Leverkusen (loan) 2023–24 Bundesliga 7 0 1 0 2 0 10 0
Celta (loan) 2024–25 La Liga 20 5 2 0 22 5
Career total 419 167 28 12 27 8 5 2 479 189

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Spain 2022 1 0
2023 1 0
Total 2 0

Honours

Betis

Bayer Leverkusen

Individual

  • La Liga Player of the Month: August 2022

See also

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