Iván de la Peña facts for kids
De la Peña playing for Espanyol in 2009
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Iván de la Peña López | ||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 6 May 1976 | ||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Santander, Spain | ||||||||||||
| Height | 1.69 m | ||||||||||||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||
| Racing Santander | |||||||||||||
| 1991–1993 | Barcelona | ||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | ||||||||||
| 1993–1995 | Barcelona B | 37 | (5) | ||||||||||
| 1995–1998 | Barcelona | 81 | (11) | ||||||||||
| 1998–2002 | Lazio | 15 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 1999–2000 | → Marseille (loan) | 12 | (1) | ||||||||||
| 2000–2001 | → Barcelona (loan) | 9 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2002–2011 | Espanyol | 179 | (8) | ||||||||||
| Total | 333 | (25) | |||||||||||
| National team | |||||||||||||
| 1991–1992 | Spain U16 | 17 | (2) | ||||||||||
| 1992 | Spain U17 | 4 | (1) | ||||||||||
| 1994 | Spain U18 | 7 | (3) | ||||||||||
| 1995 | Spain U20 | 5 | (2) | ||||||||||
| 1995–1996 | Spain U21 | 10 | (1) | ||||||||||
| 1996 | Spain U23 | 4 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2005 | Spain | 5 | (0) | ||||||||||
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Honours
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Iván de la Peña López (born on May 6, 1976) is a Spanish former professional footballer. He played as a midfielder, a player who helps both attack and defense. During his career, he was known by two cool nicknames: Pequeño Buda (which means 'Little Buddha') and Lo Pelat ('The Shaven One'). These names came from his shaved head and small size.
Iván started his football journey as a young talent at Barcelona. He later finished his long career at their nearby rival team, Espanyol. Over 12 seasons in La Liga, Spain's top football league, he played in 269 games and scored 19 goals. Iván de la Peña was famous for his amazing technical skills and his ability to make very accurate passes. However, he also faced many injuries throughout his career.
Contents
Playing Career Highlights
Club Teams and Success
Iván de la Peña was born in Santander, Spain. He joined Barcelona as a young player in 1991. Two years later, he started playing for their B-team. He played 37 games for the B-team.
Early Days at Barcelona
On September 3, 1995, at just 19 years old, Iván made his first official game for Barcelona's main team. The manager, Johan Cruyff, brought him on as a substitute. Iván even scored a goal in that game, helping his team win 2–0 against Real Valladolid. Many people thought he would be the next big star, following in the footsteps of Pep Guardiola. In his first season (1995–96), he scored seven league goals, which was his best ever.
However, he later had some disagreements with manager Cruyff. Things changed when Bobby Robson became the manager in 1996. Iván got another chance to show his skills. He played very well alongside Ronaldo. They were key players when Barcelona won three big trophies in 1997: the Copa del Rey (Spanish Cup), the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, and the UEFA Supercup. Because of his great performances, he was voted the best young player by El País newspaper in both 1996 and 1997.
Moving On and Coming Back
When another Dutch coach, Louis van Gaal, arrived at Barcelona, Iván de la Peña found himself playing less again. So, he moved to Lazio in Italy. But he didn't play much there either. He was then loaned to Marseille in France for the 1999–2000 season. This move also wasn't very successful.
He returned to Barcelona on loan for the 2000–01 season. However, he only played nine games that year. After that, he went back to Italy and was released by Lazio in 2002.
Success at Espanyol
In 2002, Iván de la Peña joined Espanyol, Barcelona's city rivals. This move gave him the chance to play regularly and show his best football. In the 2004–05 season, he helped Espanyol finish fifth in La Liga. This meant they qualified for the UEFA Cup, a big European competition.
In the 2006 Spanish Cup final, Iván was the star. He helped Espanyol win 4–1 against Real Zaragoza. He set up two goals in that game. First, he took a free-kick that led to Raúl Tamudo scoring. Then, he worked with Tamudo again to create a goal for Luis García. Because of this win, Espanyol qualified for the UEFA Cup again in 2006–07. They even reached the final but lost to Sevilla after a penalty shootout.
Injuries and Retirement
From 2007 to 2009, Iván de la Peña suffered from many injuries. Despite this, on February 21, 2009, he scored two goals in a 2–1 win against Barcelona. This was a special game because Barcelona was first in the league and Espanyol was last. Espanyol ended up finishing 10th that season.
In August 2009, after the sad death of the team's new captain, Daniel Jarque, Iván de la Peña became the new captain. His injury problems continued to be a big issue. He even said he would retire if they kept bothering him. He finally retired on May 22, 2011, at 35 years old, right after a home game against Sevilla.
International Career
Iván de la Peña also played for Spain's national youth teams. He played for the Spanish under-21s in both the 1996 UEFA European Championship and the 1996 Summer Olympics. He helped Spain reach the quarter-finals in the Olympics.
He made his debut for the senior team on February 9, 2005. He was 28 years old. This was in a 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifying game against San Marino, which Spain won 5–0. He played five games for Spain in 2005.
Life After Football
After retiring from playing, Iván de la Peña became part of the coaching staff for Roma, an Italian club. He worked alongside his former Barcelona teammate, Luis Enrique, who was the new manager.
Later, he took a break for family reasons. Today, Iván de la Peña works as a football agent. This means he helps players manage their careers. His most famous client is the young Barcelona talent, Gavi.
Career Statistics
Club
- Source:
| Club | Season | League | Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Barcelona B | 1993–94 | Segunda División | 3 | 0 | – | – | – | 3 | 0 | |||
| 1994–95 | 31 | 4 | – | – | – | 31 | 4 | |||||
| 1995–96 | 3 | 1 | – | – | – | 3 | 1 | |||||
| Total | 37 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 5 | ||
| Barcelona | 1995–96 | La Liga | 31 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 42 | 9 |
| 1996–97 | 33 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 42 | 3 | ||
| 1997–98 | 17 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 21 | 2 | ||
| Total | 81 | 11 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 15 | 2 | 105 | 14 | ||
| Lazio | 1998–99 | Serie A | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 19 | 1 |
| 2001–02 | Serie A | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 15 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 21 | 1 | ||||
| Marseille (loan) | 1999–2000 | Ligue 1 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 19 | 1 |
| Barcelona (loan) | 2000–01 | La Liga | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 0 |
| Espanyol | 2002–03 | La Liga | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 0 |
| 2003–04 | 25 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 1 | ||
| 2004–05 | 29 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 3 | ||
| 2005–06 | 30 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 44 | 0 | ||
| 2006–07 | 26 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 38 | 1 | ||
| 2007–08 | 12 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 | ||
| 2008–09 | 22 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 4 | ||
| 2009–10 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
| 2010–11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 179 | 8 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 18 | 1 | 210 | 9 | ||
| Career total | 333 | 25 | 23 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 46 | 4 | 404 | 31 | ||
International
| Spain | ||
| Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 5 | 0 |
| Total | 5 | 0 |
Honours and Awards
Club Achievements
Barcelona
- La Liga: 1997–98
- Copa del Rey: 1996–97, 1997–98
- Supercopa de España: 1996
- UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 1996–97
- UEFA Super Cup: 1997
Lazio
- Supercoppa Italiana: 1998
- UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 1998–99
Espanyol
- Copa del Rey: 2005–06
- UEFA Cup: Runner-up 2006–07
International Achievements
Spain
- UEFA European Under-21 Championship: Runner-up 1996
Individual Awards
- Don Balón Award – Breakthrough Player of the Year in La Liga: 1995–96
See also
In Spanish: Iván de la Peña para niños
