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Josemi
Personal information
Full name José Miguel González Rey
Date of birth (1979-11-15) 15 November 1979 (age 44)
Place of birth Torremolinos, Spain
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position Defender
Youth career
Torremolinos
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1997–1998 Torremolinos
1998–2001 Málaga B 67 (1)
2001–2004 Málaga 93 (0)
2004–2006 Liverpool 21 (0)
2006–2008 Villarreal 32 (0)
2008–2010 Mallorca 53 (1)
2010–2011 Iraklis 26 (0)
2011–2012 Cartagena 18 (0)
2012–2013 Levadiakos 25 (0)
2013–2014 Skoda Xanthi 16 (0)
2014–2015 Atlético Kolkata 20 (0)
Total 371 (2)
Honours
UEFA Champions League
Gold 2004–05
Football League Cup
Silver 2004–05
UEFA Super Cup
Gold 2005
Indian Super League
Gold 2014
  • Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.
† Appearances (Goals).

José Miguel González Rey (born 15 November 1979), known as Josemi, is a Spanish former footballer. Mainly a right back, he also played as a central defender.

He appeared in 178 La Liga matches over nine seasons (one goal), with Málaga, Villarreal and Mallorca, also representing Liverpool for one and a half seasons where he won two major titles including the 2005 Champions League. He later competed professionally in Greece, before moving to the newly formed Indian Super League.

Club career

Early career

Born in Torremolinos, Málaga, Josemi started his professional career at Málaga CF, arriving from local amateurs Torremolinos Club de Fútbol in 1998. He started appearing for his new club with the reserve team, in Tercera División.

After one match in 2000–01's closer, a 0–4 away loss against Deportivo de La Coruña on 17 June 2001, Josemi went on to become an essential defensive element for the Andalusia side, helping them to the 2002 UEFA Intertoto Cup and soon attracting interest from bigger European clubs.

Liverpool

Subsequently, Josemi became Rafael Benítez's first signing as Liverpool manager, for £2 million in the summer of 2004. He played 15 games in the Premier League in his debut season and, after an initial run, he was sent off in the club's 4–2 victory at Fulham on 16 October 2004, his subsequent ban leading to Steve Finnan re-establishing himself as first-choice right-back.

Josemi made seven appearances (five starts) in the Reds' victorious campaign in the UEFA Champions League, but struggled to make the substitutes bench in the knockout stages, and also lost his place in the first half of 2005–06, suggesting he would soon leave Anfield.

Return to Spain

On 29 December 2005, it was announced that Liverpool and Villarreal CF had agreed to swap Josemi and Jan Kromkamp in the January 2006 transfer window. He made a good start and appeared in 22 league matches in 2006–07, but only took part in only one the following season for the eventual La Liga runners-up.

In July 2008, Josemi signed for RCD Mallorca. He scored his first goal as a professional on 23 November, in a 2–2 home draw against former owners Málaga. In his second year he was challenged by new signing Felipe Mattioni, but ended up contributing with 28 games as the Balearic Islands side finished fifth and qualified for the UEFA Europa League.

Later years

At nearly 31, Josemi left Spain for the second time in August 2010, signing a three-year contract with Iraklis Thessaloniki FC. After only one season – which brought Superleague Greece relegation due to irregularities – however, he returned to his country and joined FC Cartagena in Segunda División, on a two-year deal.

On 21 August 2014, after two seasons in Greece with Levadiakos F.C. and Skoda Xanthi F.C. respectively, Josemi was a third-round draft pick for Atlético de Kolkata in the inaugural draft of the Indian Super League draft. He made his debut in the competition in the opening match, starting a 3–0 home victory over Mumbai City FC, and formed a formidable stopper partnership with Arnab Mondal during his first year, acting as team captain in the final win over the Kerala Blasters in the absence of countryman Luis García, where he also won the Fittest Player of the Match award.

Following his successful debut season, on 12 June 2015 Josemi renewed his contract with Atlético for one more year. He was released on 13 November, after being ruled out for the remainder of the campaign due to injury.

On 22 September 2016, after almost a year with a club, 36-year-old Josemi announced his retirement. In February 2017, he returned to Málaga as match delegate.

Club statistics

Club Season League Cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Málaga 2000–01 La Liga 1 0 0 0 1 0
2001–02 La Liga 23 0 2 0 25 0
2002–03 La Liga 32 0 2 0 14 0 48 0
2003–04 La Liga 37 0 4 0 41 0
Total 93 0 8 0 14 0 115 0
Liverpool 2004–05 Premier League 15 0 1 0 7 0 23 0
2005–06 Premier League 6 0 0 0 4 0 2 0 12 0
Total 21 0 1 0 11 0 2 0 35 0
Villarreal 2005–06 La Liga 9 0 1 0 10 0
2006–07 La Liga 22 0 4 0 1 0 27 0
2007–08 La Liga 1 0 4 0 3 0 8 0
Total 32 0 9 0 4 0 45 0
Mallorca 2008–09 La Liga 25 1 5 0 30 1
2009–10 La Liga 28 0 3 0 31 0
Total 53 1 6 0 59 1
Iraklis 2010–11 Superleague Greece 26 0 2 0 28 0
Cartagena 2011–12 Segunda División 18 0 1 0 19 0
Levadiakos 2012–13 Superleague Greece 25 0 5 0 30 0
Skoda Xanthi 2013–14 Superleague Greece 16 0 2 0 18 0
Atlético Kolkata 2014 Indian Super League 17 0 17 0
2015 Indian Super League 3 0 3 0
Total 20 0 20 0
Career total 304 1 34 0 29 0 2 0 369 1

Honours

Málaga

  • UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2002

Liverpool

Atlético Kolkata

  • Indian Super League: 2014

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Josemi González para niños

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