Santiago Ezquerro facts for kids
Ezquerro playing for Barcelona in 2006
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Santiago Ezquerro Marín | ||
| Date of birth | 14 December 1976 | ||
| Place of birth | Calahorra, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.81 m | ||
| Playing position | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1992–1993 | Calahorra | ||
| 1993–1994 | Osasuna | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1994–1995 | Osasuna B | 15 | (1) |
| 1995–1996 | Osasuna | 38 | (8) |
| 1996–1997 | Atlético Madrid B | 34 | (11) |
| 1996–1998 | Atlético Madrid | 8 | (0) |
| 1998 | → Mallorca (loan) | 14 | (6) |
| 1998–2005 | Athletic Bilbao | 222 | (45) |
| 2005–2008 | Barcelona | 24 | (3) |
| 2008–2009 | Osasuna | 10 | (1) |
| Total | 365 | (75) | |
| National team | |||
| 1996 | Spain U21 | 1 | (0) |
| 1998 | Spain | 1 | (0) |
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Santiago 'Santi' Ezquerro Marín (born on December 14, 1976) is a Spanish former footballer. He played as a forward, which means he was a player who mainly tried to score goals.
Santi Ezquerro became well-known while playing for Athletic Bilbao. He played almost 300 games for them over seven years. After that, he moved to FC Barcelona, a very famous club. However, he didn't play as much there and left after three years.
Throughout his career, Ezquerro played 278 matches in La Liga, which is Spain's top football league. He scored 55 goals in these games.
Contents
Santi Ezquerro's Football Journey
Starting Out: Osasuna and Atlético Madrid
Santi Ezquerro was born in Calahorra, a town in La Rioja, Spain. He started his football career in the youth teams of CA Osasuna. He played two seasons with Osasuna in the Segunda División (the second division league).
In 1996, he joined Atlético Madrid. He played his first game in La Liga on September 21, 1996. It was an away game against CD Logroñés, and Atlético Madrid won 3–0. Even though he was with the main team, he mostly played for Atlético Madrid B, which is the club's reserve team.
Becoming a Star at Athletic Bilbao
Santi didn't get to play much for Atlético Madrid. So, in January 1998, he moved to RCD Mallorca. He helped Mallorca reach the final of the Copa del Rey (a big cup competition) during his six months there.
After Mallorca, he joined Athletic Bilbao. This is where he really shined! He played in his first UEFA Champions League games with Athletic. He became one of the most promising forwards in Spain's top league. A memorable moment was when he scored a goal in a 3–0 win against Real Sociedad on April 9, 2005.
His best season was 2004–2005. He played 47 games and scored 19 goals. This included scoring three goals in one game (a hat-trick) against Standard Liège in the UEFA Cup. Because of his great performance, FC Barcelona signed him in 2005. He moved to Barcelona for free, which is called a free transfer.
Time at FC Barcelona
At Barcelona, Santi Ezquerro found it hard to get a regular spot in the first team. It became even tougher when a young player named Lionel Messi started to become famous. In his first year (2005–2006), he played 12 league games and scored two goals.
In the 2007–2008 season, Ezquerro didn't get to play much at all. He wasn't able to find another team to join. However, he did score two goals in a cup game against CD Alcoyano in January.
Back to Osasuna and Retirement
In July 2008, Barcelona let Ezquerro go. Later that month, he went back to his old club, CA Osasuna. But his return was difficult. He had injuries and didn't fit into the new coach's plans.
After just one year back at Osasuna, he was released from his contract. He earned about €1.4 million. Santi Ezquerro retired from football at the age of 33 because he couldn't find a new club to play for.
Playing for Spain
Santi Ezquerro played one game for the Spanish national team. This happened during his first season with Athletic Bilbao. He played in a game against Cyprus on September 5, 1998. Spain lost that game 2–3.
Trophies and Achievements
Santi Ezquerro won some important trophies during his career:
Mallorca
- Copa del Rey runner-up: 1997–98 (This means his team reached the final but didn't win the cup)
Barcelona
- La Liga: 2005–06 (This is the top Spanish league title)
- UEFA Champions League: 2005–06 (This is the biggest club competition in Europe)
- FIFA Club World Cup runner-up: 2006 (His team reached the final of the world club championship)
- UEFA Super Cup runner-up: 2006 (His team reached the final of the European Super Cup)
