Palop playing for Sevilla |
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Andrés Palop Cervera | ||
| Date of birth | 22 October 1973 | ||
| Place of birth | L'Alcúdia, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Playing position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Sevilla | ||
| Number | 1 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –1993 | Valencia | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1993–1997 | Valencia B | 68 | (0) |
| 1997–2005 | Valencia | 43 | (0) |
| 1997–1999 | → Villarreal (loan) | 74 | (0) |
| 2005– | Sevilla | 198 | (1) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 20 November 2011. † Appearances (Goals). |
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Andrés Palop Cervera (born 22 October 1973 in L'Alcúdia, Valencia) is a Spanish footballer who plays for Sevilla FC as a goalkeeper.
After having languished on the bench of hometown side Valencia for most of his stay, he became a premiere player with Sevilla well into his 30's, helping it consolidate in both the domestic and European fronts.
Palop appeared with Spain at Euro 2008, but never gained an international cap.
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A youth product of local giants Valencia CF's youth ranks, Palop's first professional seasons were spent at neighbours Villarreal CF, in a two-year loan spell. He was the undisputed starter in the side's La Liga promotion – a first ever – and relegation, being subsequently recalled by the Che.
In his six-year stint with Valencia's main squad, however, Palop was mostly backup to veteran Santiago Cañizares, his most matches consisting of 15 in his first year; as the club were crowned league champions in 2002 and 2004, he could only appear seven times combined (all in the former), and eventually grew unsettled.
Palop joined Sevilla FC in the 2005 summer, quickly becoming one of the Andalusians' cornerstones, as they added five titles in only one year. On 15 March 2007, he made headlines when he scored an injury time equalising goal in the UEFA Cup round of 16 tie against FC Shakhtar Donetsk, forcing extra time as a result. Sevilla, which had drawn 2–2 at home in the first leg, went on to win 3–2, and eventually won the competition for the second consecutive time.[1] In the final, against fellow league side RCD Espanyol, he stopped three of four penalty kicks in the shootout, being named Man of the Match.[2]
In the following years, veteran Palop continued to be an undisputed starter for Sevilla, never appearing in less than 31 league matches. In 2009–10, he helped the club to the fourth place in the league (and subsequent UEFA Champions League qualification) and the season's domestic cup.
Palop was first called-up for Spain in August 2007, for a friendly with Greece, after a last-minute injury to Iker Casillas. However, he did not leave the bench in the match.[3]
Uncapped, he lost a narrow competition with José Manuel Reina of Liverpool for second-choice at UEFA Euro 2008, but beat FC Barcelona's Víctor Valdés for the third spot on the squad. During the ceremony following Spain's victory in the tournament, Palop wore Luis Arconada's original Euro 1984 final shirt.[4] He received the gold medal from Michel Platini (who had won the 1984 continental competition, scoring the final opener from an Arconada blunder), later president of UEFA.
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