Capdevila in action for Villarreal |
||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Joan Capdevila i Méndez | |||||||||||
| Date of birth | 3 February 1978 | |||||||||||
| Place of birth | Tàrrega, Spain | |||||||||||
| Height | 1.82 m (5 ft 11 1⁄2 in) | |||||||||||
| Playing position | Left back | |||||||||||
| Club information | ||||||||||||
| Current club | Benfica | |||||||||||
| Number | 38 | |||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||
| Tàrrega | ||||||||||||
| Espanyol | ||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | |||||||||
| 1996–1997 | Tàrrega | 34 | (3) | |||||||||
| 1997–1998 | Espanyol B | 34 | (2) | |||||||||
| 1998–1999 | Espanyol | 29 | (4) | |||||||||
| 1999–2000 | Atlético Madrid | 31 | (2) | |||||||||
| 2000–2007 | Deportivo La Coruña | 177 | (15) | |||||||||
| 2007–2011 | Villarreal | 140 | (15) | |||||||||
| 2011– | Benfica | 1 | (0) | |||||||||
| National team‡ | ||||||||||||
| 1998–2000 | Spain U21 | 13 | (0) | |||||||||
| 2000 | Spain U23 | 4 | (0) | |||||||||
| 2002–2011 | Spain | 60 | (4) | |||||||||
| 2002– | Catalonia | 8 | (0) | |||||||||
|
Honours
|
||||||||||||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 1 September 2011. † Appearances (Goals). |
||||||||||||
Joan Capdevila i Méndez (Catalan pronunciation: [ʒuˈaŋ kəbdəˈβiɫə]; born 3 February 1978) is a Spanish footballer who plays for S.L. Benfica in Portugal, and the Spanish national team.
His usual position is left defender, but he is also capable of operating as a winger and, from a defensive position, often contributes with goals. Over the course of 13 La Liga seasons, he amassed totals of 379 appearances and 36 goals, namely for Deportivo de La Coruña and Villarreal.
A Spanish international on more than 60 occasions, Capdevila represented the nation in one World Cup and two European Championships, winning one tournament in each competition.
Contents |
Born in Tàrrega, Province of Lleida, Catalonia, and a product of RCD Espanyol's youth system, Capdevila made his debut for its first team during 1998–99, in a 2–2 La Liga draw at Athletic Bilbao, and joined Atlético Madrid the following season.
After the Colchoneros relegation, however, he signed with Galician side Deportivo de La Coruña in the summer of 2000, and would be a regular fixture in the team as left-back, first competing with Enrique Romero, then as the undisputed first-choice. On 16 September 2006, he netted twice as Depor overcame Villarreal CF 2–0 at Riazor Stadium.[1]
In 2007–08, Capdevila joined Villarreal on a three-year deal,[2] and played in all the league games except two, for a side that finished runner-up, achieving direct UEFA Champions League qualification. He produced similar numbers in his second year, bettering his goal total in the process (five).
In the 2009–10 season, with no real competition for his position, Capdevila continued to figure prominently for Villarreal, only missing one league match. The defender added another five goals, but the club could not qualify for the UEFA Europa League this time, after finishing seventh. On 6 December 2009, he scored a brace in a 3–2 home win against Getafe CF,[3] precisely the team that prevented the Valencian from reaching that achievement, even though the side was later reinstated at the expense of RCD Mallorca.
Midway through 2010–11, Capdevila faced stiff competition from José Catalá, even being relegated to the bench on some matches. He did finish the campaign with more than 40 official games, including nine in Villarreal's Europa League semifinal run, where he scored in a 3–2 home win against eventual winners F.C. Porto (4–7 aggregate loss).[4]
On 21 July 2011, aged 33, Capdevila moved abroad for the first time, joining S.L. Benfica in Portugal on a two-year contract.[5] On 20 August he made his official debut in a 3–1 league win against C.D. Feirense at Estádio da Luz,[6] but was not included in the club's squad for the group stages of the Champions League,[7] which prompted rumours that he would seek a transfer away from the club in the January transfer window.[8][9] Manager Jorge Jesus confirmed that another newly-signed, Brazilian Emerson, would be first-choice left-back and that the Spaniard would find it difficult to be included in match day squads.[10]
Capdevila made his debut for Spain on 16 October 2002 against Paraguay in a 0–0 draw. He scored his first international goal in an UEFA Euro 2008 qualifier against Sweden, on 17 November 2007, as Spain won 3–0. Previously, he made the nation's final squad for Euro 2004, but did not leave the bench.
On 6 February 2008, in Málaga, Capdevila scored the winning goal in Spain's 1–0 win against France in an international friendly. He was subsequently called up to Spain's squad for Euro 2008, where he featured in all the matches save one for the eventual champions. During the tournament he established himself as first-choice, his clearance in the dying seconds against Sweden being a crucial part of David Villa's late winner to make the score 2–1. Together with right-back Sergio Ramos and central defenders Carles Puyol and Carlos Marchena, he helped keep clean sheets during all three matches of the knock-out stages and only conceded two goals in four matches.
During the first game of the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup on 14 June 2009, Capdevila set up Fernando Torres's third goal of his hat-trick, and also assisted for Cesc Fàbregas's second international goal, as Spain thrashed New Zealand 5–0. In fact, all five goals were created from the left wing, with Capdevila playing a crucial part in the Spanish attack.[11] In the second game against Iraq three days later, he assisted Villa's 55th-minute goal, as Spain defeated Iraq 1–0. He, Puyol, Villa and Torres were named in the team of the tournament, as Spain finished third.
On 20 May 2010, after appearing in all the matches during the qualifying stages, contributing with one goal in Spain's 4–0 home win against Armenia, Capdevila was selected by manager Vicente del Bosque to the squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, where he played all the matches and minutes for the eventual champions, being the only member of the starting line-up for the final who was not a Real Madrid or FC Barcelona player, considering Villa had been signed by the latter days before the tournament.
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 17 November 2007 | Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid, Spain | Sweden | 1–0 | 3–0 | Euro 2008 qualifying |
| 2. | 6 February 2008 | Estadio La Rosaleda, Málaga, Spain | France | 1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
| 3. | 31 May 2008 | Estadio Nuevo Colombino, Huelva, Spain | Peru | 2–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 4. | 10 September 2008 | Estadio Carlos Belmonte, Albacete, Spain | Armenia | 1–0 | 4–0 | 2010 World Cup qualification |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||