| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Rubén Baraja Vegas | ||
| Date of birth | July 11, 1975 | ||
| Place of birth | Valladolid, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1993–1995 | Valladolid B | ||
| 1993–1996 | Valladolid | 41 | (2) |
| 1996–1999 | Atlético B | 79 | (20) |
| 1999–2000 | Atlético Madrid | 34 | (4) |
| 2000–2010 | Valencia | 262 | (41) |
| Total | 416 | (67) | |
| National team | |||
| 1993 | Spain U18 | 3 | (1) |
| 2000–2005 | Spain | 43 | (7) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). |
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Rubén Baraja Vegas (born 11 July 1975) is a retired Spanish professional footballer.
A complete central midfielder with good tackling and offensive qualities together with accurate passing and goalscoring ability,[1] he played mostly for Valencia during a 17-year career, being an essential figure in five of the club's major titles, namely two La Liga championships.
During five years, Baraja was also a consistent part of the Spanish national team, appearing in one World Cup and one European Championship, and gaining nearly 50 caps.
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Born in Valladolid, Castile and León, Baraja started his career at local club Real Valladolid before moving to Atlético de Madrid, where he would spend two 1/2 seasons with the B side, first appearing with the main squad on February 7, 1999, playing the second half of a 1–2 defeat at UD Salamanca. In 1998–99, with the B's in the second level, he netted a career-best 11 goals.
When Atlético was relegated at the end of 1999–2000, Baraja left the club in a 2,000 million pesetas transfer to that season's UEFA Champions League finalists Valencia CF,[2] who were looking to strengthen their central midfield following the sale of first team players Gerard and Javier Farinós.
In his first season at Valencia, he was a key element in Valencia's 2000–01 Champions League campaign, as the club was beaten in the final for the second year running, this time losing in a penalty shootout to FC Bayern Munich, with Baraja scoring on his attempt.
The 2001–02 season would see Baraja's first trophy win, where his goals late in the campaign helped Valencia to their first league title in 31 years. He finished the club's top scorer in the league, netting seven in only seventeen league games. 2003–04 was another big year, winning both the domestic championship (with eight league goals from the player) as well as the UEFA Cup, beating Olympique de Marseille 2–0 in the final.
In 2006–07, Baraja only appeared in 14 league contests, as Valencia finished fourth, and continued to be constantly bothered by physical problems in the following years.
After two respectable seasons, often partnering longtime central midfield partner David Albelda, he was again greatly troubled with physical problems in 2009–10, appearing in only 18 matches (two complete). On May 16, 2010, Baraja closed his Valencia chapter after one full decade, receiving homages before and after the 1–0 home win against CD Tenerife, and being replaced to a standing ovation in the 89th minute; shortly after, the 35-year old announced his retirement, having appeared in 338 first division games over the course of 15 seasons, scoring 47 goals.
In June 2011, Baraja returned to former team Atlético Madrid, as part of newly-appointed manager Gregorio Manzano's coaching staff.[3]
Baraja made his debut for the Spanish national team on 7 October 2000, in the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification 2–0 win over Israel. Consequently, he was picked for the final stages, where the team reached the quarter-finals before being sent out by South Korea on penalties, though Baraja, as the year before with his club, once again scored on his attempt.
Baraja also took part in the disappointing UEFA Euro 2004, where Spain was eliminated in the group stage by later finalists Portugal and Greece.
In the 2006 FIFA World Cup,[4] Baraja was left out of the Spanish squad as his club presence was also diminished due to recurrent injuries.[5][6][7]
| Club performance | League | Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Spain | League | Copa del Rey | Europe | Total | ||||||
| 1993/94 | Valladolid | La Liga | 5 | 1 | ||||||
| 1994/95 | 9 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1995/96 | 27 | 1 | ||||||||
| 1996/97 | Atlético Madrid | La Liga | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| 1997/98 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1998/99 | 8 | 1 | ||||||||
| 1999/00 | 26 | 3 | ||||||||
| 2000/01 | Valencia | La Liga | 35 | 4 | ||||||
| 2001/02 | 17 | 7 | ||||||||
| 2002/03 | 35 | 5 | ||||||||
| 2003/04 | 35 | 8 | ||||||||
| 2004/05 | 25 | 7 | ||||||||
| 2005/06 | 31 | 4 | ||||||||
| 2006/07 | 14 | 1 | ||||||||
| 2007/08 | 25 | 2 | ||||||||
| 2008/09 | 28 | 3 | ||||||||
| 2009/10 | 18 | 0 | ||||||||
| Country | Spain | 338 | 47 | |||||||
| Total | 338 | 47 | ||||||||
| Spain national team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2000 | 3 | 1 |
| 2001 | 5 | 1 |
| 2002 | 10 | 3 |
| 2003 | 10 | 0 |
| 2004 | 12 | 2 |
| 2005 | 3 | 0 |
| Total | 43 | 7 |
| Team | Award | Year(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Valencia | Spanish League | 2001–02, 2003–04 |
| Valencia | UEFA Cup | 2003–04 |
| Valencia | UEFA Super Cup | 2004 |
| Valencia | Spanish Cup | 2007–08 |
Baraja's younger brother, Javier, is also a professional footballer. A defender, he too graduated at Valladolid, and went on to spend most of his senior career there.
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