Luis García Fernández
 García in action for Espanyol in 2009 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Luis García Fernández | ||
| Date of birth | 6 February 1981 | ||
| Place of birth | Oviedo, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Playing position | Striker / Winger | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Zaragoza | ||
| Number | 10 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1991–1996 | Oviedo | ||
| 1996 | La Braña | ||
| 1996–2000 | Real Madrid | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2000–2001 | Real Madrid C | 24 | (14) |
| 2001–2003 | Real Madrid B | 73 | (37) |
| 2003–2004 | Murcia | 38 | (11) |
| 2004–2005 | Mallorca | 37 | (11) |
| 2005–2011 | Espanyol | 220 | (47) |
| 2011– | Zaragoza | 37 | (4) |
| 2012–2013 | → UANL (loan) | 28 | (5) |
| National team | |||
| 2007–2008 | Spain | 7 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 22 September 2013. † Appearances (Goals). | |||
Luis García Fernández (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈlwis ɣarˈθi.a]; born 6 February 1981) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Real Zaragoza. Mainly a striker, he can also operate as a winger.
Over the course of nine seasons, he amassed La Liga totals of 329 games and 73 goals, mainly with Espanyol, with which he won one Copa del Rey and reached the 2007 UEFA Cup Final.[1]
Club career
Real Madrid / Early years
García was born in Oviedo, Asturias. After representing three teams as a youth player he began his senior career with his last one, Real Madrid, first appearing with its C-team then progressing in 2001 to Castilla in the third division; he played his first game for the main side in the Copa del Rey.
Released by Madrid in 2003 García joined Real Murcia, making his La Liga debut on 31 August and scoring a penalty in a 1–1 away draw against Celta de Vigo. He finished his debut season with 11 goals as he appeared in all the matches, although the side would be relegated; on 16 May 2004, he netted both goals in a 2–1 fruitless home win against his former employee.[2]
Espanyol
The following season García produced similar numbers at RCD Mallorca, which barely avoided relegation (17th) and, in the 2005 off-season, signed a five-year contract with RCD Espanyol,[3] playing 49 games overall in his first season and adding 14 goals, including a brace in the 2006 Spanish Cup final, a 4–1 win over Real Zaragoza. At the season's closure, he extended his deal until 2012.[4]
García, forming a formidable offensive partnership at the Catalonians with youth graduate Raúl Tamudo (the pair combined for 67 league goals from 2005–08), contributed with five goals during the club's 2006–07 runner-up run in the UEFA Cup, including a hat-trick in a 23 November 2006 group stage 6–2 home win against SV Zulte-Waregem.[5] However, in the May final, he missed his penalty shootout attempt in a final loss to fellow league side Sevilla FC.[6]
In the following three seasons García was an everpresent figure for Espanyol, never making less than 36 league appearances and scoring an average of seven goals (13 in the 2007–08 campaign). After the arrival in January 2010 of Argentine Pablo Osvaldo, he operated almost exclusively as a winger.
Zaragoza
On 31 August 2011 – the very last day of the summer transfer window – 30-year-old García signed a three-year contract with Zaragoza.[7] On 18 September he scored twice against his former team and also missed a penalty kick, in a 2–1 home success.[8]
García, however, would only score two more goals in the other 33 games of the season he appeared in (in a total of 2,297 minutes of action), with the Aragonese again barely avoiding top flight relegation.
García arrived to Monterrey on 5 July 2012 accompanied by his agent, to kickstart negotiations with Liga MX outfit Tigres de la UANL.[9] On 15 September he scored twice against Cruz Azul for a 2–0 win at the Estadio Universitario and, in two games in March of the following year, contributed with one successful strike each in 2–1 wins over San Luis F.C. and Puebla FC.
International career
After a remarkable 2006–07 with Espanyol, García got his first callup for Spain, under manager Luis Aragonés, appearing in an UEFA Euro 2008 qualifier against Latvia in Riga on 2 June 2007.
Honours
- Espanyol
- Copa del Rey: 2005–06
- UEFA Cup: Runner-up 2006–07
References
- ↑ Espanyol archives; Hall of Fame Perico, 30 May 2009 (Spanish)
- ↑ Murcia 2–1 Real Madrid; ESPN Soccernet, 16 May 2004
- ↑ Espanyol beckon for Luis García; UEFA.com, 23 August 2005
- ↑ Luís García extends at Espanyol; UEFA.com, 15 August 2006
- ↑ García thrives in Espanyol rout; UEFA.com, 23 November 2006
- ↑ García pride in beaten Espanyol; UEFA.com, 17 May 2007
- ↑ Oficial, Luis García ficha por el Zaragoza (Official, Luis García signs for Zaragoza); Goal.com, 31 August 2011 (Spanish)
- ↑ Garcia haunts former side; ESPN Soccernet, 18 September 2011
- ↑ Llegará Luis García para negociar con Tigres (Luis García will arrive to negotiate with Tigres); Tigres' official website, 4 July 2012 (Spanish)
External links
- BDFutbol profile
- National team data
- Luis García at National-Football-Teams.com
- Transfermarkt profile
- Luis García Liga MX stats at Medio Tiempo.com (Spanish)
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