Casto (footballer)
 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Casto Espinosa Barriga | ||
| Date of birth | 18 June 1982 | ||
| Place of birth | Pueblonuevo del Guadiana, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Playing position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Club information | |||
Current team | Las Palmas | ||
| Number | 13 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Pueblo Nuevo | |||
| 1999–2001 | Mérida | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2001–2003 | Mérida | 7 | (0) |
| 2003–2004 | Logroñés | 0 | (0) |
| 2004–2006 | Albacete B | ||
| 2006 | Albacete | 1 | (0) |
| 2006–2007 | Betis B | 13 | (0) |
| 2007–2013 | Betis | 71 | (0) |
| 2013–2014 | Murcia | 43 | (0) |
| 2014– | Las Palmas | 10 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 28 December 2014. † Appearances (Goals). | |||
Casto Espinosa Barriga, known as simply Casto (born 18 June 1982), is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for UD Las Palmas as a goalkeeper.
Club career
Born in Pueblonuevo del Guadiana, Badajoz, Extremadura, Casto spent four years at local Mérida UD all levels comprised, making seven league appearances for the seniors in Segunda División B. In 2003 he moved to CD Logroñés, where he played one season before joining Albacete Balompié in Segunda División, appearing once for the first team during 2005–06.
Real Betis purchased Casto in the 2006 summer, where he initially began as third-choice behind Pedro Contreras and Toni Doblas. With the arrival of Portuguese international Ricardo in the following campaign, it seemed as though he would be provided with little opportunity to shine, even with Contreras' departure. However, after a serious injury to Doblas, he was called up from the reserves; after Ricardo also went down with a minor ailment, he made his debut in La Liga on 16 December 2007, against UD Almería in a 3–1 home win.[1]
In March/April 2008 Casto, who eventually overtook Ricardo as first-choice after the latter's recovery, featured in Betis' first three back-to-back victories in over two years, with wins over CA Osasuna, FC Barcelona and Real Zaragoza. In his first five games Betis won four, with the player keeping clean sheets in three.[2][3][4]
As coach Francisco Chaparro stayed on the bench for 2008–09, Casto won the battle for first-choice over Ricardo, being the side's undisputed starter during the early stages, a situation which would revert midway through the season.
References
- ↑ Real Betis 3–1 Almeria; ESPN Soccernet, 16 December 2007
- ↑ Valladolid 0–0 Real Betis; ESPN Soccernet, 23 December 2007
- ↑ Osasuna 0–1 Real Betis; ESPN Soccernet, 23 March 2008
- ↑ Real Zaragoza 0–3 Real Betis; ESPN Soccernet, 6 April 2008
External links
| ||||||