Joaquín (footballer)

Joaquín

Joaquín as a Valencia player (2010)
Personal information
Full nameJoaquín Sánchez Rodríguez
Date of birth21 July 1981
Place of birthEl Puerto de Santa María, Spain
Height1.79 m (5 ft 10 1⁄2 in)
Playing positionWinger
Club information
Current team
Fiorentina
Number17
Youth career
1994–1999Betis
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
1999–2000Betis B27(2)
2000–2006Betis218(31)
2006–2011Valencia158(18)
2011–2013Málaga57(6)
2013–Fiorentina48(4)
National team
1999–2000Spain U184(0)
2001Spain U217(0)
2002–2007Spain51(4)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 30 April 2015.
† Appearances (Goals).
This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Sánchez and the second or maternal family name is Rodríguez.

Joaquín Sánchez Rodríguez (Spanish pronunciation: [xoaˈkin ˈsantʃeθ roˈðɾiɣeθ]; born 21 July 1981), simply known as Joaquín, is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Italian club ACF Fiorentina as a right winger.

He is well known for his pace and acceleration, as well as excellent dribbling and crossing ability. During his career he was mainly associated with Betis and Valencia, appearing in 395 La Liga games over the course of 12 seasons and scoring 52 goals. In the competition he also represented Málaga.

Joaquín was capped for Spain on more than 50 occasions, representing the nation in two World Cups and one European Championship.

Club career

Betis

Joaquín was born in El Puerto de Santa María, Province of Cádiz. In the 1999–2000 season he started his senior career, appearing regularly for Real Betis B (after spending five years in the youth ranks) as it was eventually relegated from the third division; in the following campaign he moved to the first team, making his professional debut on 26 August 2000 and having an immediate impact – 38 matches and three goals – as the Andalusians returned to La Liga after one year out.

Subsequently, Joaquín collected well over 200 official appearances for Betis in the following five years, assisting and scoring alike. During 2004–05 he played in all the games scoring five times, and added three goals in the season's Copa del Rey: in the latter, as the final was played at the Vicente Calderón on 11 June 2005, he played the full 90 minutes plus extra time as Betis won 2–1 against CA Osasuna.[1]

In the following campaign's UEFA Champions League, Joaquín appeared in all six group stage games for Betis, including the 1–0 triumph over Chelsea and a 0–0 draw against Liverpool, at Anfield (third-place finish, UEFA Cup "demotion").

On 27 July 2006, following a conversation with Joaquín, Betis chairman José León stated that the player had convinced him that he would stay at the club for another year. "It has surprised me a lot,” he admitted. “I came to convince him and on the contrary, he has convinced me", he further added.[2] In mid-August the player shocked the Verdiblancos, declaring in a press conference his intentions to leave the club.

Valencia

Joaquín playing for Valencia in 2010.

Joaquín was meant to move to Valencia CF in early August 2006 for €18 million, in a swap deal that also included Mario Regueiro.[3] However, some difficulties in the payment appeared, along with the Uruguayan's insistence in remaining at Valencia, with the transfer thus being delayed.

Joaquín was loaned to Albacete Balompié as punishment by Betis owner Manuel Ruiz de Lopera, due to the player taking a certain percentage of the transfer fee. Lopera used a clause in his contract whereby he could be loaned to any club if it was decided by Betis (Joaquín travelled to his new club's facilities using his own transport and, to prove that he did so, had himself photographed by operatives working nearby. The switch was subsequently cancelled).[4]

Joaquín officially moved to Valencia in late August 2006 for €25 million, making him the club's most expensive signing to that date as the player penned a five-year contract, with the choice of a further one-year extension.[5] In his first year he played 35 matches and scored five goals, as the Che made it to the Champions League's qualifying rounds.

In the 2009–10 season Joaquín began facing stiff competition for a starting berth, being challenged by younger Pablo Hernández; during the course of the campaign – Valencia also played in the UEFA Europa League – both players received roughly the same amount of minutes, and scored a similar total of goals.

With the departure of David Villa to FC Barcelona, Joaquín was given the No. 7 shirt for 2010–11. He led the scoring charts after the first round, netting twice in a 3–1 win at Málaga CF.[6] On 12 February 2011 he scored another brace, helping Valencia come from behind at Atlético Madrid to win it 2–1,[7] eventually finishing third and qualify to the Champions League.

Málaga

Joaquín in action against Levante in 2011

On 24 June 2011, aged 29, Joaquín left Valencia and signed for Málaga for three years, for a fee of €4 million.[8] He made his debut for the club on 28 August in a 1–2 away loss against Sevilla FC,[9] and opened his scoring account by netting twice in another local derby, a 4–0 home win against Granada CF.[10]

In two home games in October 2012 separated by only four days, Joaquín scored to give Málaga the final win, on both occasions after having missed a penalty: he started against Real Valladolid (2–1)[11] then netted the match's only against A.C. Milan in the Champions League group stage.[12]

Fiorentina

On 13 June 2013, aged nearly 32, Joaquín moved abroad for the first time, agreeing to a three-year deal with Italy's ACF Fiorentina.[13] He made his official debut for his new team on 29 August, starting in a 0–1 home loss against Grasshopper Club Zürich for the Europa League playoff round.[14]

Joaquín's first goal for the Viola came as a substitute on 20 October 2013, in a 4–2 home win over Serie A champions Juventus FC,[15] and his second of the league season was the only in a success at S.S.C. Napoli on 23 March of the following year.[16] He also played a part in the team's run to the Coppa Italia final, netting in a 2–0 home win over A.C. Chievo Verona in the last-16.[17]

International career

Joaquín running with the ball for Spain, c. 2004

Joaquín made his debut for the Spanish national team on 13 February 2002 against Portugal, in a 1–1 friendly played in Barcelona. Brilliant club form for Betis saw him get called up for that year's FIFA World Cup, where he appeared twice: in his second match, the quarter-finals against South Korea, he was involved in a couple of debatable decisions, including one incident where the linesman raised his flag for a goal kick as Joaquín was crossing a ball to Fernando Morientes, who was denied a golden goal – the argument was that the ball had crossed the line. However, replays showed that it did not; the game then went to penalties, and he was chosen to take Spain's fourth attempt, which was blocked by Lee Woon-Jae.[18]

Joaquín played again for Spain through the nation's premature exit at UEFA Euro 2004, also being selected for the 2006 World Cup. He totalled five appearances, but was not first-choice at either competition, only starting twice overall.

During the early stages of the Euro 2008 qualification campaign, Spain lost 2–3 against Northern Ireland. After the match, Joaquín told in a Spanish radio interview: "Right now, the national team is a mess, chaos and Luis doesn't know how to handle it in these difficult moments. I know that what I'm saying is not going to help me get back into the national team, but it's what I feel." He later commented, "The only thing I wanted to say is that these are not clear times for the national squad after losing to Northern Ireland .... but it was not my intention to attack the team or Luis Aragonés";[19] subsequently he failed to be selected again, as the national side went on to record 35 consecutive games without defeat, winning a record 15 consecutive times and lifting the Euro 2008, 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012 trophies.

International goals

# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 2 April 2003 Antonio Amilivia, León, Spain  Armenia 3–0 3–0 Euro 2004 qualifying
2. 6 September 2003 D. Afonso Henriques, Guimarães, Portugal  Portugal 0–2 0–3 Friendly
3. 9 February 2005 Juegos Mediterráneos, Almería, Spain  San Marino 1–0 5–0 2006 World Cup qualification
4. 26 March 2005 El Helmántico, Salamanca, Spain  China PR 3–0 3–0 Friendly

Honours

Club

Betis
Valencia
Fiorentina

Individual

Statistics

Club

As of 30 April 2015[21][22]
Season Club League Apps Goals Assists Cup Apps Goals Assists Europe Apps Goals Assists
1999–00Spain Betis BSegunda División B272? --- ---
2000–01Spain BetisSegunda División383? ??? ---
2001–02Spain BetisLa Liga3449 ??? ---
2002–03Spain BetisLa Liga37912 ?2? 510
2003–04Spain BetisLa Liga36712 ?1? ---
2004–05Spain BetisLa Liga38515 900 ---
2005–06Spain BetisLa Liga3536 400 1203
2006–07Spain ValenciaLa Liga3553 200 802
2007–08Spain ValenciaLa Liga3434 840 704
2008–09Spain ValenciaLa Liga3146 512 411
2009–10Spain ValenciaLa Liga2724 410 1132
2010–11Spain ValenciaLa Liga2947 301 611
2011–12Spain MálagaLa Liga23 2 3 2 1 0 - - -
2012–13Spain MálagaLa Liga34 4 6 1 1 1 10 3 1
2013–14Italy FiorentinaSerie A26 2 6 5 1 1 6 2 0
2014–15Italy FiorentinaSerie A22 2 3 3 0 1 6 0 1
Total 506 61 96 Total 46 12 6 Total 75 11 15

International

Spain
YearAppsGoals
200290
200382
200490
200592
200670
200790
Total514

Personal life

Joaquín grew up in a big family, with eight brothers and sisters in total. As the third child, he had two elder brothers. Three of the eight children in this family are or have been engaged in football. Besides Joaquín, elder brother Lucas played for Cádiz CF, while Ricardo also played in Betis' youth ranks.

It was Joaquín's uncle, called "El Chino", who firmly believed in Joaquín's talent and afforded the daily round trip between Cádiz and Seville when the youngster was in Betis' youth system – he died in 2002. Ever since then, Joaquín dedicated most of his achievements to him and always remembered him as his mentor. Growing up, he wanted to be a bullfighter, and was breastfed until the age of 7.[23]

After the 2005 domestic cup conquest Joaquín married his sweetheart Susana on 8 July, with the trophy present as a distinguished witness as the entire Betis squad attended the wedding ceremony.[24]

With the transfer to Valencia in the summer of 2006 Joaquín became a father, with daughter Daniela being born on 22 September. Four years and one day later he welcomed a second child, Salma.

References

  1. ↑ Dani delivers for Betis; UEFA.com, 12 June 2005
  2. ↑ León dice que Joaquín se entregará al Betis (León says Joaquín will commit to Betis); Marca, 26 July 2006 (Spanish)
  3. ↑ "Lopera soltará a Joaquín por 18 millones y Regueiro" [Lopera will let Joaquín go for 18 million and Regueiro] (in Spanish). Marca. 18 August 2006. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
  4. ↑ "Lopera intenta ceder a Joaquín al Albacete" [Lopera tries to loan Joaquín to Albacete] (in Spanish). Diario AS. 25 August 2006. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
  5. ↑ "Joaquín ficha por el Valencia" [Joaquín signs for Valencia] (in Spanish). El Mundo. 24 August 2006. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
  6. ↑ "Valencia shrug off departures". ESPN Soccernet. 28 August 2010. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
  7. ↑ "Joaquin shines to pile misery on Atletico". ESPN Soccernet. 12 February 2011. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
  8. ↑ "Joaquin adds to Malaga acquisitions". FIFA.com. 24 June 2011. Retrieved 4 July 2011.
  9. ↑ "Sevilla see off Malaga". ESPN Soccernet. 28 August 2011. Retrieved 31 August 2011.
  10. ↑ "Malaga ease to victory". ESPN Soccernet. 12 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  11. ↑ "Malaga leave it late". ESPN Soccernet. 20 October 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2012.
  12. ↑ "Joaquín keeps Málaga perfect at Milan's expense". UEFA.com. 24 October 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2012.
  13. ↑ "Joaquin signs for Fiorentina". Football-Italia. 13 June 2013. Retrieved 14 June 2013.
  14. ↑ "Fiorentina-Grasshopper 0–1: Ben Khalifa spaventa il Franchi ma è la 'Viola' a staccare il pass per la fase a gironi" [Fiorentina-Grasshopper 0–1: Ben Khalifa scares the Franchi but it's 'Viola' who goes through to group stage] (in Italian). Goal.com. 29 August 2013. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
  15. ↑ "Fiorentina 4–2 Juventus". BBC Sport. 30 October 2013. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  16. ↑ "Napoli 0–1 Fiorentina: Joaquin downs 10-man hosts". Goal.com. 23 March 2014. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  17. ↑ "Fiorentina 2–0 Chievo". Sky Sports. 8 January 2014. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  18. ↑ Hayward, Paul (23 June 2006). "Korean miracle spoilt by refereeing farce". London: The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 14 December 2006.
  19. ↑ Joaquin unsettles Spain with 'chaos' theory; The Independent, 7 October 2006
  20. ↑ "2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan: Report and Statistics" (PDF). FIFA.com. Retrieved 18 January 2015.
  21. ↑ "Joaquín". Soccerway. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  22. ↑ Joaquín at ESPN FC
  23. ↑ Valencia fatalism gives way to optimism; The Guardian, 23 September 2010
  24. ↑ "17. Joaquín Sánchez, un junco fino de cintura" [17. Joaquín Sánchez, a rush with a thin waist] (in Spanish). Diario AS. 30 May 2006. Retrieved 13 June 2014.

External links

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