Jorge Molina Vidal

Jorge Molina

Molina celebrating a goal with Elche
Personal information
Full nameJorge Molina Vidal
Date of birth22 April 1982
Place of birthAlcoy, Spain
Height1.89 m (6 ft 2 1⁄2 in)
Playing positionCentre forward
Club information
Current team
Betis
Number19
Youth career
Alcoyano
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
2001–2002Alcoyano28(12)
2002–2004Benidorm18(7)
2004–2005Gandía22(5)
2005–2007Benidorm72(34)
2007–2009Poli Ejido68(24)
2009–2010Elche38(26)
2010–Betis142(52)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 1 March 2015.
† Appearances (Goals).
This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Molina and the second or maternal family name is Vidal.

Jorge Molina Vidal (born 22 April 1982 in Alcoy, Alicante) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Real Betis as a centre forward.

Football career

Until the age of 23, Molina only played in the fourth division, representing CD Alcoyano, Benidorm CF and CF Gandía. In 2005 he re-joined the second, now one level above in the third.

Molina made his professional debuts in 2007–08, playing in division two with Polideportivo Ejido. It would be a short-lived experience, as his five goals – team best, tied with three other players – in 30 matches were not enough to prevent relegation, as last. On 29 October 2008, he scored a hat-trick in a 5–0 home win against Villarreal CF for the season's Copa del Rey (6–1 on aggregate).[1]

In the 2009 summer Molina, alongside teammate Juli, signed with another club in the second division, Elche CF. His debut season was nothing short of spectacular, as he led the scoring charts at 26; on 19 June 2010, even though none of the clubs played for anything in the last round, he netted all of the Valencian's goals in a 4–1 home win against champions Real Sociedad.[2]

On 29 June 2010 Molina moved to Andalusia's Real Betis (also in the second level) for €1.6 million, with the player signing a four-year contract.[3] If his new club promoted at the end of the season, a €500.000 bonus would have to be paid to Elche.[4]

In his first year with Betis, Molina again scored in double digits, in spite of losing nearly three months of action with a knee injury.[5] On 19 January 2011, for the season's domestic cup, he netted twice against FC Barcelona in a 3–1 home win (3–6 aggregate loss in the quarterfinals), thus ending the Catalans' unbeaten streak at 28 games.[6]

The attacking trio of Molina, Rubén Castro and midfielder Achille Emaná combined for more than 50 league goals in 2010–11, as Betis returned to La Liga after two years of absence.[7] He made his debut in the competition at the age of 29 years, four months and five days, playing 30 minutes in a 1–0 away win against Granada CF;[8] his first goal arrived on 15 October 2011, but in a 1–4 loss at Real Madrid.[9]

References

  1. ↑ "El Poli Ejido da el sorpresón al hacer una 'manita' al Villarreal" [Poli Ejido shocks football world after handing Villarreal a 'fiver'] (in Spanish). Marca. 29 October 2008. Retrieved 7 February 2012.
  2. ↑ "Jorge Molina marca los cuatro goles y acaba 'pichichi' de la división de plata" [Jorge Molina scores all four goals to end silver category 'pichichi'] (in Spanish). El Mundo Deportivo. 20 June 2010. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
  3. ↑ "Mercado: Es oficial, el Betis cierra los fichajes de Momo y Jorge Molina" [Market: it's official, Betis closes deals for Momo and Jorge Molina] (in Spanish). Goal.com. 30 June 2010. Retrieved 26 March 2012.
  4. ↑ "El Betis hace oficial el fichaje de Jorge Molina" [Betis makes Jorge Molina's signing official] (in Spanish). esFutbol. 29 June 2010. Retrieved 29 June 2010.
  5. ↑ "Pepe Mel estará sin Jorge Molina tres meses" [Pepe Mel without Jorge Molina for three months] (in Spanish). Fútbol de Segunda. 6 September 2010. Retrieved 26 January 2011.
  6. ↑ "Betis ends Barcelona's unbeaten streak". ESPN Soccernet US. 19 January 2011. Retrieved 26 January 2011.
  7. ↑ "Molina y Rubén prometen goles también en Primera" [Molina and Rubén also promise goals in Primera] (in Spanish). Diario AS. 4 September 2011. Retrieved 28 March 2014.
  8. ↑ "Rubén Castro hace justicia" [Rubén Castro does justice] (in Spanish). El País. 27 August 2011. Retrieved 23 October 2011.
  9. ↑ "Higuain bags hat-trick". ESPN Soccernet. 15 October 2011. Retrieved 23 October 2011.

External links