Álvaro Benito
 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Álvaro Benito Villar | ||
| Date of birth | 10 December 1976 | ||
| Place of birth | Salamanca, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Real Madrid | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1994–1995 | Real Madrid C | 20 | (1) |
| 1995–1997 | Real Madrid B | 12 | (2) |
| 1995–2002 | Real Madrid | 21 | (2) |
| 1997–1998 | → Tenerife (loan) | 2 | (1) |
| 2001–2002 | Real Madrid B | 11 | (1) |
| 2002–2003 | Getafe | 6 | (0) |
| Total | 72 | (7) | |
| National team | |||
| 1992–1993 | Spain U16 | 13 | (0) |
| 1993–1995 | Spain U18 | 5 | (1) |
| 1996 | Spain U21 | 1 | (0) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 2015– | Real Madrid (youth) [1] | ||
|
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. | |||
Álvaro Benito Villar (born 10 December 1976) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a left midfielder, and the vocalist/guitarist of Rock band Pignoise.
Football career
Born in Salamanca, Region of León, Benito emerged through Real Madrid's youth ranks, making his senior debuts not yet aged 18 with the C-team. He progressed to the reserves the following year.
In the 1995–96 season, Benito was relatively used by the main squad,[2] and contributed with seven games the following campaign as the Merengues were crowned La Liga champions. In November 1996, in his first – and only – appearance with the Spain under-21 side, he suffered a severe knee injury from which he would never fully recover, undergoing three operations in only four months in 1998 in Pittsburgh, United States; afterwards, he was involved in a car accident, which further curtailed his recovering process.[3]
After one unassuming loan with CD Tenerife and another spell with Castilla, Benito was released by Real Madrid in the 2002 summer, joining city neighbours Getafe CF in Segunda División,[4] where he appeared rarely, again due to injury.[5]
Musical career
During his rehabilitation period, Benito started playing guitar and writing songs, going on to put together a band, Pignoise. The group, which also featured another former footballer, Héctor Polo (Real Zaragoza, Rayo Vallecano), eventually used many of the songs he composed prior to its creation.[6]
Honours
Club
- Real Madrid
Country
- Spain U16
- UEFA European Under-16 Championship: Runner-up 1992
References
- ↑ Real Madrid Cadete A
- ↑ "Los niños ponen patas arriba el Bernabéu" [Kids turn the Bernabéu upside down]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). 3 December 1995. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
- ↑ "Alvaro empieza a ver la luz al final del túnel" [Alvaro starts to see light at the end of the tunnel]. El Mundo (in Spanish). 27 June 2001. Retrieved 23 December 2010.
- ↑ "Álvaro Benito ficha por el Getafe" [Álvaro Benito signs for Getafe]. El Mundo (in Spanish). 8 July 2002. Retrieved 23 December 2010.
- ↑ "Álvaro Benito volvió a lesionarse de menisco" [Álvaro Benito injured meniscus again]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 31 December 2002. Retrieved 23 December 2010.
- ↑ "Álvaro Benito marca un gol en la música" [Álvaro Benito scores goal in music]. ABC (in Spanish). 13 January 2003. Retrieved 23 December 2010.
External links
- Álvaro Benito at BDFutbol
- Official Pignoise website (in Spanish)