Albert Crusat

Albert Crusat
Personal information
Full name Albert Crusat Domènech
Date of birth (1982-05-13) 13 May 1982
Place of birth Barcelona, Spain
Height 1.64 m (5 ft 5 in)
Playing position Winger
Youth career
1993–1996 Rubí
1996–2000 Espanyol
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2000–2003 Espanyol B 76 (15)
2002–2003 Espanyol 5 (0)
2003 Rayo Vallecano 5 (1)
2004–2005 Lleida 54 (7)
2005–2011 Almería 199 (33)
2011–2013 Wigan Athletic 15 (1)
2014 Bnei Sakhnin 4 (0)
Total 373 (58)
National team
1998–1999 Spain U16 10 (1)
1999 Spain U17 3 (1)
2001 Spain U18 3 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

Albert Crusat Domènech (born 13 May 1982) is a Spanish retired footballer who played mostly as a left winger, from where he often relied on his dribbling ability and incredible pace.[1]

After starting out at Espanyol, he spent most of his professional career with Almería, appearing in 212 official games and scoring 34 goals over the course of six seasons, four of those in La Liga.[2] He also played two years in England with Wigan Athletic.

Club career

Early years

Born in Barcelona, Catalonia, Crusat was a product of local RCD Espanyol's youth system. He played five games with the first team during the 2002–03 season, the first on 2 September 2002 in a 0–2 away loss against Real Madrid where he only played five minutes as a starter,[3] as the club went on to barely avoid La Liga relegation.

Subsequently, Crusat had second division stints with Rayo Vallecano and UE Lleida: in the first, as the Madrid side was relegated, he only managed to appear five times, leaving in December 2003.

Almería

In 2005–06, Crusat joined UD Almería, being instrumental in the Andalusians' first-ever top flight promotion the following season by scoring 11 goals.[1] He only missed four games in the subsequent eighth-place finish in the 2007–08 campaign, totalling 2,693 minutes of action.

Crusat had his most successful year in the top division in 2009–10, as Almería retained its status for the third consecutive year. Without the presence of striker Álvaro Negredo, he was much more depended upon in goalscoring matters and netted seven times in 33 matches – joint-second in the team – as they finished in 13th position (he also collected 13 yellow cards).

On 19 January 2011, Crusat scored one of Almería's most important goals, in a 3–2 win at Deportivo de La Coruña (4–2 on aggregate) which meant the club reached the semifinals of the Copa del Rey for the first time ever.[4]

Wigan Athletic

On 30 August 2011, it was confirmed by Wigan Athletic manager Roberto Martínez that his fellow countryman Crusat was having a medical at the club after a £2 million bid was accepted by Almería. Four days later the player completed his move to the English club,[5] and made his Premier League debut on 10 September, appearing as a substitute in a 0–3 away loss against Manchester City.[6]

On 19 November 2011, Crusat scored his first goal for the Latics, making it 3–2 for the hosts in the 88th minute of an eventual 3–3 draw against Blackburn Rovers.[7] He spent the vast majority of his second season on the sidelines, nursing a severe knee injury,[8] and left the club on 22 May 2013 after his contract expired.[9]

Bnei Sakhnin

On 30 January 2014, after more than one year away from football, Crusat joined Bnei Sakhnin FC.[10] In September, after recurring problems in his knee, he retired at the age of 32 and with the intention of getting a manager degree.[11]

Honours

Club

Lleida

Country

Spain U16

References

  1. 1 2 "La bala humana" [The human bullet] (in Spanish). La Escuadra de Mago. 4 August 2010. Retrieved 20 February 2015.
  2. ↑ "Albert Crusat, la piedra angular de los rojiblancos" [Albert Crusat, red-and-whites' cornerstone] (in Spanish). Diario de Almería. 15 October 2010. Retrieved 18 December 2013.
  3. ↑ "El Madrid redondea un día grande" [Madrid puts icing on cake to big day] (in Spanish). El Mundo. 2 September 2002. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
  4. ↑ El Almería se niega a despertar del sueño (Almería refuses to awake from dream); Marca, 19 January 2011 (in Spanish)
  5. ↑ "Wigan Athletic sign Spanish winger Albert Crusat". BBC Sport. 30 August 2011. Retrieved 30 August 2011.
  6. ↑ Man City 3–0 Wigan; BBC Sport, 10 September 2011
  7. ↑ Yakubu salvages dramatic point; ESPN Soccernet, 19 November 2011
  8. ↑ "Wigan v Arsenal: Lopez joins Watson, Miyaichi and Crusat on treatment table". Mail Online. 21 December 2012. Retrieved 1 May 2013.
  9. ↑ "Wigan exodus begins as Di Santo, Figueroa, Alcaraz, Stam and Crusat leave". Daily Express. 22 May 2013. Retrieved 24 December 2013.
  10. ↑ קרוסאט חתם בסכנין, הקבוצה נגד המשטרה [Crusat signed with Sakhnin, the team against the police] (in Hebrew). One. 30 January 2014. Retrieved 30 January 2014.
  11. ↑ "Estaría en la Premier ahora si no llego a lesionarme" [I would be in the Premier now if not for my injury] (in Spanish). Diario de Almería. 8 September 2014. Retrieved 20 February 2015.
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