José Enrique (footballer)
 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | José Enrique Sánchez Díaz | ||
| Height | 1.84 m (6 ft 1⁄2 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Left Back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Newcastle United | ||
| Number | 3 | ||
| ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 15:10, 8 February 2008 (UTC) | |||
José Enrique Sánchez Diaz (born January 23, 1986 in Valencia) more commonly known as José Enrique is a Spanish footballer currently playing for Newcastle United of the English Premier League. He is an out-and-out Left Back.
Early Career In Spain
Enrique started his footballing career at Levante before being snapped up by Valencia. Valencia sent him to Celta de Vigo for a season-long loan spell. At the conclusion of this loan spell he was signed by Villarreal CF in 2006 after several eye-catching performances for Celta Vigo. He earned himself the affectionate nickname The Bull as a result of his strength and tenacity. The highly-rated full-back enjoyed a successful 2006/07 season with Villareal before his transfer to England.
Newcastle United
On August 6, 2007, it was confirmed that Newcastle United had signed Enrique for a fee believed to be £6.3m. He signed a five-year contract with the club who beat off competition from Manchester City and Liverpool for his signature.[1] Enrique made his Newcastle debut on August 29, in a match against Barnsley in which he played the full 90 minutes. Newcastle won the match 2–0. While considered a warm up for Enrique, his recovery pace and calm nature on the ball bode well for his ability. He finally made his debut in the Premier League as a substitute against West Ham United on September 23.
His appearances for Newcastle across the 2007/2008 season were somewhat sporadic, with then manager Sam Allardyce citing the fact that Enrique was still young and settling in to the Premier League as the reason for this. In the absence of any other recognised senior left backs midfielder Charles N'Zogbia was deployed in this position. When Enrique did play, he showed a great deal of promise, proving to be a strong tackler who is adept at keeping possession. Enrique is also admired for his ability to pick out team mates with long and very accurate passes, particularly off his favoured left foot. During his first season on Tyneside, he helped his side keep 7 clean sheets out of the 28 games that he played. A consistent run in the team saw Enrique continue to develop, gaining additional support from fans and management alike.
International Career
Enrique made his International debut against Georgia on 5 June, 2007 in the 2009 European Championship qualifiers and scored to hand his side a crucial 1-0 victory. Unfortunately, he also got sent off in that match for a second bookable offence.[2]
References
- ^ "Big Sam's Spanish delight". 2007-08-06. Retrieved 2007-08-06.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Georgia 0 - 1 Spain". soccer-spain.com. 2008-09-07. Retrieved 2007-06-05.
External links
- Jose Enrique at Soccerbase
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