Joseba Etxeberria

Joseba Etxeberria

Personal information
Full name	Joseba Andoni Etxeberria Lizardi
Date of birth	5 September 1977 (1977-09-05)
Place of birth	Elgoibar, Spain
Height	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Playing position	Winger / Forward
Youth career
	Real Sociedad
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1994–1995	Real Sociedad B	29	(9)
1995	Real Sociedad	7	(2)
1995–2010	Athletic Bilbao	445	(88)
Total		481	(99)
National team
1992–1994	Spain U16	17	(11)
1994–1995	Spain U18	7	(5)
1995	Spain U20	6	(7)
1996–1997	Spain U21	3	(0)
1997–2004	Spain	53	(12)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

This name uses Spanish naming customs; the first or paternal family name is Etxeberria and the second or maternal family name is Lizardi.

Joseba Andoni Etxeberria Lizardi (born 5 September 1977) is a retired Spanish footballer who played mostly as a winger.

After starting his professional career at only 17, with Real Sociedad, he quickly switched to Basque neighbours Athletic de Bilbao, going on to spend the rest of his extensive career there.

Exteberria gained more than 50 caps for Spain, representing the nation in one World Cup and two European Championships.

Club career

Born in Elgoibar, Gipuzkoa, Etxeberria began his career with Real Sociedad. He made his La Liga debut at only 17, in a 2–0 home win against RCD Español on 29 January 1995. That summer, he moved to neighbouring Basque outfit Athletic Bilbao, in a controversial transfer that cost over €3 million. At the time, it was the highest transfer fee paid for an under-18 player in Spanish football.

In 1997–98, Etxeberria netted 11 league goals, as Athletic finished second, achieving a career-best 14 five seasons later, while he was also eventually awarded club captaincy.

On 1 October 2008, already playing second-fiddle for the team, Etxeberria agreed a deal with the club according to which he effectively played 2009–10, his last season as a professional, for free, after his contract expired in June 2009.

Etxeberria's last season was not a successful one individually, as he only appeared in seven league matches (plus another seven – with two goals – in the UEFA Europa League). On 15 May 2010, he was replaced to a standing ovation in Athletic's 2–0 home win against Deportivo de La Coruña, and represented his main club in 514 official matches (104 goals), third-best in the team's history, only behind José Ángel Iribar and Txetxu Rojo.

International career

After leading the 1995 FIFA World Youth Championship scoring charts and winning 4th place, Etxeberria moved up to the full national team, making his international debut on 19 November 1997, appearing (and scoring) in a 1–1 friendly match against Romania, in Palma de Mallorca.

He was capped 53 times, scoring 12 goals, and represented his country at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2000 and Euro 2004. On 18 June, in the second tournament, he scored the 2–1 winner in the group stage match against Slovenia.

Statistics

Club

Club	Season	League		Cup		Europe		Other		Total
		Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Real Sociedad B	1993–94	1	0	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	0
	1994–95	28	9	-	-	-	-	-	-	28	9
	Total	29	9	-	-	-	-	-	-	29	9
Real Sociedad	1994–95	7	2	1	0	-	-	-	-	8	2
	Total	7	2	1	0	-	-	-	-	8	2
Athletic Bilbao	1995–96	33	7	6	3	-	-	-	-	39	10
	1996–97	35	6	1	0	-	-	-	-	36	6
	1997–98	36	11	4	2	3	0	-	-	43	13
	1998–99	36	5	2	1	8	2	-	-	46	8
	1999–00	35	10	2	2	-	-	-	-	37	12
	2000–01	28	5	3	0	-	-	-	-	31	5
	2001–02	31	8	6	1	-	-	-	-	37	9
	2002–03	33	14	0	0	-	-	-	-	33	14
	2003–04	34	6	1	0	-	-	-	-	35	6
	2004–05	33	3	7	1	8	2	-	-	48	6
	2005–06	29	4	2	0	-	-	-	-	31	4
	2006–07	28	3	2	0	-	-	-	-	30	3
	2007–08	25	4	0	0	-	-	-	-	25	4
	2008–09	22	2	3	0	-	-	-	-	25	2
	2009–10	7	0	2	0	7	2	2	0	18	2
	Total	445	88	41	10	26	6	2	0	514	104
Career totals		481	99	42	10	26	6	2	0	551	115

International

Spain national team
Year	Apps	Goals
1997	1	1
1998	10	2
1999	10	3
2000	11	2
2001	4	0
2002	1	0
2003	10	3
2004	6	1
Total	53	12

International goals

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	19 November 1997	Lluís Sitjar, Palma, Spain	Romania	1–0	1–1	Friendly
2.	25 March 1998	Balaídos, Vigo, Spain	Sweden	4–0	4–0	Friendly
3.	14 October 1998	Ramat Gan, Tel Aviv, Israel	Israel	1–2	1–2	Euro 2000 qualifying
4.	31 March 1999	Olimpico, Serravalle, San Marino	San Marino	0–6	0–6	Euro 2000 qualifying
5.	5 June 1999	El Madrigal, Vila-real, Spain	San Marino	3–0	9–0	Euro 2000 qualifying
6.	5 June 1999	El Madrigal, Vila-real, Spain	San Marino	4–0	9–0	Euro 2000 qualifying
7.	18 June 2000	Amsterdam Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands	Slovenia	1–2	1–2	UEFA Euro 2000
8.	2 September 2000	Koševo, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina	Bosnia and Herzegovina	1–2	1–2	2002 World Cup qualification
9.	29 March 2003	Olimpiysky, Kiev, Ukraine	Ukraine	1–2	2–2	Euro 2004 qualifying
10.	6 November 2003	Afonso Henriques, Guimarães, Portugal	Portugal	0–1	0–3	Friendly
11.	19 November 2003	Ullevaal, Oslo, Norway	Norway	0–3	0–3	Euro 2004 qualifying
12.	18 February 2004	Lluís Companys, Barcelona, Spain	Peru	1–1	2–1	Friendly

External links

• Athletic Bilbao profile
• BDFutbol profile
• National team data (Spanish)
• Joseba Etxeberria at National-Football-Teams.com
• Joseba Etxeberria – FIFA competition record
• Official webpage