Pablo Ibáñez
 Ibáñez in action for Atlético Madrid |
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Pablo Ibáñez Tébar | ||
| Date of birth | 3 August 1981 | ||
| Place of birth | Madrigueras, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.92 m (6 ft 3 1⁄2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Centre back | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Birmingham City | ||
| Number | 5 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1997–1999 | Albacete | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1999–2002 | Albacete B | ||
| 2002–2004 | Albacete | 75 | (2) |
| 2004–2010 | Atlético Madrid | 156 | (9) |
| 2010–2011 | West Bromwich Albion | 10 | (1) |
| 2011– | Birmingham City | 6 | (0) |
| National team | |||
| 2002–2003 | Spain U21 | 10 | (0) |
| 2004–2008 | Spain | 23 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 09:09, 22 February 2012 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). |
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Pablo Ibáñez Tébar (born 3 August 1981 in Madrigueras, Albacete, Castile-La Mancha), sometimes known as just Pablo, is a Spanish footballer who plays for English Football League Championship (second-tier) club Birmingham City as a central defender.
He played for many years in Spain for Albacete and Atlético Madrid, amassing La Liga totals of 193 games and ten goals, before joining English Premier League club West Bromwich Albion in 2010.
At international level, Pablo has 23 caps for the Spanish national team, representing the country at the 2006 World Cup.
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[edit] Club career
[edit] Albacete
Having grown through the ranks of hometown Albacete Balompié, Pablo made his first team debuts while it played in Segunda División.
In 2003–04, he played his first La Liga encounter, on 30 September 2003, in a 0–2 home loss against CA Osasuna. He only missed one league game, helping the Castile-La Mancha side finish 14th.
[edit] Atlético
The following summer, Pablo signed with Atlético Madrid, forming a centre back partnership with Colombian Luis Amaranto Perea, arrived in the same season. His early form led to rumoured interest from the likes of Liverpool,[1] Juventus[2] and Manchester United,[3] but nothing came of it.
In 2007–08, despite heavy criticism from Atlético fans, Pablo played in 34 league contests (netting in a 3–4 home defeat to Villarreal CF[4]), as the Colchoneros finished fourth, earning a return to the UEFA Champions League; in the subsequent seasons, with the consecutive arrivals of Tomáš Ujfaluši and countryman Juanito, his importance would be gradually diminished.
A few months after Quique Flores' appointment as manager – the coach arrived in late 2009 – Ibáñez did not make the list of 18 for almost any game at Atlético, not even through suspension or injury to teammates, finishing 2009–10 with only seven appearances.
[edit] England
In early June 2010, free agent Pablo signed with English club West Bromwich Albion – freshly returned to the Premier League – for three years, after a successful medical.[5] He made his competitive – and league – debut on 14 August, in a severe 6–0 loss at Chelsea; ten days later, in a 2–0 win at Leyton Orient in the League Cup, he scored his first goal for the "Baggies".[6]
Ibáñez signed a two-year contract with Championship (second-tier) club Birmingham City in August 2011, at the end of the summer transfer window. The fee was undisclosed.[7] He made his debut for the club in a 3–1 home defeat to S.C. Braga in the group stage of the Europa League.[8] Away to Club Brugge in the same competition, Ibáñez was knocked unconscious in a clash of heads with Joseph Akpala and received lengthy treatment; in the tenth minute of the resultant stoppage time, Chris Wood scored a winning goal for Birmingham.[9]
[edit] International career
Pablo made his Spain debut on 17 November 2004 in a friendly match against England which was played in Madrid (1–0 win), and was Spain's first-choice centre back at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, alongside Barcelona's Carles Puyol.
[edit] Honours
- UEFA Europa League: 2009–10
- UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2007
- Copa del Rey: Runner-up 2009–10
[edit] References
- Playing statistics
- Albacete, Atlético Madrid: "Pablo Ibáñez: Pablo Ibáñez Tebar: Data". BDFutbol. http://www.bdfutbol.com/en/j/j2161.html?p=1. Retrieved 9 November 2011.
- West Bromwich Albion, Birmingham City: Pablo Ibáñez career stats at Soccerbase
- Spain U21 and senior team: "Pablo Ibáñez: Pablo Ibáñez Tebar: International". BDFutbol. http://www.bdfutbol.com/en/j/j2161.html?p=4. Retrieved 9 November 2011.
- General
- ^ Reds tracking Ibanez; Sky Sports
- ^ Stopper plays down Juve link; Sky Sports
- ^ Atletico aware of Utd interest; Sky Sports
- ^ Atlético Madrid 3-4 Villarreal; ESPN Soccernet, 4 November 2007
- ^ West Bromwich Albion clinch Pablo Ibanez signing; BBC Sport, 2 June 2010
- ^ Leyton Orient 0–2 West Brom; BBC Sport, 24 August 2010
- ^ "Birmingham sign Wade Elliott and Pablo Ibanez". BBC Sport. 31 August 2011. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/14735150.stm. Retrieved 1 September 2011.
- ^ "Birmingham 1 Braga 3". Birmingham City F.C. 15 September 2011. http://www.bcfc.com/page/MatchReport/0,,10412~61057,00.html. Retrieved 21 September 2011.
- ^ "Birmingham City leave it late to earn thrilling win at Club Brugge". The Guardian. Press Association. 21 October 2011. http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2011/oct/20/birmingham-city-club-brugge-europa-league. Retrieved 9 November 2011.
[edit] External links
- National team data (Spanish)
- Pablo Ibáñez – FIFA competition record
- Premier League profile
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- 1981 births
- Living people
- People from the Province of Albacete
- Spanish footballers
- Association football defenders
- La Liga footballers
- Albacete Balompié footballers
- Atlético Madrid footballers
- Premier League players
- West Bromwich Albion F.C. players
- Birmingham City F.C. players
- The Football League players
- Spain under-21 international footballers
- Spain international footballers
- 2006 FIFA World Cup players
- Spanish expatriate footballers
- Expatriate footballers in England
