Aitor Karanka
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Aitor Karanka de la Hoz | ||
Date of birth | 18 September 1973 | ||
Place of birth | Vitoria, Spain | ||
Height | 1.81 m (5 ft 11+1⁄2 in) | ||
Position(s) | Defender (association football) | ||
Youth career | |||
Corazonistas | |||
Alavés | |||
1991–1992 | Athletic Bilbao | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1992–1994 | Bilbao Athletic | 53 | (2) |
1993–1997 | Athletic Bilbao | 118 | (2) |
1997–2002 | Real Madrid | 93 | (0) |
2002–2006 | Athletic Bilbao | 64 | (2) |
2006 | Colorado Rapids | 28 | (0) |
Total | 356 | (6) | |
International career | |||
1993–1996 | Spain U21 | 14 | (0) |
1996 | Spain U23 | 4 | (0) |
1995 | Spain | 1 | (0) |
1994–2004 | Basque Country | 6 | (0) |
Managerial career | |||
2008–2010 | Spain U16 | ||
2010–2013 | Real Madrid (assistant) | ||
*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
Aitor Karanka de la Hoz (born 18 September 1973) is the current manager of Football League Championship team Middlesbrough FC, having agreed a deal on the 12th November 2013. Karanka is a former Spanish international footballer who played mainly as a central defender (on occasion, he occupied the left back position).
Except for a brief spell in the United States, at the age of 32, he played solely for Athletic Bilbao and Real Madrid, appearing in 275 La Liga games over the course of 13 seasons and winning a total of seven major titles with the latter.
In the late 2000s Karanka started a managerial career, notably working as an assistant with Real Madrid. [1][2][3]
Club career
Born in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Álava, Karanka played as a youth with hometown's Deportivo Alavés and finished his formation with Basque neighbours Athletic Bilbao. He made his senior debuts with the reserves of the latter in 1992, spending almost two seasons with the team in the second division; along with Julen Guerrero, he was a member of Athletic's U-19 team that won a national cup and league double in 1992.
Karanka was promoted to the main squad by Jupp Heynckes in 1993, making his La Liga debut on 15 September, playing the 90 minutes in a 3–1 home win against UD Las Palmas and going on to feature in exactly 100 league matches in his three full seasons, before joining the German coach at Real Madrid in 1997.[4] With the capital team he was used mostly as a backup, but appeared in 33 UEFA Champions League games for the club, including the 1999–2000 final against Valencia CF (3–0 win);[5] he also missed the vast majority of the 1998–99 campaign due to a heart condition.[6]
In the 2002–03 season Karanka returned to Athletic Bilbao,[7] helping the Basque qualify for the UEFA Cup in his second year, after a fifth place in the league. He switched to Major League Soccer and the Colorado Rapids in 2006,[8] retiring shortly after.
In June 2010 Karanka was appointed assistant manager at former side Real Madrid, by newly appointed manager José Mourinho.[9] Three years later he left the club, following the arrival of Carlo Ancelotti who brought his own coaching staff.[10]
International career
Karanka only played once for Spain at senior level, on 26 April 1995 against Armenia for the UEFA Euro 1996 qualifiers, in Yerevan (2–0 win).[11] He made 14 appearances for the U-21s and was a member of the team that finished runners-up at the 1996 European Championship, in a final lost to Italy.
Karanka also represented the nation in the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, playing in four matches in an eventual quarterfinal exit.[12] Between 1994 and 2004, he appeared six times for the Basque Country national football team.
Honours
Club
- Real Madrid
- Intercontinental Cup: 1998
- UEFA Champions League: 1997–98, 1999–2000, 2001–02
- Spanish League: 2000–01
- Spanish Supercup: 1997, 2001
Country
- Spain U21
- UEFA European Football Championship: Runner-up 1996; Third-place 1994
Personal
Karanka's younger brother, David, is also a footballer. A striker, he also appeared for Bilbao's first team but with much less impact, going on to spend the vast majority of his professional career in the second and third divisions.
References
- ^ Butragueño: "Karanka representa los valores de la casa" (Butragueño: "Karanka is what Real Madrid stands for"); Marca, 7 June 2010 Template:Es icon
- ^ Cristiano Ronaldo is the best in the world, says Real Madrid assistant coach Aitor Karanka, after Barcelona win; The Daily Telegraph, 22 April 2012
- ^ Karanka demanding focus from Real; ESPN FC, 23 November 2012
- ^ Llegó el central (Stopper has arrived); El Mundo Deportivo, 14 August 1997 Template:Es icon
- ^ Aitor Karanka de la Hoz – Matches in European Cups; at RSSSF
- ^ Karanka y su corazón dicen hasta pronto (Karanka and his heart say see you later); El Mundo, 4 March 1998 Template:Es icon
- ^ El mejor refuerzo (The best signing); El Mundo Deportivo, 29 May 2002 Template:Es icon
- ^ Real Madrid got real test from Union, says Kaká; Philadelphia Union, 24 July 2011
- ^ Karanka será el segundo entrenador que pidió Mourinho (Karanka will be the assistant coach requested by Mourinho); Diario AS, 6 June 2010 Template:Es icon
- ^ Aitor Karanka and Real Madrid part ways; Real Madrid News, 16 July 2013
- ^ Amavisca se estrena (Amavisca gets his first); El Mundo Deportivo, 27 April 1995 Template:Es icon
- ^ Aitor Karanka – FIFA competition record (archived)
External links
- BDFutbol profile
- National team data
- Athletic Bilbao profile
- Aitor Karanka at National-Football-Teams.com
- Use dmy dates from September 2012
- 1973 births
- Living people
- People from Vitoria-Gasteiz
- Spanish footballers
- Basque footballers
- Association football defenders
- La Liga footballers
- Segunda División footballers
- Bilbao Athletic footballers
- Athletic Bilbao footballers
- Real Madrid C.F. players
- Major League Soccer players
- Colorado Rapids players
- Spain under-21 international footballers
- Spain under-23 international footballers
- Spain international footballers
- Olympic footballers of Spain
- Footballers at the 1996 Summer Olympics
- Spanish expatriate footballers
- Expatriate soccer players in the United States
- Spanish football managers