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Albert Luque

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In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Luque and the second or maternal family name is Martos.

Albert Luque
Luque as an Ajax player in 2007
Personal information
Full name Albert Luque Martos[1]
Date of birth (1978-03-11) 11 March 1978 (age 46)[1]
Place of birth Terrassa, Spain
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[1]
Position(s) Winger, striker
Youth career
1985–1991 Can Parellada
1991–1996 Barcelona
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1996–1997 Barcelona C
1997–1999 Mallorca B 62 (25)
1999–2002 Mallorca 67 (24)
1999–2000 → Málaga (loan) 23 (3)
2002–2005 Deportivo La Coruña 101 (26)
2005–2007 Newcastle United 21 (1)
2007–2009 Ajax 16 (4)
2008–2009 → Málaga (loan) 32 (8)
2009–2011 Málaga 19 (1)
Total 341 (92)
International career
1998–2000 Spain U21 13 (3)
2000 Spain U23 2 (0)
2002–2005 Spain 17 (2)
2002–2006 Catalonia 3 (2)
Medal record
Men's Football
Representing  Spain
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2000 Sydney Team Competition
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Albert Luque Martos (born 11 March 1978) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a left winger or striker.

His 14-year professional career was mainly associated with Mallorca and Deportivo, and he amassed La Liga totals of 248 matches and 61 goals over 11 seasons. He also had spells in the English Premier League with Newcastle United and the Dutch Eredivisie with Ajax.

A Spain international in the first half of the 2000s, Luque represented the nation at the 2002 World Cup and Euro 2004.

Club career

Mallorca

Born in Terrassa, Barcelona, Catalonia,[2] Luque was a lifelong supporter of FC Barcelona, and started out in football on trial with them, but was released by the C-team when he was 19.[3] He was then taken by RCD Mallorca and assigned to their reserves, but eventually broke into the main squad after a successful loan spell at Málaga CF.

In 2000–01, Luque scored nine goals for Mallorca, helping the Balearic Islands side qualify for the UEFA Champions League for the first time in their history after finishing third. His extra time goal in the third qualifying round against HNK Hajduk Split carried the team into the first group stage.[4][5]

Deportivo

Luque was transferred to Deportivo de La Coruña on 29 August 2002, in an eight-year deal worth €15 million (approximately £10 million), for strikers José Flores and Walter Pandiani (on loan).[6] In his first season at Depor, he scored the winner against former club Málaga with a bicycle kick,[7] adding further important goals against Racing de Santander[8] and RCD Espanyol;[9] he netted a total of 12 La Liga goals during the campaign, mostly from substitute appearances.

2003–04 saw Luque firmly established as a starter, as he scored the winner against Rosenborg BK in the Champions League qualifying round, the only goal over both legs.[10] He also netted important goals in the knockout stages against Juventus F.C.[11] and A.C. Milan,[12] and added 11 more on the domestic front in his final year in Galicia.[13]

Newcastle United

On 27 August 2005, Luque was sold to Newcastle United for a fee of £9 million, signing a five-year contract.[14] He made his debut against Manchester United at St James' Park, which included having a goal ruled out for offside.[15] However, in his next game, he suffered a hamstring injury while playing at Fulham;[16] upon his return he was used in a number of roles, including left midfielder, failing to live up to his large price tag.[17][18]

On 17 April 2006, Luque scored his first goal for Newcastle in the Tyne–Wear derby, when he broke free from the Sunderland defence and chipped the ball over Kelvin Davis.[19] He commented after the match that he hoped to score before the end of the season, but played no part in the remaining fixtures, however.

Luque's first competitive home goal came against Lillestrom S.K. at the start of the team's UEFA Intertoto Cup tournament[20]– he added two in a 4–1 defeat of Liverpool's reserves in October.[21] After having fallen low in the side's attacking pecking order, a number of injuries awarded him a start against Serie A table-toppers U.S. Città di Palermo on 2 November, in the UEFA Cup, and rewarded manager Glenn Roeder's choice scoring the game's only goal with a header.[22] After that, however, the player had few significant first-team appearances, by now behind the likes of youth graduate Matty Pattison;[23] in the January 2007 transfer window he was linked with a loan move to PSV Eindhoven, but the deal fell through in spite of his wishes.[24]

On 23 June 2007, new Magpies manager Sam Allardyce stated that he would be willing to give Luque a proper chance to impress. However, this did not prevent the former from awarding the latter's number 7 shirt to new signing Joey Barton, which initially left the Spaniard without a squad number.[25][26] He was eventually given the number 19 jersey he previously wore at Deportivo, and which Titus Bramble last used at Newcastle.[27]

His transfer from Deportivo to Newcastle is one of those about which the Stevens inquiry report in June 2007 expressed concerns:

"There remains inconsistencies in evidence provided by Graeme Souness – a former manager of the club"

"The inquiry still has unanswered questions relating to possible payments made by agent Francis Martin, who Newcastle officials believed was working for the selling club."[28] At the end of the next month, AFC Ajax agreed a fee to sign Luque.[29]

Ajax

On 25 August 2007, Ajax confirmed they had signed Luque until 2010.[30] On 30 September, he scored his first two goals for the Amsterdam team, turning the scoreline around in two minutes against VVV-Venlo in an eventual 6–1 home win but coming out injured slightly afterwards.[31]

Luque was fined after a game with Feyenoord in November 2007 for a half-time altercation in the changing rooms with teammate Luis Suárez, which caused manager Adrie Koster to substitute them both before the second half.[32][33] It was reported in July 2008 that the former had no future at Ajax; technical director Danny Blind told Sportweek: "Ajax has told Luque that he has to leave the club. I told Albert myself that we don't want to go on with him and if I've told it to him, I really don't know who else I should inform."[34][35]

Return to Málaga

Just before the 1 September transfer deadline of 2008–09, Luque signed a one-year loan deal with Málaga, returning to Andalusia nine years after his loan spell at the club.[36] On 30 November 2008, he came from the bench to open his scoring account in his second spell, in a 4–2 home victory over CA Osasuna,[37] and was a crucial attacking element as the club fought for UEFA Cup qualification until the final days of the season.

On 30 July 2009, after lengthy negotiations, Málaga signed Luque from Ajax on a free transfer.[38] Under new coach Juan Ramón López Muñiz, he played mainly from the bench and scored only once in the first half of the campaign, thereafter being dropped for almost a month;[39][40] after returning to first-team action, he replaced Duda in the 85th minute of a 3–0 win at Racing Santander.[41]

In 2010–11, Luque continued to be absent from Málaga's lineups, both under Jesualdo Ferreira and his successor Manuel Pellegrini. In December 2010, he was deemed surplus to requirements alongside five other players,[42] with his release confirmed on 4 January 2011.[43]

International career

Luque represented Spain at the 2000 Summer Olympics, playing twice as the national team won silver in Sydney. After a successful season at Mallorca, still uncapped for the senior team, he was called up to the squad for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, making his international debut in a 3–2 group stage win against South Africa on 12 June 2002,[44] and also appeared in the round-of-16 victory over the Republic of Ireland.[45]

Two years later, Luque played at UEFA Euro 2004,[46] being used as a left winger in the 1–0 defeat to hosts Portugal.[47] His last game was on 7 September 2005, in a 2006 World Cup qualifier against Serbia and Montenegro.[48]

International goals

Scores and results list Spain's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Luque goal.[49]
List of international goals scored by Albert Luque
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 9 October 2004 El Sardinero, Santander, Spain  Belgium 1–0 2–0 2006 World Cup qualification
2 4 June 2005 Mestalla, Valencia, Spain  Lithuania 1–0 1–0 2006 World Cup qualification

Managerial career

On 29 April 2019, Luque joined president Luis Rubiales' staff at the Royal Spanish Football Federation.[50] In December 2022, he was appointed as its sporting director in place of José Francisco Molina, following a last-16 elimination at the 2022 World Cup.[51]

Personal life

In November 2006, while driving to Newcastle International Airport for a UEFA Cup game away to Eintracht Frankfurt, Luque pulled his Porsche Cayenne over due to a puncture. Shortly after he got out the car to make a telephone call, the empty vehicle was struck by a lorry and destroyed. He managed to get a flight to Germany and played in the match.[52][53][54]

Honours

Mallorca

Deportivo

  • Supercopa de España: 2002

Newcastle United

Spain U23

References

  1. ^ a b c "Albert LUQUE Martos". El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  2. ^ "Qué es de... Albert Luque" [What of... Albert Luque] (in Spanish). Royal Spanish Football Federation. 14 July 2017. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  3. ^ Hermida, Xosé (18 October 2003). "El recogepelotas" [The ballboy]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 May 2016.
  4. ^ Candia, Patricio (22 August 2001). "El Mallorca abre la puerta grande" [Mallorca open the big door]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  5. ^ Berastain, Ángel (14 December 2010). "Jugadores de ayer y de hoy: Albert Luque" [Players of yesterday and today: Albert Luque] (in Spanish). RCDM. Archived from the original on 3 October 2011. Retrieved 7 June 2011.
  6. ^ "El delantero del Mallorca Albert Luque ficha por el Deportivo" [Mallorca forward Albert Luque signs for Deportivo]. El País (in Spanish). 30 August 2002. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  7. ^ Salido Cobo, Jorge (15 December 2002). "Luque pone la guinda a un gran partido del Depor" [Luque puts icing on cake to great Depor match]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  8. ^ Texeira, Antonio (2 March 2003). "El Deportivo araña tres puntos claves para estar arriba" [Deportivo scrape three vital points to stay up]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  9. ^ "El Deportivo acaba la Liga con una gran remontada" [Deportivo finish League with great comeback]. El Mundo (in Spanish). 21 June 2003. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  10. ^ "Luque strike does it for Depor". UEFA. 26 August 2003. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  11. ^ Hunter, Graham (25 February 2004). "Luque decisive for Deportivo". UEFA. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  12. ^ "2003/04 RC Deportivo La Coruña 4–0 AC Milan: Report". UEFA. 10 July 2012. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
  13. ^ "Luque to bring goals to Newcastle". UEFA. 26 August 2005. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
  14. ^ Walker, Michael (27 August 2005). "Souness gets Luque and now wants Kuyt". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  15. ^ "Newcastle 0–2 Man Utd". BBC Sport. 28 August 2005. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  16. ^ "Luque plans early Magpies return". BBC Sport. 15 September 2005. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  17. ^ "Luque handed free role to show fans what he's worth". The Northern Echo. 26 November 2005. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  18. ^ Anderson, Marley (4 June 2013). "Newcastle United transfers: The 5 best and worst signings of the last 10 years". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  19. ^ "Sunderland 1–4 Newcastle". BBC Sport. 17 April 2006. Retrieved 1 September 2009.
  20. ^ "Newcastle 1–1 Lillestrom". BBC Sport. 15 July 2006. Retrieved 27 February 2010.
  21. ^ Stanton, Chris (October 2006). "Luque eyes Magpies return". Sky Sports. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  22. ^ Chowdhury, Saj (2 November 2006). "Palermo 0–1 Newcastle". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2 September 2009.
  23. ^ Gobinath, Gawthaman (14 January 2010). "When a big money move went wrong – Newcastle's Albert Luque". Football Transfer Tavern. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  24. ^ "PSV pull out of Luque loan deal". BBC Sport. 13 January 2007. Retrieved 13 January 2007.
  25. ^ "Sam's pledge on misfit Luq". Evening Chronicle. 22 June 2007. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
  26. ^ Fraser, Paul (27 July 2007). "Rejuvenated Luque steals the show in United rout". The Northern Echo. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
  27. ^ Traynor, Mikey (5 January 2015). "Random Premier League chancers: Albert Luque". Balls.ie. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
  28. ^ "What Stevens said about each club". The Daily Telegraph. London. 16 June 2007. Archived from the original on 11 October 2007. Retrieved 17 June 2007.
  29. ^ "Ajax and Newcastle agree Luque fee". BBC Sport. 25 August 2007. Retrieved 25 August 2007.
  30. ^ "Ajax sign Albert Luque Martos". AFC Ajax. 25 August 2007. Archived from the original on 18 September 2007. Retrieved 25 August 2007.
  31. ^ "Ajax Amsterdam 6–1 VVV Venlo". ESPN Soccernet. 30 September 2007. Retrieved 1 December 2011.[permanent dead link]
  32. ^ "Ajax fine Suarez and Luque". AFC Ajax. 12 November 2007. Archived from the original on 25 January 2008. Retrieved 13 November 2007.
  33. ^ "Luis Suarez's most controversial career moments". CBS News. 25 June 2014. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  34. ^ "Luque en Perez op dood spoor" [Luque and Perez at the end of the rope]. Het Parool (in Dutch). 5 August 2008. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
  35. ^ "Luque op weg naar Spanje" [Luque on his way to Spain]. De Telegraaf (in Dutch). 1 September 2008. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  36. ^ "Albert Luque ficha por el Málaga" [Albert Luque signs for Málaga]. Marca (in Spanish). 31 August 2008. Retrieved 1 September 2008.
  37. ^ "Málaga 4–2 Osasuna". ESPN Soccernet. 30 November 2008. Archived from the original on 2 November 2012. Retrieved 1 December 2011.
  38. ^ "Albert Luque ficha por el Málaga" [Albert Luque signs for Málaga] (in Spanish). Europa Press. 30 July 2009. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  39. ^ Ramírez, Álvaro (22 March 2010). "Luque y Muñiz ya ni se miran" [Luque and Muñiz don't even look at each other anymore] (in Spanish). El Desmarque. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  40. ^ "Luque: ´Con Muñiz estaría más fuera que dentro´" [Luque: 'With Muñiz I would be more out than in']. La Opinión de Málaga (in Spanish). 17 July 2010. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  41. ^ "El Málaga Club de Fútbol enamora en El Sardinero (0–3)" [Málaga Club de Fútbol pile suitors up at El Sardinero (0–3)] (in Spanish). Málaga CF. 14 February 2010. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  42. ^ "Edu Ramos, Galatto, Luque, Iván González, Juanito y Edinho no cuentan para Pellegrini" [Edu Ramos, Galatto, Luque, Iván González, Juanito and Edinho do not count for Pellegrini]. Marca (in Spanish). 25 December 2010. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
  43. ^ "Málaga Club de Fútbol y Alberto Luque llegan a un acuerdo de rescisión" [Málaga Club de Fútbol and Alberto Luque agree on termination] (in Spanish). Málaga CF. 4 January 2011. Archived from the original on 12 March 2011. Retrieved 4 January 2011.
  44. ^ "Joaquín: "Era mi oportunidad"" [Joaquín: "It was my chance"]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 12 June 2002. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
  45. ^ "Spain break Irish hearts". BBC Sport. 16 June 2002. Retrieved 7 June 2018.
  46. ^ Modia, Iván (20 May 2004). "Sáez selects Spain squad". UEFA. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
  47. ^ Farrelly, David (21 June 2004). "Portugal leave Spain in shade to light up Lisbon". UEFA. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
  48. ^ González, Ángel (7 September 2005). "España no sale del laberinto" [Spain still in a maze]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 May 2016.
  49. ^ "Albert Luque". European Football. Retrieved 1 September 2017.
  50. ^ Sainz, Manu (29 April 2019). "Rubiales ficha a Albert Luque" [Rubiales signs Albert Luque]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  51. ^ "Spain overhaul continues with new sporting director". beIN Sports. 8 December 2022.
  52. ^ Livie, Alex (November 2006). "Luque says he was lucky". Sky Sports. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  53. ^ "Un-Luque". The Northern Echo. 29 November 2006. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  54. ^ "Luque to play despite car crash". BBC News. 29 November 2006. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
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