Joan Verdú
Joan Verdú Fernández (Spanish: [ɟʝoˈam beɾˈðu];[A] born 5 May 1983) is a Spanish professional footballer.
| Verdú playing for Catalonia in 2013 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Joan Verdú Fernández[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 5 May 1983[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Barcelona, Spain[2] | ||
| Height | 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1988–1993 | Poble Sec | ||
| 1993–2002 | Barcelona | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2002 | Barcelona C | 19 | (2) |
| 2002–2006 | Barcelona B | 134 | (31) |
| 2004 | Barcelona | 0 | (0) |
| 2006–2009 | Deportivo La Coruña | 85 | (9) |
| 2009–2013 | Espanyol | 144 | (23) |
| 2013–2014 | Betis | 20 | (2) |
| 2014–2015 | Baniyas | 24 | (10) |
| 2015–2016 | Fiorentina | 5 | (1) |
| 2016 | Levante | 13 | (1) |
| 2017–2019 | Qingdao Huanghai | 66 | (26) |
| 2020–2021 | Montañesa | 24 | (1) |
| 2021–2022 | Hospitalet | 32 | (1) |
| International career | |||
| 2002 | Spain U20 | 2 | (1) |
| 2006–2016 | Catalonia | 11 | (3) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 16:03, 26 September 2022 (UTC) | |||
A versatile midfielder, adept as both central or attacking midfielder, he started professionally at Barcelona, but played mainly for local rivals Espanyol during his career, amassing La Liga totals of 262 games and 35 goals over nine seasons and also representing in the competition Deportivo, Betis and Levante.
Club career
Born in Barcelona, Catalonia, Verdú was a product of FC Barcelona's youth system.[3] He played mainly for its B side as a senior, making his debut with the main squad on 27 October 2004 in a 1–0 away loss against UDA Gramenet in the round of 64 of the Copa del Rey;[4] his second and last appearance took place on 7 December, in a 2–0 defeat at FC Shakhtar Donetsk for the group stage of the UEFA Champions League.[5]
Verdú moved to Deportivo de La Coruña for 2006–07, being relatively used by the Galicians throughout the season and scoring in a 2–0 away win over Villarreal CF on 11 February 2007.[6] He produced similar numbers in his second year in La Liga.
Profiting from Juan Carlos Valerón's age and recurrent physical problems, Verdú had a breakthrough year in the 2008–09 campaign, often assuming the playmaking duties of the former while also adding seven league goals.[7] However, after a new deal could not be agreed, the free agent moved back to his native region after three years, signing a four-year contract with RCD Espanyol.[8]
Verdú netted against his previous team on 19 September 2009 in a 3–2 away victory,[9] and started most of his first year, also benefitting from age and injury-related problems of another teammate, Iván de la Peña. Without any real competitor the following season – de la Peña only saw 30 minutes of action[10][7]– he improved his numbers to 37 games and five goals, as the Pericos finished comfortably in midtable.[11]
In summer 2013, free agent Verdú signed a four-year deal with another club in that tier, Real Betis.[12] After suffering relegation,[13] he went on to represent in quick succession Baniyas Club (United Arab Emirates),[14] ACF Fiorentina (Italy)[15] and Levante UD.[16]
On 12 January 2017, the 33-year-old Verdú moved to the China League One with Qingdao Huanghai FC, where he shared teams with compatriot Martí Crespí.[17]
In November 2020, Verdú returned to football at Nou Barris-based CF Montañesa of the Tercera División, signing alongside his former Barcelona and Espanyol teammate Sergio García.[18]
Club statistics
- As of match played on 3 November 2019
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Barcelona | 2004–05[19] | La Liga | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Deportivo | 2006–07[19] | La Liga | 27 | 1 | 6 | 1 | — | 33 | 2 | |
| 2007–08[19] | La Liga | 24 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 25 | 1 | ||
| 2008–09[19] | La Liga | 34 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 4[b] | 1 | 40 | 8 | |
| Total | 85 | 9 | 9 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 98 | 11 | ||
| Espanyol | 2009–10[19] | La Liga | 34 | 4 | 2 | 0 | — | 36 | 4 | |
| 2010–11[19] | La Liga | 37 | 5 | 3 | 0 | — | 40 | 5 | ||
| 2011–12[19] | La Liga | 36 | 5 | 6 | 1 | — | 42 | 6 | ||
| 2012–13[19] | La Liga | 37 | 9 | 1 | 0 | — | 38 | 9 | ||
| Total | 144 | 23 | 12 | 1 | — | 156 | 24 | |||
| Betis | 2013–14[19] | La Liga | 20 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 7[c] | 0 | 30 | 3 |
| Baniyas | 2014–15[20] | Arabian Gulf League | 24 | 10 | 7 | 1 | — | 31 | 11 | |
| Fiorentina | 2015–16[20] | Serie A | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3[c] | 0 | 8 | 1 |
| Levante | 2015–16[19] | La Liga | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 13 | 1 | |
| Qingdao Huanghai | 2017[21] | China League One | 29 | 8 | 1 | 1 | — | 30 | 9 | |
| 2018[20] | China League One | 30 | 16 | 0 | 0 | — | 30 | 16 | ||
| 2019[20] | China League One | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 7 | 2 | ||
| Total | 66 | 26 | 1 | 1 | — | 67 | 27 | |||
| Career total | 357 | 72 | 33 | 5 | 15 | 1 | 405 | 78 | ||
Notes
References
- ^ "Joan Verdú Fernández". El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 April 2020.
- ^ a b c "Joan Verdú". Eurosport. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
- ^ "Debe ser el número 23" [Must be number 23] (in Spanish). ESPN Deportes. 18 November 2006. Retrieved 15 September 2015.
- ^ Polo, Eduardo (28 October 2004). "Sorpresón" [Big surprise] (PDF). Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 September 2015.
- ^ "N is for..." UEFA. 9 May 2005. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
- ^ "El Deportivo logra su primera victoria de visitante" [Deportivo get first away win]. El Mundo (in Spanish). 11 February 2007. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
- ^ a b Ramírez, Álvaro (24 June 2013). "Verdú, el relevo de Valerón, De la Peña y... ¿Beñat?" [Verdú, replacement of Valerón, De la Peña and... Beñat?] (in Spanish). El Desmarque. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
- ^ "Verdú ficha por el Espanyol" [Verdú signs for Espanyol]. Super Deporte (in Spanish). 4 June 2009. Retrieved 27 July 2011.
- ^ "Espanyol win at Depor". ESPN Soccernet. 19 September 2009. Retrieved 27 July 2011.
- ^ Iglesias, Quique (9 September 2009). "El regreso de Iván obliga a recolocar a Joan Verdú" [Iván's return forces a Joan Verdú replacement]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 April 2016.
- ^ Molero, Iván (25 January 2017). "Piatti es el jugador más decisivo del Espanyol en en siglo XXI" [Piatti is Espanyol's most decisive player in the XXI century]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 March 2018.
- ^ Rodríguez, Alejandro (24 June 2013). "El fichaje de Verdú por el Betis ya es oficial" [Verdú's signing for Betis is already official]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 19 February 2014.
- ^ Font, Sergi (25 July 2014). "Verdú, con cartel en el extranjero" [Verdú, with a name abroad]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 April 2016.
- ^ "Joan Verdú se va al Baniyas SC de los Emiratos Árabes" [Joan Verdú goes to Arab Emirates' Baniyas SC]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 8 August 2014. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
- ^ "La Fiorentina ficha a Verdú" [Fiorentina sign Verdú]. Marca (in Spanish). 28 August 2015. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
- ^ "Verdú, nuevo refuerzo del Levante" [Verdú, new addition of Levante]. Sport (in Spanish). 1 February 2016. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
- ^ "Joan Verdú se va a China: firma por el Qingdao Huanghai" [Joan Verdú goes to China: signs for Qingdao Huanghai]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 12 January 2017. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
- ^ "La Montañesa firma a los expericos Joan Verdú y Sergio García" [Montañesa sign former pericos Joan Verdú and Sergio García]. La Vanguardia (in Spanish). 6 November 2020. Retrieved 29 December 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Verdú: Joan Verdú Fernández". BDFutbol. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
- ^ a b c d "Joan Verdú". Soccerway. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
- ^ "贝尔杜" [Verdú] (in Chinese). Soda Soccer. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
External links
- Joan Verdú at BDFutbol