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Damià Abella

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

Damià
Personal information
Full name Damià Abella Pérez
Date of birth (1982-04-15) 15 April 1982 (age 42)
Place of birth Olot, Spain
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s) Full-back, midfielder
Youth career
1998–2000 Ferrán Martorell
2000–2001 Caprabo
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2001–2002 Peralada
2002–2003 Valencia C
2003–2004 Figueres 19 (3)
2004–2005 Barcelona B 22 (0)
2004–2006 Barcelona 9 (0)
2006 → Racing Santander (loan) 18 (3)
2006–2010 Betis 79 (2)
2010–2014 Osasuna 120 (0)
2014–2016 Middlesbrough 6 (0)
Total 273 (8)
International career
2004 Catalonia 4 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Damià Abella Pérez (born 15 April 1982), known simply as Damià, is a Spanish retired professional footballer who played as a full-back.

After starting out at Barcelona, he went on to amass La Liga totals of 198 matches and five goals over nine seasons, also representing in the competition Racing de Santander, Betis and Osasuna. He also spent two years in England, with Middlesbrough.

Club career

Barcelona

Born in Olot, Girona, Catalonia, Damià's first professional club was local Figueres, for whom he played during the 2003–04 season, in the Segunda División B. He was subsequently acquired by national giants Barcelona, being assigned to its B side.[1]

Due to many injuries to the main squad, Damià made his La Liga debut for Barça's first team against Athletic Bilbao on 30 October 2004, playing 90 minutes in a 1–1 away draw as right-back.[2] However, he could never break into the main squad, finishing the campaign with ten competitive games while continuing to appear for the reserves.[3]

In January 2006, Damià joined Racing de Santander on a one-and-a-half-year loan. He mainly operated at the position he knew from Barcelona B, right midfielder, and scored his first top-flight goal on 12 February in a 2–0 away win over Espanyol,[4] eventually helping the Cantabrians to narrowly avoid relegation while starting 15 matches.[5]

Betis

In summer 2006, Real Betis signed Damià on a five-year contract for €1 million; although Racing had agreed with Barcelona that the player would stay with them for the duration of the loan arrangement, they decided not to block the move, but a serious hip injury, contracted while still with in Santander, Santander,[6] meant that he would be unregistered for the entire length of 2006–07.[7][8] He made his competitive debut on 30 September 2007, playing as right-back in a 3–0 home defeat of Mallorca[9] after having successfully undergone surgery in the United States.[10]

Damià netted his first goals for the Andalusians in 2008–09, in consecutive matches early into the campaign (2–1 loss at Villarreal, 3–0 home win against Mallorca),[11][12] but the club suffered relegation after nine years.

Osasuna

In late July 2010, after Betis' unsuccessful attempt in regaining their lost status, Damià joined Osasuna.[13] He went on to spend several seasons in that tier, almost exclusively as a left-back in spite of being right-footed.[14][15][5]

Middlesbrough

On 16 August 2014, Damià joined Middlesbrough of the Football League Championship on a free transfer, signed by his compatriot Aitor Karanka. He received international clearance just hours before his debut against Leeds United at Elland Road, playing the full 90 minutes of a 1–0 defeat.[16]

Damià left the Riverside Stadium in May 2016, upon the expiration of his contract. He appeared in only seven competitive games during his spell,[17] and decided to retire at 34 soon afterwards.[5]

Honours

Barcelona

References

  1. ^ "Debe ser el número 23" [Must be number 23] (in Spanish). ESPN Deportes. 18 November 2006. Retrieved 15 September 2015.
  2. ^ Barcelona protect unbeaten start; UEFA, 30 October 2004
  3. ^ "Damià Abella: "El ánimo de Messi no es el mejor"" [Damià Abella: "Messi not in the best of moods"] (in Spanish). Diario de Navarra. 24 November 2020. Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  4. ^ Espanyol 0–2 Racing Santander; ESPN Soccernet, 12 February 2006
  5. ^ a b c "Damià: profesionalidad por bandera" [Damià: the consummate professional] (in Spanish). Cadena COPE. 2 April 2018. Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  6. ^ La recuperación de Damià, viento en popa (Damià's recovery, at full steam); FC Barcelona, 8 July 2006 (in Spanish)
  7. ^ "El Betis presenta a sus nuevos fichajes: Ilic y Caffa" [Betis present their new signings: Ilic and Caffa] (in Spanish). Marca. 30 January 2007. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
  8. ^ Damià, tras un año parado, empezará la pretemporada con normalidad (Damià, after one year out, will begin season normally); Marca, 12 July 2007 (in Spanish)
  9. ^ "El Betis firma su mejor partido de la temporada" [Betis sign their best game of the season] (in Spanish). El Mundo. 30 September 2007. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
  10. ^ "Damiá es operado en EEUU" [Damiá has surgery in the US] (in Spanish). El Desmarque. 1 December 2006. Archived from the original on 6 August 2016. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
  11. ^ Villarreal 2–1 Real Betis Archived 26 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine; ESPN Soccernet, 4 October 2008
  12. ^ Real Betis 3–0 Mallorca Archived 26 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine; ESPN Soccernet, 19 October 2008
  13. ^ Damiá se incorpora a Osasuna para las próximas tres temporadas (Damiá added to Osasuna for the next three seasons); Marca, 21 July 2010 (in Spanish)
  14. ^ "Del maratón sólo hemos andado dos kilómetros" [We are only two miles into the marathon] (in Spanish). Diario AS. 13 September 2012. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
  15. ^ "Damiá: "Diego Costa es un incordio"" [Damiá: "Diego Costa is a pain in the neck"] (in Spanish). Marca. 15 March 2013. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
  16. ^ "Middlesbrough: Aitor Karanka reveals Patrick Bamford interest". BBC Sport. 16 August 2014. Retrieved 17 August 2014.
  17. ^ "Jonathan Woodgate and Damia join Rhys Williams in departing Boro". Middlesbrough F.C. 24 May 2016. Retrieved 24 May 2016.
  18. ^ "Damià Abella: "Silvinho y Puyol son de los jugadores más profesionales que he visto nunca"" [Damià Abella: "Silvinho and Puyol are two of the most professional players I have ever seen"] (in Spanish). FC Barcelona. 8 November 2018. Retrieved 13 October 2024.
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