Gerard Piqué

This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Piqué and the second or maternal family name is Bernabeu.
Gerard Piqué

Piqué at an event in Doha, February 2015
Personal information
Full name Gerard Piqué Bernabéu[1]
Date of birth (1987-02-02) 2 February 1987
Place of birth Barcelona, Spain
Height 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)[2]
Playing position Centre back
Club information
Current team
 Barcelona
Number 3
Youth career
1997–2004 Barcelona
2004–2005 Manchester United
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
2004–2008 Manchester United 12 (0)
2006–2007 → Zaragoza (loan) 22 (2)
2008– Barcelona 219 (19)
National team‡
2002–2003 Spain U16 7 (2)
2004 Spain U17 8 (3)
2006 Spain U19 8 (3)
2007 Spain U20 5 (1)
2006–2008 Spain U21 12 (1)
2009– Spain 76 (4)
2004– Catalonia 9 (0)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 13:47, 1 May 2016 (UTC).
† Appearances (goals)

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 13:47, 1 April 2016 (UTC)

Gerard Piqué Bernabéu (Catalan: [ʒəˈɾar piˈke i βərnəˈβeu], Spanish: [ʝeˈɾar piˈke i βernaˈβeu]; born 2 February 1987) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a central defender for FC Barcelona and the Spain national team.

A product of Barça's cantera, La Masia, Piqué initially left the club for Manchester United in 2004, where he remained for four years, before returning to Barça under Pep Guardiola's leadership, helping the club win a treble in 2008–09 and a quadruple in 2009–10. He is one of four players to have won the UEFA Champions League two years in a row with different teams, the others being Marcel Desailly, Paulo Sousa and Samuel Eto'o.[3]

Piqué has also represented Spain, making his debut on 11 February 2009. He played an integral role in the Spain team that won the 2010 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2012.

Club career

Early career

Born in Barcelona, Catalonia,[2] Piqué started his career in FC Barcelona's youth teams as a defensive midfielder, but before he signed his first professional contract with the club, he decided to join Manchester United. The Premier League side did not pay a fee for Piqué as he was too young to have a professional contract.

Manchester United

Piqué made his debut for Manchester United in October 2004, as a late replacement for John O'Shea in a 3–0 League Cup victory at Crewe Alexandra as a centre back.[4] He made his full debut on 29 March 2006 against West Ham United, in a Premier League match at Old Trafford, playing at right back, as Gary Neville was unavailable through injury.[5]

His performances, most notably in the reserve team, earned him a new contract, which he signed in February 2005 to run until the summer of 2009. On 4 August 2006, however, La Liga side Real Zaragoza secured Piqué on a season-long loan. The conditions of the loan involved Piqué having to feature in at least 20 games for the Aragonese club,[6] which he did, as he made 22 first team appearances in a successful spell, alongside Argentine Gabriel Milito, either as a centre back or a defensive midfielder.

On 5 May 2007, it was announced that Piqué would be staying at Old Trafford for the following season. Sir Alex Ferguson had intended to assess Piqué's form at La Romareda on 6 May, prior to a meeting where the two parties would discuss Piqué's future prospects with the club. However, Ferguson was unable to attend on account of airline difficulties.[7]

Piqué's return to Old Trafford saw him make nine league appearances during the 2007–08 season. He scored on his first start in the UEFA Champions League, a 4–0 home win against Dynamo Kyiv on 7 November 2007, as Piqué scored the first of Manchester United's four goals in that match.[8] In doing so, he became the 450th player to score at least one goal for the club.[9] His second goal for the club also came in the Champions League, in an away match to Roma on 12 December 2007.[10]

Return to Barcelona

Piqué during the 2008 Joan Gamper Trophy.

On 27 May 2008, Piqué signed a four-year contract with Barcelona, with a €5 million buy-out clause.[11] Barcelona paid a £5 million fee for the player.[12] He expressed his joy at re-signing with his boyhood club, although he admitted he had enjoyed his spell at Manchester United:

"I am very happy to be back, I didn't think I would be here again but this is very good for me. Manchester United is a great club and I enjoyed winning things. To play with world class players has helped me and now I want to continue this at Barça."

Piqué's first goal for Barcelona came in the club's 2–5 Champions League group stage win at Sporting CP on 26 November 2008.[13][14] His first domestic goal for the club followed two months later, on 29 January 2009, in a Copa del Rey match against local rivals Espanyol. The goal, which came from a corner kick in the 57th minute, turned out to be the game winner in a 3–2 victory for Barcelona.[15][16] On 2 May 2009, Piqué scored Barcelona's sixth goal in a 2–6 El Clásico win against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu.[17]

Piqué after Barcelona's triumph in the 2009 UEFA Champions League Final

On 13 May 2009, he picked up the first trophy of his Barcelona career as he helped his club to a 4–1 victory over Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey Final.[18] Three days later, Barcelona clinched the league title after Real Madrid lost 3–2 to Villarreal, with two games left in the season.[19]

On 27 May 2009, Piqué played against his former club Manchester United in the 2009 Champions League Final, which Barcelona won 2–0,[20] completing an historic treble.[21]

Piqué playing for Barcelona during the 2012–13 season

On 19 December 2009, Piqué was in the Barcelona team which beat Argentine club Estudiantes 2–1 in the 2009 FIFA Club World Cup Final. Piqué assisted Pedro's 89th minute equalising goal which took the match to extra-time.[22]

On 26 February 2010, Piqué signed a contract extension to keep him at Barcelona until at least summer 2015.[23][24] On 28 April 2010, Piqué scored in Barcelona's Champions League semi-final second leg against Internazionale, though his side went out 3–2 on aggregate.[25]

On 28 May 2011, Piqué played in his second Champions League Final. Barça defeated Manchester United 3–1 at Wembley Stadium to lift the European Cup for the second time in three seasons. On 1 May 2013, Piqué scored an own goal for Bayern Munich in Camp Nou, making the score 2–0 to Bayern. Later, Bayern went on to win 3–0 and 7–0 on aggregate.[26]

On 20 May 2014, Piqué signed a contract extension with Barcelona, keeping him at the club until 2019.[27]

On 6 June 2015, Piqué started for Barça in the 2015 UEFA Champions League Final, as the club won its fifth European Cup by beating Juventus at Berlin's Olympiastadion.[28] This made Barcelona the first club in history to win the treble of domestic league, domestic cup and European Cup twice.[29] Piqué, Lionel Messi, Andrés Iniesta, Xavi, Sergio Busquets, Dani Alves and Pedro are the only players to have been a part of both treble-winning teams.[29]

International career

Youth teams

Piqué in action for Spain in 2013 with FC Barcelona teammate Neymar.

Piqué was a member of the Spain under-19 side that won the 2006 U-19 European Championship in Poland.[30] In a 2–1 final win against Scotland, Piqué put in a strong performance in defence, hitting the crossbar with a header, and also providing his team's second goal for striker Alberto Bueno.[31]

Subsequently, he played in the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup, starting all six of Spain's matches and scoring a goal in the team's come-from-behind 4–2 victory over Brazil in the round of 16.[32] However, Piqué missed the deciding penalty in the shoot-out against the Czech Republic and Spain were eliminated at the quarter-final stage.[33]

Senior side

Piqué (back row, second right) lining up for the Catalonia national team against Nigeria

On 6 February 2009, Piqué was called up to the senior squad for the friendly against England on 11 February.[34] He played the entire match in a 2–0 win, in Seville.[35] In his second match as an international on 28 March 2009, he was called up as a replacement for injured team-mate Carles Puyol and he scored the only goal in Spain's victory in the 2010 World Cup qualifier against Turkey at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid.[36] Four days later, he also started in Istanbul in a 2–1 win, also in the group stage.[37]

Piqué made his tournament debut for Spain at the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, starting in four of the team's five matches as La Roja finished in third place.

Piqué was Spain's first-choice centre back playing alongside Puyol at the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa, starting all seven matches as Spain won the tournament, defeating the Netherlands 1–0 in the final.[38] Piqué's partnership with Puyol saw Spain concede only twice in seven World Cup matches and keep four consecutive clean sheets in the knockout stage. In Spain's 1–0 group stage defeat to Switzerland, just before Gelson Fernandes scored the only goal of the game, Swiss striker Eren Derdiyok tumbled over Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas and accidentally kicked Piqué in the face, knocking him over and leaving him with a nasty cut beside his right eye.[39]

Piqué played every minute of Spain's UEFA Euro 2012 campaign, partnering Sergio Ramos in the centre of defence. He successfully converted the team's third penalty in a semi-final shoot-out win over Portugal. In the final, Spain recorded a fifth consecutive clean sheet in a 4–0 win over Italy. Piqué was one of three Spanish defenders included in UEFA's Team of the Tournament as La Roja conceded only one goal in six matches.

At the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup, Piqué was the third of Spain's seven successful takers in a 7–6 shootout win over Italy at the semi-final stage. On 30 June 2013, Piqué was sent off during the final against Brazil. He received a straight red card in the 68th minute for a violent tackle on recently signed Barcelona team-mate Neymar. The match finished 3–0 to Brazil, ending Spain's world record 29 match unbeaten run in competitive internationals.[40]

Piqué became unpopular with some elements of the Spanish support, due to his taunting of Barcelona's rivals Real Madrid. A friendly against England in November 2015 was moved from Real's Bernabeu Stadium to Alicante in order to avoid crowd abuse towards him.[41]

Style of play

Piqué is a modern defender, who combines strength with good technique and passing. Due to his height and physical attributes, he is good in the air. Although he is primarily deployed as a centre back, he is a tactically versatile player who is capable of playing as a defensive midfielder; he has also been deployed as a sweeper on occasion, showing similarities to German legend, Franz Beckenbauer, and ipso facto earning the sobriquet "Piquénbauer" from fans and media alike. He has also occasionally been known to utilise his height as an additional attacking threat by advancing into more offensive positions.[42][43]

Personal life

Piqué was raised in a Catalan family. His father, Joan, is a business man, and his mother, Montserrat, is the director of a prestigious spinal injuries hospital in Barcelona. He has a younger brother, Marc.[44][45] His grandfather, Amador Bernabeu, is a former vice-president of Barcelona.[46]

Since early 2010, Piqué has been in a relationship with Colombian singer Shakira.[47][48] They met when he appeared in the music video for her single "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)", the official song of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.[49] Piqué and Shakira share the same birthday but she is 10 years his senior. The couple have two sons, Milan and Sasha.[50][51]

Piqué was the face of Mango's men's line HE for four consecutive campaign seasons between 2011 and 2012.[52][53][54] In 2012, he lent his voice to the Catalan version of The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists! as the Pirate King.[55]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 1 May 2016.[56][57][58]
Club Season League Cup[nb 1] League Cup Europe Other Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Manchester United 2004–05 0010101[lower-alpha 1]00030
2005–06 30202000—70
2006–07 00000000—00
2007–08 9000103[lower-alpha 1]200132
Total 12030404200232
Zaragoza (loan) 2006–07 22261———283
Barcelona 2008–09 25161—14[lower-alpha 1]100453
2009–10 32210—12[lower-alpha 2]24[lower-alpha 3]0494
2010–11 31370—12[lower-alpha 1]11[lower-alpha 4]0514
2011–12 22280—5[lower-alpha 1]03[lower-alpha 5]0382
2012–13 28241—10[lower-alpha 1]02[lower-alpha 6]0443
2013–14 26220—9[lower-alpha 1]22[lower-alpha 7]0394
2014–15 27561—11[lower-alpha 1]1—447
2015–16 28242—7[lower-alpha 8]14[lower-alpha 9]0435
Total 21919385—80816035332
Career total 2532147640841016040437
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 All appearances in UEFA Champions League
  2. ↑ One appearance in UEFA Super Cup, 11 appearances and 2 goals in UEFA Champions League
  3. ↑ Two appearances in Supercopa de España, two appearances in FIFA Club World Cup
  4. ↑ Appearances in Supercopa de España
  5. ↑ Two appearances in Supercopa de España, one appearance in FIFA Club World Cup
  6. ↑ Appearances in Supercopa de España
  7. ↑ Appearances in Supercopa de España
  8. ↑ One appearance in UEFA Super Cup, one appearances in UEFA Champions League
  9. ↑ Appearances in Supercopa de España

    International

    As of match played 13 November 2015.[59]
    National teamYearAppsGoals
    Spain 2009134
    2010160
    201180
    2012110
    2013110
    201460
    201580
    Total734

    Honours

    Club

    Manchester United
    Barcelona[2]

    International

    Piqué with the UEFA European Championship trophy in 2012
    Spain

    Individual

    Decorations

    References

    1. ↑ "FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010: List of Players" (PDF). Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). 4 June 2010. p. 29. Retrieved 13 September 2013.
    2. 1 2 3 "Gerard Piqué profile". FC Barcelona. Retrieved 24 March 2015.
    3. ↑ Bogunyà, Roger (28 May 2009). "Three titles and personal records". FCBarcelona.com. FC Barcelona. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
    4. ↑ "Crewe 0–3 Man Utd". BBC Sport. 26 October 2004. Retrieved 27 May 2008.
    5. ↑ "Man Utd 1-0 West Ham". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). 29 March 2006. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
    6. ↑ "Zaragoza's Piqué: My future is with Man Utd". OnTheMinute.com. Retrieved 30 January 2007.
    7. ↑ Hibbs, Ben (4 May 2007). "Piqué set for OT return". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
    8. ↑ McNulty, Phil (7 November 2007). "Man Utd 4–0 Dynamo Kiev". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved 3 May 2010.
    9. ↑ "All Goalscorers in all Competitive Matches". The Website of Dreams. StretfordEnd.co.uk. November 2007. p. 5. Retrieved 8 November 2007.
    10. ↑ Herbert, Ian (13 December 2007). "Roma 1 Manchester United 1: Piqué's joy on pitch marred by violence off it". The Independent (Independent Print). Retrieved 25 June 2010.
    11. ↑ "Piqué comes back home". FCBarcelona.com. FC Barcelona. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
    12. ↑ Lowe, Sid (25 May 2009). "Gerard Piqué is back at Camp Nou, the man with Barcelona in his DNA". guardian.co.uk (Guardian News and Media). Retrieved 30 November 2010.
    13. ↑ "Sporting Lisbon 2 – 5 Barcelona". ESPNFC.com (ESPN). 26 November 2008. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
    14. ↑ "Jose Mourinho's Inter Milan progress despite defeat to Panathinaikos". The Telegraph (Telegraph Media Group). 26 November 2008. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
    15. ↑ "Barcelona 3 – 2 Espanyol". ESPNFC.com. ESPN. 29 January 2009. Retrieved 2 July 2009.
    16. ↑ "Barcelona into Copa del Rey semis". The Telegraph (Telegraph Media Group). 29 January 2009. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
    17. ↑ "REAL MADRID- FC BARCELONA 2-6". FC Barcelona. 2 May 2009. Retrieved 10 August 2013.
    18. ↑ "Barcelona defeat Athletic Bilbao to win Copa del Rey". The Telegraph (Telegraph Media Group). 14 May 2009. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
    19. ↑ "Real Madrid loss hands La Liga title to Barcelona". The Telegraph (Telegraph Media Group). 16 May 2009. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
    20. ↑ "Barcelona 2–0 Man Utd". BBC Sport. 27 May 2009. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
    21. ↑ "Guardiola salutes his treble winners". UEFA.com (UEFA). 28 May 2009. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
    22. ↑ "Barcelona add world title to trophy haul". CNN. 19 December 2009. Retrieved 10 August 2013.
    23. ↑ "Piqué signs new Barcelona deal". MirrorFootball (Mirror Group Newspapers). 26 February 2010. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
    24. ↑ "Piqué extends Barcelona contract". UEFA.com (UEFA). 26 February 2010. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
    25. ↑ Barcelona 1 – 0 Internazionale ESPN Soccernet, 28 April 2010
    26. ↑ ESPN Soccernet, 1 May 2013
    27. ↑ "Gerard Piqué signs on till 2019". FC Barcelona. 20 May 2014. Retrieved 22 May 2014.
    28. ↑ Haslam, Andrew (6 June 2015). "Barcelona see off Juventus to claim fifth title". UEFA.com (Union of European Football Associations). Retrieved 7 June 2015.
    29. 1 2 "Barça make history with second treble!". fcbarcelona.com (FC Barcelona). 6 June 2015. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
    30. ↑ Meléndez's mind focused on final UEFA.com, 27 July 2006
    31. ↑ 'This defeat feels like a victory' UEFA.com, 30 July 2006
    32. ↑ "Spain-Brazil Match Report". FIFA. Archived from the original on 14 February 2008. Retrieved 2 April 2008.
    33. ↑ "Spain – Czech Republic Match Report". FIFA. 14 July 2007. Retrieved 22 June 2013.
    34. ↑ "Lista de convocados para el amistoso ante Inglaterra" (in Spanish). Real Federación Española de Fútbol. 6 February 2009. Retrieved 6 February 2009.
    35. ↑ Iliev, Nick (12 February 2009). "International Friendly: Spain completely outclass England". Sofia Echo (Sofia Echo Media). Retrieved 25 June 2010.
    36. ↑ "Del Bosque Analyses Spain's Turkey Win". Goal.com. 29 March 2009. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
    37. ↑ "Turkey 1–2 Spain: Riera earns comeback victory". ESPNFC.com. ESPN. 1 April 2009. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
    38. ↑ McCarra, Kevin (11 July 2010). "World Cup 2010 final: Andrés Iniesta finds key for Spain to beat Holland". The Guardian (Guardian News and Media). Retrieved 12 March 2013.
    39. ↑ Sheringham, Sam (16 June 2010). "Spain 0-1 Switzerland". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved 16 January 2015.
    40. ↑ "Brazil Caps Confederations Cup Marked by Protests With Title". Bloomberg. 1 July 2013. Retrieved 10 August 2013.
    41. ↑ Jenson, Pete (7 September 2015). "Spain vs England friendly moved to Alicante as Spanish FA fear fans' abuse of Gerard Pique will continue at Santiago Bernabeu". Daily Mail. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
    42. ↑ "Gerard Piqué Bernabeu". Retrieved 2 February 2015.
    43. ↑ "Hierro: 'Piquenbauer' has striker's soul". FourFourTwo. 3 May 2010. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
    44. ↑ "Familia sólo hay una" (in Spanish). El Periódico de Aragón. 5 August 2006. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
    45. ↑ "Gerard Piqué – World Cup 2010". Soccernet. ESPN. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
    46. ↑ Lowe, Sid (25 May 2009). "Gerard Piqué is back at Camp Nou, the man with Barcelona in his DNA". guardian.co.uk (Guardian News and Media). Retrieved 31 May 2009.
    47. ↑ "Piqué confirms Shakira relationship on request from Barcelona coach Guardiola". tribalfootball.com. Retrieved 7 February 2011.
    48. ↑ "Sure you're just friends Shakira? Singer pictured at footballer Gerard Piqué's birthday party". Mail Online (Associated Newspapers). 8 February 2011. Retrieved 8 February 2011.
    49. ↑ "Antonio de la Rúa, Shakira's Ex-Boyfriend, Sues Star For $250 Million". Huffington Post. 6 September 2012. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
    50. ↑ "First picture: Shakira and Gerard Piqué's two-week-old baby Milan", Mirror 3am (Mirror Group Newspapers), 4 February 2013, retrieved 12 March 2013
    51. ↑ "Shakira baby: The name of the little boy revealed". HOLA. 30 January 2015.
    52. ↑ "Gerard Piqué for H.E. by Mango Spring 2011 Campaign". The Fashionisto. 24 February 2011. Retrieved 29 March 2011.
    53. ↑ Wray, Michelle (15 March 2011). "Gerard Pique Launches He by Mango Spring/Summer 2011 Collection Pictures". Monsters and Critics. Retrieved 29 March 2011.
    54. ↑ "Gerard Pique, Mango image for the fourth time". La Vanguardia. 23 July 2012. Retrieved 2 August 2012.
    55. ↑ "TV3 TN migdia 6_8_2012 Piqué doblatge Pirates". YouTube. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
    56. ↑ Statistics – Gerard Piqué FCBarcelona.com
    57. ↑ "Gerard Piqué".
    58. ↑ Gerard Piqué profile at Soccerway. Retrieved 12 February 2015.
    59. ↑ "Piqué, Gerard". National Football Teams. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
    60. ↑ "The 2014/15 Liga BBVA Ideal XI". LFP. 15 June 2015. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
    61. ↑ "UEFA Champions League squad of the season". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 9 June 2015. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
    62. ↑ "ESM Team of the season". World Soccer. Retrieved 5 June 2012.
    63. ↑ "Die ESM-Topelf der Saison 2013/14 - ein Deutscher ist dabei" (in German). kicker.de. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
    64. ↑ "Die ESM-Topelf der Saison 2014/15 - ein Deutscher ist dabei" (in German). kicker.de. Retrieved 11 June 2015.
    65. ↑ "Las campeones del mundo de fútbol ya tienen la Real Orden del Mérito Deportivo" (in Spanish). Mundo Deportivo. 5 October 2011.

    Notes

    1. ↑ Includes cup competitions such as the FA Cup and Copa del Rey

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