Igor Gabilondo del Campo (born 10 February 1979) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a left midfielder.

Igor Gabilondo

Gabilondo taking a corner for Athletic in 2008
Personal information
Full name	Igor Gabilondo del Campo
Date of birth	(1979-02-10) 10 February 1979 (age 43)
Place of birth	San Sebastián, Spain
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s)	Midfielder
Youth career
	Añorga KKE
1993–1997	Real Sociedad
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1997–2000	Real Sociedad B
2000–2006	Real Sociedad	129	(13)
2006–2012	Athletic Bilbao	147	(20)
2012	AEK Larnaca	6	(0)
Total		282	(33)
National team
2002–2011	Basque Country	12	(1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

He played mainly for Real Sociedad and Athletic Bilbao (six seasons apiece) during his career, amassing La Liga totals of 276 games and 33 goals.[1]

Club career

Gabilondo was born in San Sebastián, Gipuzkoa. A product of Real Sociedad's youth system, he appeared sparingly for the first team in his first two seasons as a professional but went on to become an important element for the Basque club, scoring five La Liga goals in 33 games during the 2003–04 campaign.

In 2006, Gabilondo moved to local rivals Athletic Bilbao on a free transfer,[2] producing roughly the same numbers in his first two seasons combined (59 matches and seven goals). On 7 April 2007, he scored the game's only goal in a home win against Valencia CF.[3]

Gabilondo was used sparingly in 2008–09,[4] but the 30-year-old regained his importance in the following year, netting three times during the season, two of those coming in 4–1 home triumphs against CD Tenerife and UD Almería[5][6]– Athletic finished eighth.

In 2010–11, veteran Gabilondo was regularly used by Athletic Bilbao, alternating between the starting XI and the substitutes' bench. He equalled a career-best five goals, either from free kicks or long-distance shots,[7][8][9][10] also scoring in a 2–0 home win (3–0 on aggregate)against AD Alcorcón in the 2010–11 Copa del Rey.[11] In what proved to be his final season in Bilbao, he featured 21 times in all competitions but only completed 90 minutes on two occasions. His most significant involvement was opening the scoring with a volley in a 2–0 victory over Paris Saint-Germain in the 2011–12 UEFA Europa League group stage;[12] the team reached the final, in which he was an unused substitute[13] (as was the case in the 2012 Copa del Rey Final, both matches ending in 3–0 defeats).[14]

On 10 July 2012, aged 33, Gabilondo moved abroad for the first time in his career, signing for one year (with an option for a further season) with AEK Larnaca FC in the Cypriot First Division and rejoining former Athletic teammate Ander Murillo.[15] By January 2013 he had departed, with injuries and recently becoming a father cited as the reasons.[16]

International career

On 28 December 2011, Gabilondo equalled Julen Guerrero as the most capped played in the history of the Basque Country regional team. The match against Tunisia was his 12th appearance with the Euskal Herriko Selekzioa.[17][18]

Personal life

Gabilondo's father José Manuel[19] and his uncle Francisco Javier[20] were both footballers, their careers spent mostly at the Segunda Division B level.

Honours

Athletic Bilbao

• Copa del Rey runner-up: 2008–09, 2011–12
• Supercopa de España runner-up: 2009
• UEFA Europa League runner-up: 2011–12

References

External links

• Igor Gabilondo at Athletic Bilbao
• Igor Gabilondo at BDFutbol
• Igor Gabilondo at Soccerway

На других языках

[es] Igor Gabilondo

[it] Igor Gabilondo

[ru] Габилондо, Игор