Saúl Crespo Prieto (born 23 July 1996), commonly known as Saúl, is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Indian Super League club Odisha.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Saúl Crespo Prieto | ||
| Date of birth | (1996-07-23) 23 July 1996 (age 26) | ||
| Place of birth | Ponferrada, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
Current team | Odisha | ||
| Number | 21 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2010–2015 | Ponferradina | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2015–2022 | Ponferradina | 119 | (1) |
| 2015–2016 | → Atlético Astorga (loan) | 25 | (1) |
| 2016–2017 | → Arandina (loan) | 36 | (0) |
| 2022– | Odisha | 3 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 12:00, 25 October 2022 (UTC) | |||
Saúl was born in Ponferrada, Castile and León, and joined SD Ponferradina's youth setup in 2010. On 12 August 2015, after finishing his formation, he was loaned to Segunda División B side Atlético Astorga FC for the season.[1]
Saúl made his senior debut on 19 September 2015, coming on as a second-half substitute in a 1–1 away draw against UD Logroñés. On 16 September, he signed a professional contract with Ponfe for three seasons.[2]
Saúl scored his first goal on 10 April 2016, netting the equalizer in a 1–2 loss at CD Guijuelo; he finished the campaign with 25 appearances, as his team suffered relegation. On 8 August, he moved to fellow third division side Arandina CF, also in a temporary deal.[3]
Saúl returned to his parent club in July 2017, and was definitely assigned to the main squad. On 14 June of the following year, he renewed his contract with the club,[4] and contributed with one goal in 30 appearances in 2018–19 as his side returned to Segunda División after three years.[citation needed]
Saúl made his professional debut on 18 August 2019, coming on as a second-half substitute for Yuri de Souza in a 1–3 away loss against Cádiz CF.[5]
In July 2022, Saúl moved abroad for the first time, signing a one-year contract with Indian Super League club Odisha.[6]
On 17 August, Saúl made his debut for the club against NorthEast United in the Durand Cup, in a thumping 6–0 win.[7][8] Six days later, he scored his first goal for the club against Kerala Blasters which ended in 2–0 win.[9][10]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Ponferradina | 2017–18 | Segunda División B | 29 | 0 | 3[lower-alpha 1] | 0 | — | 32 | 0 | |
| 2018–19 | 35 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 35 | 1 | |||
| 2019–20 | LaLiga 2 | 22 | 0 | 2[lower-alpha 1] | 0 | — | 24 | 0 | ||
| 2020–21 | 15 | 0 | 1[lower-alpha 1] | 0 | — | 16 | 0 | |||
| 2021–22 | 18 | 0 | 3[lower-alpha 1] | 0 | — | 21 | 0 | |||
| Ponferradina total | 119 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 128 | 1 | ||
| Atlético Astorga (loan) |
2015–16 | Segunda División B | 25 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 25 | 1 | |
| Arandina (loan) |
2016–17 | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 36 | 0 | ||
| Odisha | 2022–23 | Indian Super League | 3 | 0 | 5[lower-alpha 2] | 3 | — | 8 | 3 | |
| Career total | 183 | 2 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 197 | 5 | ||