Luis Helguera

Luis Helguera Bujía (born 9 June 1976) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a midfielder.

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Helguera and the second or maternal family name is Bujía.
Luis Helguera
Personal information
Full name Luis Helguera Bujía
Date of birth (1976-06-09) 9 June 1976
Place of birth Ferrol, Spain
Height 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Youth career
Callealtera
1984–1995 Racing Santander
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1995–1997 Manchego 72 (3)
1997–1999 Zaragoza B 64 (3)
1998–2000 Zaragoza 20 (0)
2000–2003 Udinese 54 (1)
2002–2003 → Alavés (loan) 22 (0)
2003–2005 Fiorentina 10 (0)
2004 → Ancona (loan) 13 (0)
2005–2008 Vicenza 109 (0)
2008–2013 Huesca 185 (8)
Total 440 (15)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Club career

Helguera was born in Ferrol, Galicia. After beginning with lowly Club Deportivo Manchego he moved to La Liga with Real Zaragoza, where he appeared sporadically (his most games being 16 in 1999–2000, as the Aragon side finished fourth).

After his older brother, Iván, had played one season at A.S. Roma, Helguera also moved to Italy, representing Udinese Calcio for two years with a Deportivo Alavés loan in between.[1] He spent a further six campaigns also in that country, mostly in Serie B, returning in 2008 to his homeland to sign with a second division newcomer, SD Huesca.[2]

Helguera rarely missed a game for the club during his spell, helping it consecutively retain its status. In 2010–11 he also collected a season-worse 20 yellow cards, in 37 matches.[3] He retired in June 2013 at the age of 37 following the team's relegation, amassing second-tier totals of 185 appearances and eight goals over the course of five seasons.[4]

On 6 August 2015, Helguera was named UD Las Palmas' technical secretary.[5]

Personal life

Helguera was the younger brother of former Real Madrid, Valencia and Spain defender Iván Helguera. Both played abroad in Italy.[6]

References
  1. "Alavés opt for Helguera". UEFA. 27 July 2002. Retrieved 30 May 2010.
  2. "Luis Helguera, refuerzo de lujo para el club oscense" [Luis Helguera, deluxe signing for club from Huesca]. Marca (in Spanish). 1 September 2008. Retrieved 26 June 2018.
  3. "Helguera: "Nos está costando un poquito"" [Helguera: "We are having a bit of a hard time"]. Marca (in Spanish). 29 September 2010. Retrieved 23 January 2021.
  4. Martín, Ignacio (20 February 2017). "«Tengo clarísimo que viviré en Zaragoza, algún día volveré»" ["It's clear as can be I will live in Zaragoza, I will return someday"]. El Periódico de Aragón (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 June 2018.
  5. Cruz, Toni (6 August 2015). "Luis Helguera, nuevo secretario técnico de la UD" [Luis Helguera, new UD technical secretary] (in Spanish). Vavel. Retrieved 26 June 2018.
  6. "El exzaragocista Luis Helguera apuesta por su hermano Iván" [Former zaragocista Luis Helguera bets on brother Iván]. El Periódico de Aragón (in Spanish). 16 March 2004. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.