Javier Portillo
Encyclopedia
Javier García Portillo (born 30 March 1982 in Aranjuez
, Community of Madrid) is a Spanish
footballer who plays for UD Las Palmas
as a forward.
's youth structure. During seven seasons he was a prolific scorer, netting 150 goals and breaking a record previously held by Raúl
. In 2002, he signed his first professional contract, running until 2007, with a release clause of €
35 million.
On 6 October 2002, Portillo made his first main squad appearance, starting in a 5–2 home win against Deportivo Alavés
, ending that season with five goals in only 10 outings. He also scored a vital last-minute equaliser against Borussia Dortmund
in the UEFA Champions League
second group stage, a goal which ultimately proved to be crucial in Real Madrid making it into the knockout stages.
In July 2004, Portillo was loaned to Serie A
club ACF Fiorentina
, but was recalled by new boss Vanderlei Luxemburgo
, who arrived midway through 2004–05
. However, the same coach deemed him surplus to requirements and another loan ensued, to Belgian League's Club Brugge KV.
At the end of this loan period, Portillo returned to Real, under newly-hired coach Fabio Capello
. With new signing Ruud van Nistelrooy
adding to already present Raúl, Antonio Cassano
and Ronaldo
, Portillo was released from contract, and eventually signed a two-year contract with newly promoted Gimnàstic de Tarragona
.
After a very successful individual season (11 league goals, although the Catalan
side was finally relegated from La Liga
), he replaced, in July 2007, Roberto Soldado
at Osasuna, who returned from loan to Real Madrid. During his first two campaigns, he was used irregularly, and only netted three times in the league.
In late December 2009, Portillo - who was only fourth or fifth-choice striker for Osasuna coach José Antonio Camacho
- finally moved clubs, signing until the end of 2009–10
plus two more with second level
's Hércules CF
. After some time to adjust, he finished the season in the starting XI, netting vital goals in the final stretch (namely in the last round, a 2–0 win at Real Unión
), as the Alicante
club returned to the first division after 13 years.
In 2010–11
, Portillo returned to reserve status, after Hércules signed David Trezeguet
and Nelson Valdez
in the off-season. He only started through injury or suspension to the pair, and only scored twice in official games, one coming in a 3–1 away win against Real Sociedad
on 3 April 2011, with Hércules being immediately relegated back.
, scoring five goals.
|2001–02||rowspan="3"|Real Madrid
||rowspan="3"|Spanish League
||-||-||-||-||-||-||1||1||1|||1
|-
|2002–03||10||5||6||8||-||-||7||1||23||14
|-
|2003–04||18||1||7||1||-||-||4||0||29||2
|-
|2004–05||Fiorentina
||Italian League
||11||1||7||3||-||-||-||-||18||4
|-
|2004–05
||Real Madrid
||Spanish League
||3||0||1||0||-||-||-||-||4||0
|-
|2005–06||Club Brugge||Belgian League||24||8||-||-||||||8||3||||
|-
|2006–07||Gimnàstic
||rowspan="3"|Spanish League
||34||11||2||1||-||-||-||-||36||12
|-
|2007–08||rowspan="2"|Osasuna
||18||2||2||0||-||-||-||-||20||0
|-
|2008-09||20||1||||||||||||||||
84||20||18||10||-||-||12||2||114||32
11||1||7||3||-||-||-||-||18||4
24||8||-||-||||||8||3||32||11
119||29||25||13||||||20||5||||
Aranjuez
Aranjuez is a town lying 48 km south of Madrid, in the southern part of the Community of Madrid. It is located at the confluence of the Tagus and Jarama rivers, 48 km from Toledo. As of 2009, it has a population of 54,055.-History:...
, Community of Madrid) is a Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
footballer who plays for UD Las Palmas
UD Las Palmas
Unión Deportiva Las Palmas, S.A.D. is a Spanish football team based in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, in the autonomous community of Canary Islands...
as a forward.
Club career
In 1994, aged 12, Portillo entered Real MadridReal Madrid C.F.
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...
's youth structure. During seven seasons he was a prolific scorer, netting 150 goals and breaking a record previously held by Raúl
Raúl González
Raúl González Blanco , known simply as Raúl, is a Spanish footballer who plays as a striker. He currently plays for German club Schalke 04....
. In 2002, he signed his first professional contract, running until 2007, with a release clause of €
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
35 million.
On 6 October 2002, Portillo made his first main squad appearance, starting in a 5–2 home win against Deportivo Alavés
Deportivo Alavés
Deportivo Alavés, S.A.D., usually abbreviated to Alavés, is a Spanish football club based in Vitoria-Gasteiz, in the Basque Country. Founded in 1921, it plays in Segunda División B, holding home matches at the 19,500-seater Estadio Mendizorrotza....
, ending that season with five goals in only 10 outings. He also scored a vital last-minute equaliser against Borussia Dortmund
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia Dortmund, commonly BVB, are a German sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. Dortmund are one of the most successful clubs in German football history. Borussia Dortmund play in the Bundesliga, the top league of German football...
in the UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
second group stage, a goal which ultimately proved to be crucial in Real Madrid making it into the knockout stages.
In July 2004, Portillo was loaned to Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
club ACF Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as simply Fiorentina, is a professional Italian football club from Florence, Tuscany. Founded by a merger in 1926, Fiorentina have played at the top level of Italian football for the majority of their existence; only four clubs have played in more Serie A...
, but was recalled by new boss Vanderlei Luxemburgo
Vanderlei Luxemburgo
Vanderlei Luxemburgo da Silva , better known as Vanderlei Luxemburgo, is a Brazilian football manager and former football player. He holds the distinction of being the most successful manager in the history of Brazil's Série A, with 5 league titles...
, who arrived midway through 2004–05
2004–05 La Liga
2004–05 season was composed of the following clubs:* Albacete Balompié* Athletic Bilbao* Atlético Madrid* FC Barcelona* Real Betis* Deportivo de La Coruña* Espanyol* Getafe CF* Levante UD* Málaga CF* Real Mallorca* CD Numancia* CA Osasuna...
. However, the same coach deemed him surplus to requirements and another loan ensued, to Belgian League's Club Brugge KV.
At the end of this loan period, Portillo returned to Real, under newly-hired coach Fabio Capello
Fabio Capello
Fabio Capello is an Italian football manager and former player. He is the manager of the England national football team.Capello has the distinction of winning the domestic league title with every club he has coached throughout his career...
. With new signing Ruud van Nistelrooy
Ruud van Nistelrooy
Rutgerus Johannes Martinus "Ruud" van Nistelrooy, , is a Dutch footballer who plays as a striker for Málaga CF in Spain's La Liga. He is the second-highest goalscorer in Champions League history with 60 goals...
adding to already present Raúl, Antonio Cassano
Antonio Cassano
Antonio Cassano is an Italian footballer who plays for Serie A club Milan as a striker. Nicknamed Il Gioiello di Bari Vecchia , he is known for his short temper as much as his ability on the pitch, which led to the coining of the neologism Cassanata by his former coach, Fabio Capello, in November...
and Ronaldo
Ronaldo
Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima , commonly known as Ronaldo, is a retired Brazilian footballer who last played for Corinthians. Ronaldo is widely considered to be the greatest 'pure' striker in the history of the modern game, and by some accounts, in the history of football. Ronaldo was one of the...
, Portillo was released from contract, and eventually signed a two-year contract with newly promoted Gimnàstic de Tarragona
Gimnàstic de Tarragona
Club Gimnàstic de Tarragona, usually referred to as Nàstic, is a Spanish sports club based in Tarragona, in the autonomous community of Catalonia. Its football team currently plays in Segunda División....
.
After a very successful individual season (11 league goals, although the Catalan
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
side was finally relegated from La Liga
La Liga
The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...
), he replaced, in July 2007, Roberto Soldado
Roberto Soldado
Roberto Soldado Rillo is a Spanish footballer who plays for Valencia CF as a striker.-Real Madrid:Born in Valencia, Soldado joined Real Madrid at the age of 15 from local small club CF Don Bosco. After seasons of prolific goalscoring with the club's B team, he made his first team debut on 23...
at Osasuna, who returned from loan to Real Madrid. During his first two campaigns, he was used irregularly, and only netted three times in the league.
In late December 2009, Portillo - who was only fourth or fifth-choice striker for Osasuna coach José Antonio Camacho
José Antonio Camacho
José Antonio Camacho Alfaro is a retired Spanish footballer who played as a left defender, and the current coach of the China PR national football team....
- finally moved clubs, signing until the end of 2009–10
2009–10 Segunda División
The 2009–10 Segunda División was made up of the following teams:-League table:||rowspan=15 style="background-color:#F9F9F9;"|-2009–10 Results:To read this table, the home team is listed in the left-hand column....
plus two more with second level
Segunda División
The Segunda División is the lower tier of the two professional football leagues in Spain. From the season 2008-09 onwards, the name of the league is Liga Adelante.-History:...
's Hércules CF
Hércules CF
Hércules Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. is a Spanish football team based in Alicante, in the autonomous community of Valencia. Founded in 1922, it currently plays in the Spanish second division, and holds home games at the Estadio José Rico Pérez, which seats 30,000 spectators.-History:After first...
. After some time to adjust, he finished the season in the starting XI, netting vital goals in the final stretch (namely in the last round, a 2–0 win at Real Unión
Real Unión
Real Unión Club de Irún, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Irun, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country, in the province of Gipuzkoa, near the border with France...
), as the Alicante
Alicante
Alicante or Alacant is a city in Spain, the capital of the province of Alicante and of the comarca of Alacantí, in the south of the Valencian Community. It is also a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city of Alicante proper was 334,418, estimated , ranking as the second-largest...
club returned to the first division after 13 years.
In 2010–11
2010–11 La Liga
The 2010–11 La Liga season was the 80th since its establishment. The campaign began on 28 August 2010 and ended on 21 May 2011. A total of 20 teams contested the league, 17 of which already contested in the 2009–10 season and three of which were promoted from the Segunda División...
, Portillo returned to reserve status, after Hércules signed David Trezeguet
David Trézéguet
David Sergio Trezeguet is a World Cup winning French international footballer who currently is a free agent after being released by Baniyas SC on 21 Nov 2011....
and Nelson Valdez
Nelson Haedo Valdez
Nelson Antonio Haedo Valdez is a Paraguayan football striker who currently plays for Russian Premier League side Rubin Kazan and the Paraguayan national team.-Early life:...
in the off-season. He only started through injury or suspension to the pair, and only scored twice in official games, one coming in a 3–1 away win against Real Sociedad
Real Sociedad
Real Sociedad de Fútbol, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in the city of San Sebastián, Basque Country, founded on 7 September 1909...
on 3 April 2011, with Hércules being immediately relegated back.
International career
During one year (shortly after his arrival at the Real Madrid senior setup), Portillo played 10 times for Spain U-21'sSpain national under-21 football team
The Spain national under-21 football team, is the national under-21 football team of Spain and is controlled by the Royal Spanish Football Federation. The team, nicknamed La Rojita , competes in the biannual European Under-21 Football Championship.Following the realignment of UEFA's youth...
, scoring five goals.
Club statistics
|-|2001–02||rowspan="3"|Real Madrid
Real Madrid C.F.
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...
||rowspan="3"|Spanish League
La Liga
The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...
||-||-||-||-||-||-||1||1||1|||1
|-
|2002–03||10||5||6||8||-||-||7||1||23||14
|-
|2003–04||18||1||7||1||-||-||4||0||29||2
|-
|2004–05||Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as simply Fiorentina, is a professional Italian football club from Florence, Tuscany. Founded by a merger in 1926, Fiorentina have played at the top level of Italian football for the majority of their existence; only four clubs have played in more Serie A...
||Italian League
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
||11||1||7||3||-||-||-||-||18||4
|-
|2004–05
2004–05 La Liga
2004–05 season was composed of the following clubs:* Albacete Balompié* Athletic Bilbao* Atlético Madrid* FC Barcelona* Real Betis* Deportivo de La Coruña* Espanyol* Getafe CF* Levante UD* Málaga CF* Real Mallorca* CD Numancia* CA Osasuna...
||Real Madrid
Real Madrid C.F.
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...
||Spanish League
La Liga
The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...
||3||0||1||0||-||-||-||-||4||0
|-
|2005–06||Club Brugge||Belgian League||24||8||-||-||||||8||3||||
|-
|2006–07||Gimnàstic
Gimnàstic de Tarragona
Club Gimnàstic de Tarragona, usually referred to as Nàstic, is a Spanish sports club based in Tarragona, in the autonomous community of Catalonia. Its football team currently plays in Segunda División....
||rowspan="3"|Spanish League
La Liga
The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...
||34||11||2||1||-||-||-||-||36||12
|-
|2007–08||rowspan="2"|Osasuna
CA Osasuna
Club Atlético Osasuna, known as Osasuna, is a Spanish football team based in Iruñea-Pamplona, in the autonomous community of Navarre.Founded in 1920, it currently plays in the Spanish first division, holding home games at the 19,553-capacity Estadio Reyno de Navarra...
||18||2||2||0||-||-||-||-||20||0
|-
|2008-09||20||1||||||||||||||||
84||20||18||10||-||-||12||2||114||32
11||1||7||3||-||-||-||-||18||4
24||8||-||-||||||8||3||32||11
119||29||25||13||||||20||5||||
Honours
Real Madrid- UEFA Champions LeagueUEFA Champions LeagueThe UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
: 2001–02 - Intercontinental CupIntercontinental Cup (football)The European/South American Cup, commonly referred to as the World Club Championship, Intercontinental Cup or Toyota Cup, was a football competition endorsed by UEFA and CONMEBOL, contested between the winners of the European Cup and the South American Copa Libertadores...
: 20022002 Intercontinental CupThe 2002 Intercontinental Cup was a football match played on 3 December 2002 between Real Madrid, winners of the 2001–02 UEFA Champions League, and Olimpia, winners of the 2002 Copa Libertadores. The match was played at the neutral venue of the International Stadium Yokohama in Yokohama in front of... - UEFA Super Cup: 20022002 UEFA Super CupThe 2002 UEFA Super Cup was played on August 30, 2002 between Real Madrid of Spain and Feyenoord of the Netherlands. Real Madrid qualified by beating Bayer Leverkusen in the 2002 UEFA Champions League Final. Feyenoord had made it to the Super Cup after beating Borussia Dortmund in the 2002 UEFA Cup...
- Spanish LeagueLa LigaThe Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...
: 2002–03 - Spanish SupercupSupercopa de EspañaThe Supercopa de España is a Spanish football championship contested by the winners of La Liga and the Copa del Rey...
: 20032003 Supercopa de EspañaThe 2003 Supercopa de España was two-leg Spanish football matches played on 24 August and 27 August 2003. It contested by RCD Mallorca, who were Spanish Cup winners in 2002–03, and Real Madrid, who won the 2002–03 Spanish League. Real Madrid won 4–2 on aggregate.-First leg:-Second leg:-References:...