Diego López Rodríguez (; born 3 November 1981) is a Spanish former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a

goalkeeper In many team sports that involve scoring goal (sport), goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie, or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or i ...

. After spending seven years with

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...

, playing for its various teams, he made a name for himself in

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known as the Primera División or La Liga, and officially known as LaLiga EA Sports for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Spain and the highest ...

with

Villarreal Villarreal (officially, in ) is a city and municipality in the province of Castellón which is part of the Valencian Community in the east of Spain. The town is located at 42 m above sea level, 7 km to the south of the province's capital ( ...

, appearing in 230 official games over the course of five seasons. In 2013, following a brief spell with

Sevilla Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula. Seville ...

, he returned to Real Madrid. López represented

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

at the 2009 Confederations Cup.

Club career

Real Madrid

López was born in Paradela, Lugo, Galicia. A youth graduate from hometown's

CD Lugo Club Deportivo Lugo is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football team based in Lugo, in the autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia. Founded on 8 July 1953, it plays in Primera Federación, holding home games at ''Estadio Anxo ...

he signed with

at age 18 and, after a loan at another side from the capital region, AD Alcorcón, he eventually moved up to Real's B team, starting in his second season, which ended in promotion to the

Segunda División The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Segunda División, commonly known as Segunda División or La Liga 2, and officially known as LaLiga HyperMotion for sponsorship reasons, is the men's second professional association football division of the Spa ...

. López served as first-team backup to Iker Casillas in the following two

campaigns: in the closing stages of 2005–06 he appeared in back-to-back away wins, against

CA Osasuna Club Atlético Osasuna (, ''Osasuna Athletic Club''), or simply Osasuna, is a Spanish professional football club based in Pamplona, Navarre. It was founded on 24 October 1920 and plays in La Liga, the top division of Spanish football. The team's ...

(as Casillas was sent off) and

Racing de Santander Real Racing Club de Santander, S.A.D. (), also known as Racing de Santander () or simply Racing, is a football club based in Santander, Spain, Santander, Cantabria, Spain, that currently competes in Segunda División, the second tier of the Spani ...

, adding a

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...

group stage game at Olympiakos FC, a 2–1 defeat.

Villarreal

In late June 2007, López signed with

Villarreal CF Villarreal Club de Fútbol, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D., usually abbreviated to Villarreal CF, is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Villarreal, in the Province of Castellón, Castellón province of easte ...

for a reported fee of

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists of a stylized letter E (or epsilon), crossed by t ...

6 million, and started the season as second choice to Uruguayan Sebastián Viera but, after a string of fine performances – he played in the

Copa del Rey The , commonly known as , or (in English) the Spanish Cup or King's Cup, and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–1936) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–1976), is an annual knockout football competition in Spanis ...

and the

UEFA Cup The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...

– he was picked for the first team, finishing the season with 21 matches. López was ever-present in 2008–09, playing every minute and helping Villarreal finish fifth in the league. The following campaign was similar, but the team could only finish seventh, out of the European places. However, as fifth-placed

RCD Mallorca Real Club Deportivo Mallorca, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D. (, , ''Royal Sporting Club Mallorca''), commonly known as Real Mallorca or RCD Mallorca, is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Palma de Mallorca, ...

were expelled from European competition due to bankruptcy, the Valencians took their place in the qualifying rounds of the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

. López featured in every league game except one in 2011–12, being given his marching orders against

Sevilla FC Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Seville, Andalusia, that competes in La Liga, the Spanish football league system, top flight of Spanish football. The club was formed on 25 January ...

in a 2–2 home draw in the second round. The ''Yellow Submarine'' were eventually relegated after twelve years, with the player conceding 50 goals. His 121 consecutive top-flight games set a 21st-century record in the league, which was broken by Iñaki Williams in 2019.

Sevilla

On 22 May 2012, López joined Sevilla on a five-year contract for a reported fee of €3.5 million. He split first-choice status with Andrés Palop during his spell.

Return to Real Madrid

On 25 January 2013, López returned to Real Madrid after Casillas suffered a hand injury which ruled him out for 12 weeks, signing for €3.5 million until June 2017. Shortly upon arriving, he stated he had always dreamed of coming back to the club. López played his first game in his second spell on 30 January 2013, in a 1–1 home draw against

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...

in the Spanish Cup semi-finals. On 5 March, he made a string of saves as Real beat

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

2–1 at

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and is the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,197, it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after W ...

to qualify for the last-eight in the Champions League (3–2 on aggregate); after the match, coach

José Mourinho José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix (; born 26 January 1963) is a Portuguese professional Association football, football Manager (association football), manager and former player, who is currently the head coach of Süper Lig club Fenerba ...

said: "Diego López was the best player in my team". He retained his position until the end of the season, even though Casillas had already returned to full fitness. López retained his number one position at the start of the following campaign, when

Carlo Ancelotti Carlo Ancelotti (; born 10 June 1959) is an Italian professional football manager and former player who is the manager of the Brazil national team. Nicknamed "Carletto" in Italy and "Don Carlo" in Spain, he is regarded as one of the greatest ...

had replaced Mourinho. Casillas was played in both the Champions League and the domestic cup, however.

AC Milan

On 13 August 2014, Real Madrid and

AC Milan (), commonly referred to as Milan or AC Milan () mainly outside of Italy, is an Italian professional Football club (association football), football club based in Milan, Lombardy. Founded in 1899, the club competes in the Serie A, the top tie ...

reached an agreement over the transfer of López. He made his competitive debut on 31 August in the first match of the new season in

Serie A The Serie A (), officially known as Serie A Enilive in Italy and Serie A Made in Italy abroad for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Italy and the highest tier of the Italian football league system. Establish ...

, saving a late penalty from Antonio Candreva in a 3–1 win over

SS Lazio (; ; ''Lazio Sport Club'') is an Italian professional sports club based in Rome, most known for its Football club (association football), football activity. The society, founded in 1900, plays in the Serie A and have spent most of their hist ...

. On 14 September he suffered a right thigh injury against Parma FC, being sidelined for almost a month. After three matches without a win early into the 2015–16 campaign, manager

Siniša Mihajlović Siniša Mihajlović ( sr-Cyrl, Синиша Михајловић, ; 20 February 1969 – 16 December 2022) was a Serbian football manager and professional footballer who played as a defender. Mihajlović had an illustrious playing career, winni ...

dropped López in favour of 16-year-old

Gianluigi Donnarumma Gianluigi Donnarumma (; born 25 February 1999) is an Italian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper for Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain FC, Paris Saint-Germain and Captain (ass ...

Espanyol

On 31 August 2016, López joined

RCD Espanyol Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona (; "Royal Spanish Sports Club of Barcelona"), commonly known as RCD Espanyol, is a Spanish professional sports club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. The club competes in La Liga, the top tier of Spa ...

on a

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...

-long loan deal. He was elected La Liga Player of the Month in November, after not conceding in any of the three matches. López's move was made permanent on 23 May 2017, on a three-year deal with a buyout clause of €50 million. He was overtaken by Pau López still under manager Quique Sánchez Flores, but after the latter moved to

Real Betis Real Betis Balompié, known as Real Betis () is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Seville, Andalusia, Spain. It plays in La Liga, the Spanish football league system, top flight of Spanish football. It plays home ...

, he regained his starting role and was the only player to feature in all 38 games of 2018–19. In August 2020, after Espanyol's relegation, the nearly 39-year-old López signed for another season. In that year, he recorded the best figures for his position with 25 goals conceded in 40 matches, as the ''Pericos'' won the title.

Rayo Vallecano

López signed a one-year contract with Rayo Vallecano on 2 July 2022, as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

. In December 2023, having been unemployed for six months, he announced his retirement aged 42.

International career

Spain

As third goalkeeper, López was first selected for

for two

2010 FIFA World Cup The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national Association football, football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010. ...

qualifiers in late March/early April 2009, both against

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. He was named in the squad by manager Vicente del Bosque for the

2009 FIFA Confederations Cup The 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup was the eighth FIFA Confederations Cup, Confederations Cup, and was held in South Africa from 14 June to 28 June 2009, as a prelude to the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The draw was held on 22 November 2008 at the Sandton ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

behind Casillas and Pepe Reina, and did not play any matches there. López earned his only

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. The origin of the word "cap" comes from the Old French word "chapeau" which means "head co ...

on 12 August 2009, playing the last 30 minutes of a 3–2 friendly win in

Macedonia Macedonia (, , , ), most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a former administr ...

, replacing Reina and not conceding any goals.

Galicia

López made three appearances for the unofficial Galicia team, starting with their first game for 75 years on 29 December 2005. They won 3–2 against

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

Santiago de Compostela Santiago de Compostela, simply Santiago, or Compostela, in the province of Province of A Coruña, A Coruña, is the capital of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, in northwestern Spain. The city ...

Style of play

López was a commanding and well-rounded goalkeeper, with a large and imposing physique, strong leadership qualities and good handling, which facilitated him in coming out to claim crosses. Possessing quick reactions, concentration and a good positional sense, he was also an effective shot-stopper. López was known in particular for his ball control, distribution and speed when rushing off his line to anticipate opponents.

Personal life

López married Iria Otero on 11 June 2011, fathering three children.

Career statistics

Honours

Real Madrid *

: 2013–14; runner-up 2012–13 *

: 2013–14 Espanyol *

: 2020–21 Spain *

FIFA Confederations Cup The FIFA Confederations Cup was an international association football tournament for men's national teams, held every four years by FIFA. It was contested by the holders of each of the six continental championships ( AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBO ...

third place:

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

Individual * La Liga Player of the Month: November 2016

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:López, Diego (footballer, born 1981 11 03) 1981 births Living people People from Sarria (comarca) 21st-century Spanish sportsmen Spanish men's footballers Footballers from the Province of Lugo Men's association football goalkeepers La Liga players Segunda División players Segunda División B players Tercera División players CD Lugo players Real Madrid C footballers Real Madrid Castilla footballers Real Madrid CF players AD Alcorcón footballers Villarreal CF players Sevilla FC players RCD Espanyol footballers Rayo Vallecano players Serie A players AC Milan players UEFA Champions League–winning players Spain men's youth international footballers Spain men's international footballers 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup players Spanish expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Italy Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Italy