Esteban Félix Granero Molina (; born 2 July 1987) 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 le ...
. Known as ''El Pirata'' ("The
Pirate
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...
"), he could play as a
central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
or an
attacking midfielder
A midfielder is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As #Cent ...
.
He emerged through
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid.
Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
's youth academy, but made a name for himself in
La Liga
The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men's ...
with
Getafe, following which he returned to his previous club, winning three major titles but being sparingly played over the course of three seasons. In the Spanish top division he also represented
Real Sociedad
Real Sociedad de Fútbol, S.A.D., more commonly referred to as Real Sociedad (; ''Royal Society''), La Real in Spanish, Erreala in Basque, is a Spanish professional sports club in the city of San Sebastián, Basque Country, founded on 7 Septem ...
and
Espanyol
Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona (; "Royal Spanish Sports Club of Barcelona"), commonly known as Espanyol, is a professional sports club based in Barcelona, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of the Spanish football league sy ...
, achieving totals of 264 games and 18 goals.
Granero represented
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
at
under-21 level, appearing in the
2009 European Championship.
Club career
Real Madrid
Born in
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
, Granero joined ranks of
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid.
Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
when he was just eight years old, and quickly began displaying his footballing talent. In one season, he scored 83 goals in the under-10 division and, in 1999,
captained the under-12 side that won the International Football-7 tournament held at the
Palau Sant Jordi
Palau Sant Jordi (, en, St. George's Palace) is an indoor sporting arena and multi-purpose installation that is part of the Olympic Ring complex located in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Designed by the Japanese architect Arata Isozaki, it was ...
in
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
by defeating
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football.
Founded ...
1–0 with his
extra time
Overtime or extra time is an additional period of play specified under the rules of a sport to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw where the scores are the same. In some sports, this extra period is played onl ...
goal – he was also named the best player of the competition.
Granero, alongside teammates
Juan Mata
Juan Manuel Mata García (born 28 April 1988) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Turkish Süper Lig club Galatasaray. He mostly plays as a central attacking midfielder, but he can also play on the wing.
A grad ...
and
Alberto Bueno
Alberto Bueno Calvo (; born 20 March 1988) is a Spanish professional footballer. He operates mainly as a forward, but can also appear as a left winger.
After starting out at Real Madrid, he went on to represent mainly Valladolid and Rayo Vallec ...
, won the ''
Copa de Campeones Juvenil de Fútbol
The Copa de Campeones de Juvenil is the tournament created by the RFEF to determine the overall youth champion of Spain.
Since the 2014–15 season, the winner of this competition will qualify for the UEFA Youth League.
Competition format
The w ...
'' in 2006, an under-19 official youth tournament organized by the
Royal Spanish Football Federation
The Royal Spanish Football Federation ( es, Real Federación Española de Fútbol; RFEF) is the governing body of football in Spain. It is based in La Ciudad del Fútbol of Las Rozas, a municipality near Madrid. It was founded on 14 October 1909 ...
. He then joined the club's
C team at the age of 17, standing out for his talent and passing skills and going on to receive the ''Números 1 Don Balón'' award as the "Most Valuable Player" of the Group VII of
Tercera División
Tercera División ( en, Third Division) was the fourth tier of the Spanish football league system. Founded in 1929, it was below the ''Primera División'' (also known as La Liga), the ''Segunda División'', and the semi-professional ''Segunda Di ...
in
2005–06, an accolade bestowed by ''
Don Balón
''Don Balón'' is a Spanish weekly sports magazine specializing in Spanish and international football. The magazine was published in Barcelona between 1975 and 2011. It was distributed on five continents.
Since 2011 ''Don Balón'' has been a full ...
'' magazine, one of the founding members of
European Sports Media. That same season he made his first appearance with
Real Madrid Castilla
Real Madrid Castilla Club de Fútbol is a Spanish football team that plays in Primera Federación – Group 1 for the 2022–23 season. It is Real Madrid's reserve team. They play their home games at the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium with a cap ...
in a match against
Albacete Balompié, during which he had an
assist
Assist or ASSIST may refer to:
Sports
Several sports have a statistic known as an "assist", generally relating to action by a player leading to a score by another player on their team:
*Assist (basketball), a pass by a player that facilitates a ba ...
.
Getafe
Granero made the definitive jump to Castilla in
2006–07's
Segunda División
The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Segunda División, commercially known as LaLiga SmartBank for sponsorship reasons, is the men's second professional association football division of the Spanish football league system. Administrated by the Lig ...
, and slowly earned the confidence of coach
Míchel until finally becoming an undisputed starter. He would eventually fail to make the transition into the first team, as did fellow ''
cantera'' players
Rubén de la Red
Rubén de la Red Gutiérrez (born 5 June 1985) is a Spanish football manager and former central midfielder.
He made a name for himself at Getafe after emerging through Real Madrid's ''La Fábrica''. Returning to his first club in 2008, he s ...
,
Javi García
Francisco Javier "Javi" García Fernández (; born 8 February 1987) is a Spanish former professional footballer who is an assistant manager for Benfica. A defensive midfielder by nature, he could also appear as a central defender.
He started ...
and
Adrián González
Adrián González Savín (born May 8, 1982), also known by his nicknames "A-Gon" and "Titán", is a Mexican-American former professional baseball first baseman He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers, San Diego Padres, ...
and, on 31 August, the last day of the transfer window, he moved to
Getafe CF
Getafe Club de Fútbol (), or simply Getafe, is a professional football club based in Getafe, a city in the Community of Madrid. The team competes in La Liga, the highest tier of the Spanish football system. The club's home stadium (owned and op ...
(also in Madrid) on a one-year loan; de la Red moved in the same direction, albeit in a different deal.
After
the season's end, in which both he and de la Red were instrumental in the team's campaign that included runs to the
quarter-finals in the
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
and
the final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
of the
Copa del Rey
The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footbal ...
,
Granero returned to Real Madrid. However, on 13 July 2008, he joined Getafe permanently, with Real keeping a re-buy option on the player.
Return to Real
On 21 July 2009, Real Madrid exercised their buyback option in a reported
€
The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists o ...
4 million deal, and Granero scored three goals during preseason. His first official one came in his first start, when he opened a 3–0
La Liga
The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men's ...
away win over
RCD Espanyol
Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona (; "Royal Spanish Sports Club of Barcelona"), commonly known as Espanyol, is a professional sports club based in Barcelona, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of the Spanish football league sy ...
on 12 September. In his
first season, where his team eventually came out empty in silverware, he alternated
the bench with starts, with irregular performances.
In the
2010–11 campaign, after the club purchased two players in similar positions,
Sami Khedira and
Mesut Özil
Mesut Özil (, ; born 15 October 1988) is a German professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Süper Lig club İstanbul Başakşehir. Özil is known for his technical skills, creativity, passing skills, and vision. He can ...
, Granero was limited mainly to substitute appearances. On 16 January 2011 he scored as a substitute against
UD Almería, in a 1–1 draw at the bottom-placed side.
Granero's situation became worse in
2011–12, with even
Fábio Coentrão
Fábio Alexandre da Silva Coentrão (; born 11 March 1988) is a Portuguese former professional footballer. Mainly a left-back, he also operated as a winger and occasionally as a defensive midfielder.
After starting playing professionally with ...
– another compatriot of manager
José Mourinho
José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix GOIH (; born 26 January 1963), is a Portuguese professional football manager and former player who is the current head coach of Italian Serie A club Roma. Once dubbed "The Special One" by the British ...
who was signed in the off-season, originally as a left fullback – being preferred over him as central midfielder.
Queens Park Rangers
On 30 August 2012, Granero signed a four-year contract with English club
Queens Park Rangers after transferring for a reported fee of
£9 million, and was handed the number 14 shirt. He made his
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
debut two days later, starting in a 3–1 away loss against defending champions
Manchester City
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
.
Granero scored his first goal for QPR on 6 October 2012, but in a 3–2 defeat at
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
.
Real Sociedad
On 15 August 2013, after
his team's relegation, Granero was loaned to
Real Sociedad
Real Sociedad de Fútbol, S.A.D., more commonly referred to as Real Sociedad (; ''Royal Society''), La Real in Spanish, Erreala in Basque, is a Spanish professional sports club in the city of San Sebastián, Basque Country, founded on 7 Septem ...
in 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 tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...
-long move. On 17 September, after entering the pitch in the 81st minute of an eventual 0–2 home loss against
FC Shakhtar Donetsk
Football Club Shakhtar Donetsk ( uk, Футбольний клуб «Шахтар» Донецьк , short nickname "miners") is a Ukrainian professional football club from the city of Donetsk. In 2014, due to the War in Donbass, the club was ...
in
the group stage of the
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
, he suffered an
anterior cruciate ligament
The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligaments (the other being the posterior cruciate ligament) in the human knee. The two ligaments are also called "cruciform" ligaments, as they are arranged in a crossed formation ...
injury to his right knee, being sidelined for approximately six months.
Following his loan, Granero signed a long-term deal on 28 July 2014 for an undisclosed fee. He played his first game in his second spell on 24 August, starting in a 1–0 away defeat to
SD Eibar
Sociedad Deportiva Eibar (in eu, Eibar Kirol Elkartea) is a professional Spanish football club based in Eibar, Gipuzkoa, in the autonomous Basque Country.
Founded on 30 November 1940, the team currently plays in the Segunda División, the s ...
.
Espanyol
On 7 July 2017, Granero signed a three-year contract with Espanyol. He appeared in 25 matches in his
first season, adding 28
the following.
Granero scored his first league goal for the
Catalans on 18 February 2018, in a 1–1 home draw against
Villarreal CF
Villarreal Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. ( ca-valencia, Vila-real Club de Futbol, S.A.D.), usually abbreviated to Villarreal CF or simply Villarreal, is a professional football club based in Villarreal, in the Castellón province of eastern Spain, th ...
. On 30 January 2020, he left the
RCDE Stadium
RCDE Stadium, also known as Estadi Cornellà-El Prat (; es, Estadio Cornellà-El Prat ), is an all-seater football stadium on the outskirts of Cornellà de Llobregat and El Prat de Llobregat, in the wider Barcelona urban area (Catalonia, Spain). ...
by mutual consent.
[
]
Marbella
The same day he became a free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player 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 contract at present but who is a ...
, Granero joined Marbella FC
Marbella Fútbol Club, formerly known as Unión Deportiva Marbella, is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football team based in Marbella, the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1997 it currently plays in Tercera Federación, Te ...
until June 2021. He made his Segunda División B
Segunda División B ( en, Second Division B) was the third tier of the Spanish football league system containing 102 teams divided into five groups, until it was replaced by the new structure in 2021. It was administered by the Royal Spanish Foot ...
debut on 2 February 2020 at the age of 32 years and 7 months, playing 18 minutes in the 0–0 draw away to Mérida AD
Asociación Deportiva Mérida, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Mérida, in the autonomous community of Extremadura. Founded in 2013 it is a successor club of CP Mérida, it currently plays in Primera División RFEF – Group 1.
Hist ...
.
Granero announced his retirement on 5 July 2021.
International career
After having helped Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
to the 2006 UEFA European Under-19 Championship
The UEFA European Under-19 Championship 2006 Final Tournament was held in Poland between 18 July and 29 July 2006. The top three teams in each group qualified for the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup. Players born after 1 January 1987 were allowed to part ...
, Granero made his debut for the under-21s on 6 February 2007, in a friendly
Friendly may refer to:
Places
* Friendly, West Yorkshire, a settlement in Calderdale, West Yorkshire, England
* Friendly, Maryland, an unincorporated community in the United States
* Friendly, Eugene, Oregon, a neighborhood in the United States
* ...
against England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
(2–2). He appeared for the nation at the 2009 European Under-21 Championship, in an eventual group stage exit.
Career statistics
Honours
Real Madrid
*La Liga
The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men's ...
: 2011–12[
*]Copa del Rey
The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footbal ...
: 2010–11
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
[
*]Supercopa de España
The Supercopa de España or the ''Spanish Super Cup'' is a super cup tournament in Spanish football. Founded in 1982 as a two-team competition, the current version has been contested since 2019–20 by four teams: the winners and runners-up of ...
: 2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
[
Spain U19
* UEFA European Under-19 Championship: ]2006
File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
[
]
Notes
References
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Granero, Esteban
1987 births
Living people
Spanish footballers
Footballers from Madrid
Association football midfielders
La Liga players
Segunda División players
Segunda División B players
Tercera División players
Real Madrid C footballers
Real Madrid Castilla footballers
Real Madrid CF players
Getafe CF footballers
Real Sociedad footballers
RCD Espanyol footballers
Marbella FC players
Premier League players
English Football League players
Queens Park Rangers F.C. players
Spain youth international footballers
Spain under-21 international footballers
Spanish expatriate footballers
Expatriate footballers in England
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in England