Mikel Oyarzabal Ugarte (born 21 April 1997) is a Spanish 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 ...
who plays as a
left winger
A midfielder is an 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 central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
or
forward
Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward.
Forward may also refer to:
People
* Forward (surname)
Sports
* Forward (association football)
* Forward (basketball), including:
** Point forward
** Power forward (basketball)
** Sm ...
for
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 ...
club
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 the
Spain national team.
He has spent his entire professional career with
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 ...
, making over 250 appearances and scoring over 70 goals. He won the
2020 Copa del Rey with the club, scoring in the final.
Oyarzabal made his full debut for the
Spain national team in 2016, representing the side at
UEFA Euro 2020
The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2020) or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe ...
.
Club career
Born in
Eibar
Eibar ( eu, Eibar, es, Éibar) is a city and municipality within the province of Gipuzkoa, in the Basque Country of Spain. It is the head town of Debabarrena, one of the '' eskualde / comarca'' of Gipuzkoa.
Eibar has 27,138 inhabitants ( Eustat ...
,
Gipuzkoa
Gipuzkoa (, , ; es, Guipúzcoa ; french: Guipuscoa) is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the autonomous community of the Basque Country. Its capital city is Donostia-San Sebastián. Gipuzkoa shares borders with the French depa ...
, Oyarzabal joined
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 ...
's youth setup in 2011, aged 14. While still a junior, he made his senior debut with
the reserves on 15 November 2014, coming on as a second-half
substitute in a 3–2 away win against
SD Amorebieta
Sociedad Deportiva Amorebieta is a Spanish football team based in Amorebieta-Etxano, in the Basque Country. Founded in 1925, it currently plays in Primera División RFEF – Group 2, holding home games at '' Campo Municipal de Urritxe'', which s ...
in the
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 ...
.
On 20 September 2015, Oyarzabal scored his first senior goals, scoring twice in a 5–0 away rout of
CD Mensajero
Club Deportivo Mensajero is a Spanish football team based in Santa Cruz de la Palma, in the autonomous community of Canary Islands. Founded on 6 January 1922, it plays in Segunda División RFEF – Group 4, holding home games at ''Nuevo Estadio ...
. He made his first-team and
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 ...
debut on 25 October, replacing
Carlos Vela
Carlos Alberto Vela Garrido (born 1 March 1989) is a Mexican professional footballer who captains and plays for Major League Soccer club Los Angeles FC. Described as a versatile player who can play as a forward, winger, and attacking midfield ...
in the dying minutes of a 4–0 victory at
Levante UD
Levante Unión Deportiva, S.A.D. (, ca-valencia, Llevant Unió Esportiva ) is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football club in Valencia, in the Valencian Community, namesake autonomous community.
Founded on 9 September 1909, Levante ...
.
Oyarzabal scored his first goal for Real Sociedad on 8 February 2016 in a 5–0 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 ...
. Six days later, shortly after having extended his contract until 2021, he scored two goals to help defeat
Granada CF
Granada Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. (), known simply as Granada, is a Spanish football club based in the city of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, that plays in the Segunda División, after being relegated from La Liga in the 2021â ...
3–0 at the
Anoeta Stadium
Anoeta Stadium ( es, Estadio de Anoeta), currently known as the Reale Arena for sponsorship purposes, is a football stadium in San Sebastián, Basque Country, Spain that was inaugurated in 1993.
The stadium lies at the Anoeta Sports Complex, ...
.
![Real Sociedad - Red Bull Salzburgo 60 (39408619355) (cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Real_Sociedad_-_Red_Bull_Salzburgo_60_%2839408619355%29_%28cropped%29.jpg)
On 19 August 2016, Oyarzabal again renewed his contract until 2022. He featured in all 38 league matches over
the season,
as the
San Sebastián
San Sebastian, officially known as Donostia–San Sebastián (names in both local languages: ''Donostia'' () and ''San Sebastián'' ()) is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality located in the Basque Country (autonomous community), B ...
-based team came sixth and returned to the
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...
after a two-year absence.
Oyarzabal made his European debut on 19 October 2017, scoring in a 6–0 thrashing of Macedonia's
FK Vardar
FK Vardar Skopje ( mk, ФК Вардар Скопје), or simply Vardar, is a football club based in the capital city of Skopje, North Macedonia, North Macedonia. The club was founded in 1947 and currently competes in the Macedonian Second Foo ...
in the
Europa League group stage; his team made it to the last 32, with him scoring an
own goal
An own goal, also called a self goal, is where a player performs actions that result in them or their team scoring a goal on themselves, often resulting in a point for the opposing team, such as when a football player kicks a ball into their own ...
in a 4–3 aggregate loss to
FC Red Bull Salzburg
FC Red Bull Salzburg is an Austrian professional football club based in Wals-Siezenheim, that competes in the Austrian Bundesliga, the top flight of Austrian Football. Their home ground is the Red Bull Arena. Due to sponsorship restrictions, ...
. On the
domestic front he scored 12 goals, including two in a 5–0 win against
Girona FC
Girona Futbol Club, S.A.D. is a professional football club based in Girona, Catalonia, Spain. Founded on 23 July 1930, it plays in La Liga, to which they gained promotion in the 2022 Segunda División play-offs.
Girona holds its home matches at ...
on 8 April 2018.
On 5 October 2018, Oyarzabal scored his first goals since May of that year, two penalties in a 3–1 away victory over
Athletic Bilbao
Athletic Club ( eu, Bilboko Athletic Kluba; es, Athletic Club de Bilbao), commonly known as Athletic Bilbao or just Athletic, is a professional Association football, football club based in the city of Bilbao in the Basque Country (autonomous com ...
in the
Basque derby
The Basque derby (in Basque ''Euskal Derbia'', in Spanish ''derbi Vasco'') is the name of the football local derby between Real Sociedad and Athletic Bilbao. It embodies the inter-city rivalry between Bilbao and Donostia-San Sebastián, capit ...
. Athletic Bilbao had tried to sign him in the summer transfer window, but he had rejected their approach in favour of signing a new contract with Real Sociedad to run until 2024.
In the
2019–20 Copa del Rey, Oyarzabal scored a
penalty
Penalty or The Penalty may refer to:
Sports
* Penalty (golf)
* Penalty (gridiron football)
* Penalty (ice hockey)
* Penalty (rugby)
* Penalty (rugby union)
* Penalty kick (association football)
* Penalty shoot-out (association football)
A p ...
in each leg of a 3–1 aggregate defeat of
CD Mirandés
Club Deportivo Mirandés is a Spanish football team based in Miranda de Ebro, Province of Burgos, in the autonomous community of Castile and León. Founded on 3 May 1927, the club competes in the Segunda División, holding home matches at ''Es ...
as his team reached 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 ...
for the first time since
1988
File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...
. On 10 July that year, he achieved his 50th goal for the club in a 3–2 home defeat against Granada, and on 3 October while still 23 he scored a penalty in his 200th match in a 3–0 win over
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 ...
.
On 3 April 2021, Oyarzabal scored the only goal of the delayed
2020 Copa del Rey Final
The 2020 Copa del Rey Final was a football match that decided the winner of the 2019–20 Copa del Rey, the 118th edition of Spain's primary football cup (including two seasons where two rival editions were played). The match was played at the E ...
, also through a penalty, to help Real Sociedad clinch their first in 34 years after beating Athletic Bilbao.
In March 2022 he ruptured the
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 ...
of his left knee during a training session, potentially ruling him out for the rest of that year.
International career
Spain
![Mikel Oyarzabal](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/Mikel_Oyarzabal.jpg)
Oyarzabal 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-18,
under-19 and
under-21 levels. On 17 May 2016, aged 19, he was called up to the full squad for a
friendly against
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...
. Twelve days later, he replaced
Nolito
Manuel Agudo Durán (; born 15 October 1986), known as Nolito (), is a Spanish professional association football, footballer who plays as a winger (association football), winger or a forward (association football), forward for Segunda División ...
(who had scored) at the hour mark of the 3–1 win.
On 10 June 2019, Oyarzabal scored his first goal, in a 3–0 victory over
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
in the
UEFA Euro 2020
The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2020) or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe ...
qualifiers. In May 2021, he was included in
Luis Enrique
Luis Enrique MartÃnez GarcÃa (; born 8 May 1970), known as Luis Enrique, is a Spanish football manager and former player.
A versatile player with good technique, he was capable of playing in several different positions, but usually played as ...
's
24-man squad for the finals. As a late substitute, he scored the last goal of a 5–3
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 ...
win against
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
in
the last 16. In the following round, he scored the last attempt of a
penalty shootout
The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pe ...
defeat of
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
(1–1 after 120 minutes).
Oyarzabal was also selected for the
Olympic team due to compete in
Tokyo in 2021. He scored three times for the runners-up, including once in the 2–1 final loss to
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
.
In the
2021 UEFA Nations League Final against
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
on 10 October, Oyarzabal scored the opening goal of the match, although Spain ultimately suffered a 2–1 defeat.
Basque Country
Oyarzabal has also featured for the unofficial
Basque national team, scoring on his debut to cap a 3–1 win over
Tunisia
)
, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
, image_map2 =
, capital = Tunis
, largest_city = capital
, ...
at the
San Mamés Stadium on 30 December 2016.
Personal life
Oyarzabal combined his early professional career with studying for a Business degree at the
University of Deusto
The University of Deusto ( es, Universidad de Deusto; eu, Deustuko Unibertsitatea) is a Spanish private university owned by the Society of Jesus, with campuses in Bilbao and San Sebastián, and the Deusto Business School branch in Madrid. The Un ...
.
[
]
Career statistics
Club
International
''Spain score listed first, score column indicates score after each Oyarzabal goal.''[
]
Honours
Club
Real Sociedad
*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 GeneralÃsimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footbal ...
: 2019–20[
]
International
Spain U21
*UEFA European Under-21 Championship
The UEFA European Under-21 Championship, the UEFA Under-21 Championship or simply the Euro Under-21, is a biennial football competition contested by the European men's under-21 national teams of the UEFA member associations. Since 1992, the compe ...
: 2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
; runner-up: 2017
File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
Spain U23
*Summer Olympics
The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...
silver medal: 2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
[
Spain
*]UEFA Nations League
The UEFA Nations League is a biennial international football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the member associations of UEFA, the sport's European governing body.
The first tournament began in September 2018. The ...
runner-up: 2020–21
The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen b ...
Individual
*La Liga Player of the Month
The Player of the Month is an association football award that recognises the best 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 countrie ...
: October 2020
References
External links
Real Sociedad official profile
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oyarzabal, Mikel
1997 births
Living people
Spanish footballers
Footballers from Eibar
Association football wingers
Association football forwards
La Liga players
Segunda División B players
Real Sociedad B footballers
Real Sociedad footballers
Spain youth international footballers
Spain under-21 international footballers
Spain under-23 international footballers
Spain international footballers
UEFA Euro 2020 players
Olympic footballers of Spain
Footballers at the 2020 Summer Olympics
Olympic medalists in football
Olympic silver medalists for Spain
Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics
Basque Country international footballers
University of Deusto alumni