Rubén Bover Izquierdo (born 24 June 1992) 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 le ...

who plays for

FC Andorra Futbol Club Andorra is a professional football club based in Andorra la Vella, Andorra, that currently competes in Segunda División, the second tier of the Spanish league system. The club was founded in 1942 and currently plays its home fixtu ...

. He plays primarily as 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 ...

, but can also play as a winger.

Club career

Early career

Born in

Majorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest island in the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain and located in the Mediterranean. The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Bal ...

, Bover began his career at the academy of

Mallorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest island in the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain and located in the Mediterranean. The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Bal ...

. When he was 17, he moved to England and signed for

Conference National The National League, known as the Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest level of the National League System and fifth-highest of the overall English football league system. It is the highest league that is semi-profes ...

side

Kidderminster Harriers Kidderminster Harriers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Kidderminster, Worcestershire, England. The team compete in the National League North, at the sixth tier of the English football league system. Formed in ...

.http://www.cafc.co.uk/page/ProfilesDetail/0,,10267~55994,00.html Charlton Athletic F.C. Accessed 30 August 2011.

Halesowen Town

Following his release by cash strapped Kidderminster, he joined

Halesowen Town Halesowen Town Football Club is a football club based in Halesowen, West Midlands, England. They are currently members of the and play at the Grove Recreation Ground. History The club was believed to have been established around 1873, but rece ...

during the summer of 2010. He impressed during pre-season friendlies often playing back up to winger Daryl Taylor. Following Taylor's departure, however, Bover became first choice winger. He scored two goals in 20 appearances for the side, before being offered a trial at then manager,

Tony Thorpe Anthony Thorpe (born 10 April 1974) is an English former professional footballer and former manager of Melton Town As a player he was a striker. He notably played for Luton Town, Bristol City and Queens Park Rangers. He also played in the Fo ...

's former club

Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home matches at Loftus Ro ...

. However, the trial was unsuccessful but Bover opted to look for a Football League club opposed to returning to Halesowen Town.

Charlton Athletic

In July 2011,

League One The English Football League One (often referred to as League One for short or Sky Bet League One for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League One from 2004 until 2016) is the second-highest division of the English Football Leag ...

club

Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in C ...

signed Bover after impressing during trials and friendlies played towards the end of the 2010–11 season. Bover made his first competitive start for the club in a 2–1 win over

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

in the

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

where he hit the post in the last few minutes of the game. He joined Spanish side

CD San Roque de Lepe Club Deportivo San Roque de Lepe, SAD is a Spanish football team based in Lepe, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1956 it plays in Segunda División RFEF – Group 4, holding home games at ''Estadio Ciudad de Lepe'', with a ...

for the remainder of the 2011–12 season, where he scored one goal in 10

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 ...

appearances. Bover scored for San Roque de Lepe on 13 May 2012 in a 3–2 victory over

Lorca Atlético Lorca may refer to: Lorquino football clubs * CF Lorca Deportiva, founded 2012 * CF Lorca Deportiva (1969), dissolved 1994 * Lorca Atlético CF, 2010–2012 * Lorca Deportiva CF, 2002–2012 * Lorca Deportiva CF B, 2005–2009 * Lorca FC, 2003– ...

. On 3 July 2012, Bover signed a one-year contract extension with Charlton.

New York Red Bulls

In January 2013, Bover began a trial with

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

side

New York Red Bulls The New York Red Bulls are an American professional soccer club based in the New York metropolitan area. The Red Bulls compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The club was established in October 1994 and be ...

and eventually signed for the club on 8 February 2013. On 3 March 2013 Bover made his official debut for New York starting for his new club in a 3–3 draw at

Portland Timbers The Portland Timbers are an American professional men's soccer club based in Portland, Oregon. The Timbers compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The Timbers have played their home games at P ...

. On 11 October 2014 Bover scored his first MLS goal in a 3–1 victory over

Toronto FC Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BMO ...

. The New York Red Bulls waived Ruben Bover on 12 March 2015, after 22 appearances for the club.

New York Cosmos

On 15 April 2015, Bover signed for

New York Cosmos B New York Cosmos B were an American soccer team based in the New York metropolitan area that played in the National Premier Soccer League, the fourth tier of the United States soccer league system, as the reserve team of New York Cosmos. History T ...

. Bover was named NPSL MVP and captured the

National Premier Soccer League The National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) is an American men's association football, soccer league. The NPSL is a semi-professional league, comprising some teams that have paid players and some that are entirely amateur. The league is officially ...

NPSL regular season title with Cosmos B. The Spaniard made his first appearance for the Cosmos' first team on 13 June 2015, in a 3–3 draw versus

Jacksonville Armada FC Jacksonville Armada FC is an American professional soccer team based in Jacksonville, Florida. They most recently played in the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL), the fourth tier of the American soccer pyramid, during the 2018 season while ...

. On 4 August 2015, the club announced he had joined the first team permanently. Bover made 12 appearances and five starts, registering 544 minutes on the field during the 2015 NASL season. He scored his first goal with the top squad on 11 October 2015 against

FC Edmonton FC Edmonton was a Canadian professional soccer club based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club was founded in 2010 and competed in the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 2011 to 2017. The club went on hiatus when NASL ceased competitive operat ...

in a 3-0 New York win at

James M. Shuart Stadium The James M. Shuart Stadium is an 11,929-seat multi-purpose stadium and sports facility, the facility serves as the home to Hofstra's lacrosse teams on the campus of Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York. First opened in 1963, and remodeled in ...

. He helped the

New York Cosmos New York Cosmos may refer to * New York Cosmos (1970–1985), a team in the North American Soccer League (then the top-tier soccer league in the United States and Canada) * New York Cosmos (2010), a team playing since 2020 in the National Independe ...

win the NASL Championship in 2015. That season Bover had the opportunity to play alongside Spanish legends

Raúl Raul, Raúl and Raül are the Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, Galician, Asturian, Basque, Aragonese, and Catalan forms of the Anglo-Germanic given name Ralph or Rudolph. They are cognates of the French Raoul. Raul, Raúl or Raül may re ...

and

Marcos Senna Marcos Antônio Senna da Silva (born 17 July 1976), known as Senna, is a retired professional footballer who played as a central midfielder. He was mainly known for his passing range and long-range shooting and was also a penalty specialist. H ...

at the Cosmos. As a

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 ...

fan, Bover described playing with Raúl as "a dream come true".

Barnet

On 27 January 2017, Bover joined

League Two The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...

club

Barnet Barnet may refer to: People *Barnet (surname) * Barnet (given name) Places United Kingdom *Chipping Barnet or High Barnet, commonly known as Barnet, one of three focal towns of the borough below. *East Barnet, a district of the borough below; an ...

. He made his

English Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engl ...

debut against

Mansfield Town Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Stags', they ...

on 4 February 2017. He scored his first goal for Barnet in an

EFL Trophy The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Le ...

tie against

AFC Wimbledon AFC Wimbledon is an English professional Association football, football club, based in London Borough of Merton, Merton, London, that plays in the EFL League Two, after being relegated from the EFL League One following the 2021–22 EFL Leagu ...

on 29 August 2017. He was released by Barnet at the end of the 2017–18 season.

FC Andorra

Bover joined

on 8 December 2018. He scored on his debut the following day.El Mollerussa trenca la ratxa de l'FC Andorra (1-2)
/ref>

References

External links

New York Cosmos profile
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bover, Ruben 1992 births Living people Footballers from Mallorca Spanish men's footballers Spanish expatriate men's footballers Men's association football wingers RCD Mallorca players Kidderminster Harriers F.C. players Halesowen Town F.C. players Charlton Athletic F.C. players CD San Roque de Lepe footballers New York Red Bulls players New York Cosmos B players New York Cosmos (2010) players Barnet F.C. players FC Andorra players Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Expatriate men's footballers in Andorra Spanish expatriate sportspeople in England Spanish expatriate sportspeople in the United States Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Andorra Southern Football League players Primera Federación players Segunda División B players Primera Catalana players Major League Soccer players North American Soccer League (2011–2017) players National Premier Soccer League players English Football League players