Llorenç "Sito" Riera Ortega (born 5 January 1987) 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 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 ...

for

Super League Greece 2 The Super League Greece 2 ( el, Ελληνική Σούπερ Λίγκα 2) is the 28 team two-group second division of professional football in Greece, being a feeder-league to the top-level Super League usually played from September to May. His ...

club

Anagennisi Karditsa Anagennisi Karditsa Football Club ( el, ΠΑΕ Αναγέννηση Καρδίτσας) is a Greek professional football club based in Karditsa, Greece, which competes in the Super League 2, the second tier of the Greek football league system. T ...

. A youth and reserve player at

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 ...

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 ...

, he never featured professionally in his own country, going on to spend over a decade abroad. He played top-flight football in Greece, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Poland and Cyprus.

Club career

Born in Manacor,

Balearic Islands The Balearic Islands ( es, Islas Baleares ; or ca, Illes Balears ) are an archipelago in the Balearic Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago is an autonomous community and a province of Spain; its capital is ...

, Riera represented both major clubs in Barcelona, FC Barcelona and RCD Espanyol, but never made it past their reserve sides. In the 2007–08 season he suffered relegation from 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 ...

with the latter, failing to score any goals in the process. On 8 July 2009, after a loan experience with Panthrakikos FC, Riera signed for

Panionios F.C. Panionios G.S.S. Football Club (Greek: ΠΑΕ Πανιώνιος Γ.Σ.Σ.), the ''Pan- Ionian Gymnastics Club of Smyrna'' (Πανιώνιος Γυμναστικός Σύλλογος Σμύρνης, ''Panionios Gymnastikos Syllogos Smyrnis'') ...

also of the

Super League Greece The Super League Greece 1 ( el, Ελληνική Σούπερ Λιγκ 1), or Super League 1, is the highest professional association football league in Greece. The league was formed on 16 July 2006 and replaced ''Alpha Ethniki'' at the top of ...

. On 14 December 2011, he left by mutual consent. Riera left FC Chornomorets Odesa – where he spent one and a half years, earning a late

red card A red card is a type of penalty card that is shown in many sports after a rules infraction. Red card may also refer to: Art, entertainment, and media * ''Red Card'' (album), 1976 release by Streetwalkers * Red card, suit (cards) of hearts or d ...

in his last game for the team, a 1–0 away win against PSV Eindhoven in the group stage of the UEFA Europa League– at the start of March 2014, due to the civil unrest caused by the Ukrainian revolution. On 23 June he moved to Kazakhstan, signing a three-and-a-half-year contract with FC Kairat. On 1 April 2016, after three seasons of irregular playing time, Riera left the

Almaty Central Stadium The Central Stadium ( kk, "Алматы орталық стадионы", ''Almaty ortalyq stadıony'' or "Орталық стадион", ''Ortalyq stadıon''; Ortalyq Stadıony) is a multi-purpose stadium in Almaty, Kazakhstan and the largest s ...

. He resumed his career that August with Śląsk Wrocław in the Polish Ekstraklasa, on a two-year deal. After his stint in Poland, Riera moved to the Cypriot First Division, where he represented Enosis Neon Paralimni FC and AEL Limassol.

Personal life

Riera's older brother Albert was also a footballer. A winger, he represented, amongst others, Espanyol, Liverpool and the Spain national team.

Career statistics

Honours

Kairat * Kazakhstan Cup:

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

* Kazakhstan Super Cup:

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Riera, Sito 1987 births Living people Sportspeople from Manacor Spanish footballers Footballers from Mallorca Association football midfielders Segunda División B players Tercera División players FC Barcelona C players FC Barcelona Atlètic players RCD Espanyol B footballers Super League Greece players Super League Greece 2 players Panthrakikos F.C. players Panionios F.C. players Anagennisi Karditsa F.C. players Ukrainian Premier League players FC Chornomorets Odesa players Kazakhstan Premier League players FC Kairat players Ekstraklasa players Śląsk Wrocław players Cypriot First Division players Enosis Neon Paralimni FC players AEL Limassol players Spanish expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Greece Expatriate footballers in Ukraine Expatriate footballers in Kazakhstan Expatriate footballers in Poland Expatriate footballers in Cyprus Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Greece Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Ukraine Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Kazakhstan Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Poland Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus