Quick Facts
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Biography
Diego López Rodríguez (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈdjeɣo ˈlopeθ]; born 3 November 1981) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for RCD Espanyol on loan from Italian club A.C. Milan as a goalkeeper.
After spending seven years under contract with Real Madrid, in representation of its various teams, he made a name for himself in La Liga with Villarreal, appearing in 230 official games over the course of five seasons. In 2013, following a brief spell with Sevilla, he returned to Real Madrid.
López represented Spain at the 2009 Confederations Cup.
Club career
Real Madrid
López was born in Paradela, Lugo, Galicia. A youth graduate from hometown's CD Lugo he moved to Real Madrid at almost 19 and, after a loan at another side from the capital, AD Alcorcón, he eventually moved up to Real's B-team, starting in his second season, which ended in Segunda División promotion.
López served as first-team backup to Iker Casillas in the following two La Liga campaigns: in the closing stages of 2005–06 campaign he appeared in back-to-back away wins, against CA Osasuna (as Casillas was sent off) and Racing de Santander, adding a UEFA Champions League group stage game at Olympiakos FC, a 1–2 defeat.
Villarreal
In late June 2007, López signed for Villarreal CF for a reported fee of €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 and the UEFA Cup – he was awarded first-team action, finishing the season with 21 matches.
López was everpresent in 2008–09, helping Villarreal finish fifth in the league as he did not miss one minute of action. More of the same in the following campaign, but the team could only rank seventh, thus out of the European zone; however, as fifth-placed RCD Mallorca was expelled from European competition due to bankruptcy, the Valencians took their place in the qualifying rounds of the UEFA Europa League.
López featured in all but one league games in 2011–12, being ejected against Sevilla FC in a 2–2 home draw, in the second round. The Yellow Submarine would eventually be relegated after a twelve-year stay, with the player conceding 50 goals in his appearances.
Sevilla
On 22 May 2012, López signed with Sevilla FC 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 for the Spanish Cup semifinals. On 5 March, he made a string of saves as Real beat Manchester United 2–1 at Old Trafford to qualify for the last-eight in the Champions League (3–2 on aggregate). After the match, coach José Mourinho 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 had replaced Mourinho. Casillas was played in both the Champions League and the domestic cup, however.
Milan
On 13 August 2014, Real Madrid and A.C. Milan reached an agreement over the transfer of López. He made his competitive debut on 31 August in the first matchday of the new season in Serie A, saving a late penalty from Antonio Candreva in an eventual 3–1 win over S.S. Lazio; 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 dropped López in favour of 16-year-old Gianluigi Donnarumma. On 31 August 2016, he joined RCD Espanyol on a season-long loan deal.
International career
As third goalkeeper, López was first called up by Spain for two 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in late March/early April 2009, both against Turkey. He was named by national side boss Vicente del Bosque for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa, in the same predicament (behind Casillas and Pepe Reina), and did not play any matches there.
López made his debut on 12 August 2009, playing the last 30 minutes of the 3–2 friendly win in Macedonia after replacing Reina and keeping a clean sheet.
Style of play
López is a commanding and well-rounded goalkeeper, with a large and imposing physique, strong leadership qualities and good handling, which facilitates him in coming out to claim crosses. Possessing quick reactions, concentration and a good positional sense, he is also an effective shot-stopper.
López is 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 two children.
Club statistics
- As of 18 October 2015
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Other1 | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Real Madrid B | 2003–04 | Segunda División B | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | 6 | 0 | |||
| 2004–05 | Segunda División B | 35 | 0 | — | — | — | 35 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 41 | 0 | — | — | — | 41 | 0 | |||||
| Real Madrid | 2005–06 | La Liga | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | |
| 2006–07 | La Liga | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | ||
| Total | 2 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 11 | 0 | |||
| Villarreal | 2007–08 | La Liga | 20 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 0 | — | 34 | 0 | |
| 2008–09 | La Liga | 38 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | — | 47 | 0 | ||
| 2009–10 | La Liga | 38 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 0 | — | 49 | 0 | ||
| 2010–11 | La Liga | 38 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 15 | 0 | — | 55 | 0 | ||
| 2011–12 | La Liga | 37 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | — | 45 | 0 | ||
| Total | 171 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 41 | 0 | — | 216 | 0 | |||
| Sevilla | 2012–13 | La Liga | 8 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 |
| Total | 8 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 11 | 0 | |||
| Real Madrid | 2012–13 | La Liga | 16 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | 25 | 0 | |
| 2013–14 | La Liga | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 37 | 0 | ||
| Total | 52 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | — | 62 | 0 | |||
| Milan | 2014–15 | Serie A | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 28 | 0 | |||
| 2015–16 | Serie A | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | - | — | 9 | 0 | ||
| Total | 36 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 37 | 0 | |||||
| Career totals | 305 | 0 | 23 | 0 | 58 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 387 | 0 | ||
1 Includes Supercopa de España, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup.
Honours
Club
- Real Madrid
- La Liga: 2006–07
- Copa del Rey: 2013–14; Runner-up 2012–13
- UEFA Champions League: 2013–14
Country
- FIFA Confederations Cup: Third-place 2009
Individual
- La Liga Player of the Month: November 2016
- "Diego Lopez named LaLiga Santander Player of the Month for November". La Liga. 16 December 2016. Retrieved 16 December 2016.