Quick Facts
PiscesBiography
Manuel del Moral Fernández (born 25 February 1984), commonly known as Manu, is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for CD Numancia as either a forward or winger.
Club career
Atlético
Manu was born in Jaén, Andalusia. After starting his formation with local Real Jaén he finished it with Atlético de Madrid, where he played alongside Braulio, and served a one 1/2-season loan in the second division at Recreativo de Huelva, only appearing in five matches with one goal during his first year.
While mainly registered with the capital side's B-team, Manu did appear in five La Liga matches in the 2005–06 campaign, mainly as a late substitute.
Getafe
Manu joined Madrid neighbours Getafe CF for 2006–07, scoring his first top flight goal on 22 October 2006 in a 2–1 success at precisely Recre and finishing the season with eight (squad's second-best, behind Daniel Güiza). The following campaign he teamed up again with Braulio, and netted seven times – joint-top scorer alongside Juan Ángel Albín – while also helping the Madrid outskirts team to the quarterfinals of the UEFA Cup.
The arrival of Roberto Soldado relegated del Moral to a more secondary role in 2008–09, but he still appeared in 29 league contests, operating mostly on the wings. On 24 January 2010, he scored the game's only goal as Getafe defeated former side Atlético Madrid for the first time at home in its history; on 7 November, after netting in a 1–3 home loss against FC Barcelona, he became the club's best-ever scorer in the top division for the second time, surpassing precisely Soldado.
On 14 March 2011, Manu scored three goals against Athletic Bilbao in only 25 minutes, one in his own net, in an eventual 2–2 home draw. He finished the season with a career-best nine goals, as Getafe narrowly avoided relegation.
Sevilla
On 23 May 2011, del Moral signed a four-year contract with Sevilla FC for €4 million. Following the departure of winger Diego Capel and the ageing of striker Frédéric Kanouté, he was immediately cast into his new team's starting XI. On 25 October, he hit an injury-time header to earn his side one point at home against Racing de Santander (2–2) – he had also opened the score late into the first half.
In late March 2012, Manu scored braces in two consecutive 3–0 away wins, first against Santander then in a local derby at Granada CF.
International career
On 7 June 2011, after his best season at Getafe, del Moral made his debut for Spain, replacing David Villa during half-time of a 3–0 friendly win with Venezuela.
Club statistics
- As of 23 May 2015
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Atlético B | 2002–03 | 36 | 3 | — | — | 36 | 3 | ||
| 2003–04 | 14 | 1 | — | — | 14 | 1 | |||
| Total | 50 | 4 | — | — | 50 | 4 | |||
| Recreativo | 2003–04 | 5 | 1 | — | — | 5 | 1 | ||
| 2004–05 | 28 | 3 | 4 | 0 | — | 32 | 3 | ||
| Total | 33 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 4 | |
| Atlético Madrid | 2005–06 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | |
| Total | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | ||
| Getafe | 2006–07 | 29 | 8 | 6 | 0 | — | 35 | 8 | |
| 2007–08 | 34 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 46 | 8 | |
| 2008–09 | 29 | 5 | 1 | 0 | — | 39 | 8 | ||
| 2009–10 | 36 | 8 | 8 | 1 | — | 44 | 9 | ||
| 2010–11 | 30 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 37 | 9 | |
| Total | 156 | 37 | 22 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 190 | 39 | |
| Sevilla | 2011–12 | 34 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 40 | 10 |
| 2012–13 | 22 | 1 | 5 | 2 | — | 27 | 3 | ||
| Total | 56 | 11 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 67 | 13 | |
| Elche | 2013–14 | 24 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 24 | 2 | |
| Total | 24 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 24 | 2 | ||
| Eibar | 2014–15 | 28 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 28 | 3 | |
| Total | 28 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 28 | 3 | ||
| Career totals | 349 | 61 | 35 | 4 | 14 | 0 | 398 | 65 | |
Honours
Club
- Getafe
- Copa del Rey: Runner-up 2007–08
Country
- Spain U20
- FIFA U-20 World Cup: Runner-up 2003
- Spain U23
- Mediterranean Games: 2005
- "Mediterranean Games 2005 (Spain)". RSSSF. Retrieved 27 September 2016.