Asier del Horno

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Del Horno and the second or maternal family name is Cosgaya.

Asier del Horno Cosgaya (born 19 January 1981) is a retired Spanish footballer who primarily played in the left back position.

Asier del Horno

Del Horno playing for Levante in 2011
Personal information
Full name	Asier del Horno Cosgaya
Date of birth	(1981-01-19) 19 January 1981 (age 44)
Place of birth	Barakaldo, Spain
Height	1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s)	Left back
Youth career
1992–1993	Gallarta
1993–1999	Athletic Bilbao
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1999–2000	Bilbao Athletic	26	(1)
2000–2005	Athletic Bilbao	108	(13)
2005–2006	Chelsea	25	(1)
2006–2011	Valencia	15	(0)
2007–2008	→ Athletic Bilbao (loan)	16	(0)
2010	→ Valladolid (loan)	13	(0)
2010–2011	→ Levante (loan)	22	(2)
2011–2012	Levante	13	(0)
Total		238	(17)
International career
1999–2000	Spain U18	14	(2)
2000–2003	Spain U21	16	(1)
2004–2005	Spain	10	(2)
2003–2007	Basque Country	4	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

He initially gained prominence during his stint with Athletic Bilbao, where he featured in 126 official matches over a span of five years and netted 17 goals.^[1] Following this, he transferred to Chelsea in England and clinched the Premier League title in the 2005–06 season.

Del Horno was slated to participate in the 2006 World Cup with Spain, but a last-minute injury forced him to withdraw. He later returned to Spain to play for Valencia, who loaned him out to various clubs for the rest of his contract duration. His latter career was plagued by a series of physical setbacks, and he accumulated 187 appearances and 15 goals in La Liga.^[2]

Club career

Athletic Bilbao

Born in Barakaldo, Biscay, del Horno began his career at Athletic Bilbao in 1999, where his combative tackling and strength in the air saw him rise through the ranks as a left-footed central defender. However, his pace and ability to contribute to the attack led to his being switched to the flank by the time he had arrived in the seniors for both club and country.

Del Horno made his first-team debut in the 2000–01 opener at only 19,^[3] and finished his first season at the San Mamés Stadium with 14 games to help the Basques finish in 12th position.

Chelsea

In June 2005, del Horno moved to Chelsea for a fee of £8 million.^[4] He won the first and only league championship of his career with the Blues, as part of the squad that conquered the Premier League title.

During his spell at Stamford Bridge, del Horno played 34 overall matches and scored once, against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane in a 2–0 victory on 27 August 2005.^[5] The following 22 February, late into the first half of a UEFA Champions League round-of-16 clash at home against FC Barcelona, he received a straight red card for a foul on Lionel Messi, as his team went on to lose the match 1–2 and the tie 2–3.^[6][7]

Valencia

On 21 July 2006, del Horno returned to Spain to sign for Valencia CF on a six-year contract worth €8 million,^[8] seen as a natural replacement for Amedeo Carboni who had retired at 41. Athletic Bilbao had expressed interest, but withdrew from further negotiations, forfeiting any further financial advantage; following surgery on his injured Achilles heel, which kept him off the pitches for most of the season, he made his debut for his new team on 3 March 2007 in a 1–0 home win over RC Celta de Vigo.^[9]

Del Horno was placed on the transfer list by manager Quique Sánchez Flores, as the latter announced that the defender would not retain his position for 2007–08.^[10][11] In the last day of the transfer window, he agreed to join his former club Athletic on a one-year loan deal,^[12] returning to Valencia after an injury-filled campaign.^[13] At the Che, his physical problems persisted^[14] and, after an unassuming first half of 2009–10 – only played in the Copa del Rey and only when facing rivals of smaller entity – he was loaned to Real Valladolid until the end of the season, on 30 January;^[15] an undisputed starter since his arrival, he could not however prevent the Castile and León side from returning to Segunda División, after a three-year stay in the top division.

For 2010–11, 29-year-old del Horno was loaned once again, joining freshly promoted side Levante UD.^[16] He was used regularly in both defensive positions as the Valencians eventually retained their league status, but also missed the final stretch due to physical ailments which had been bothering him since early into the campaign.^[17][18]

Later years

Upon returning to Valencia, del Horno's contract was immediately terminated. In early August 2011, he re-joined Levante on a permanent deal.^[19]

After again dealing with injury throughout the season,^[20] where he was not able to dislodge 35-year-old Juanfran from the left-back position, del Horno was released.

International career

Del Horno made his Spain debut on 3 September 2004, against Scotland.^[21] He scored the winner in a 1–0 friendly with England played in Madrid, two months later.^[22]

An ankle injury forced del Horno to withdraw from the 23-man squad named by Luis Aragonés for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.^[23] Medical staff in the Royal Spanish Football Federation alleged that Chelsea had prior knowledge of the former's injury, but allowed him to continue playing; subsequently, his vacant position was controversially filled in by naturalised Argentinian Mariano Pernía, of Getafe CF.^[24]

Del Horno also represented the Basque Country regional team.^{[25][26][27][28]}

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition^[29]

Club	Season	League			National Cup		League Cup		Europe		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Bilbao Athletic	1999–2000	Segunda División B	26	1	—		—		—		—		26	1
Athletic Bilbao	2000–01	La Liga	14	0	1	0	—		—		—		15	0
	2001–02	La Liga	10	1	2	0	—		—		—		12	1
	2002–03	La Liga	24	4	1	0	—		—		—		25	4
	2003–04	La Liga	31	5	0	0	—		—		—		31	5
	2004–05	La Liga	29	3	6	1	—		8[a]	3	—		43	7
	Total		108	13	10	1	—		8	3	—		126	17
Chelsea	2005–06	Premier League	25	1	4	0	0	0	4[b]	0	1[c]	0	34	1
Valencia	2006–07	La Liga	6	0	0	0	—		2[b]	0	—		8	0
	2008–09	La Liga	9	0	4	0	—		8[a]	2	—		21	2
	2009–10	La Liga	0	0	2	0	—		1[d]	0	—		3	0
	Total		15	0	6	0	—		11	2	—		32	2
Athletic Bilbao (loan)	2007–08	La Liga	16	0	5	1	—		—		—		21	1
Real Valladolid (loan)	2009–10	La Liga	13	0	0	0	—		—		—		13	0
Levante (loan)	2010–11	La Liga	22	2	2	0	—		—		—		24	2
Levante	2011–12	La Liga	13	0	2	0	—		—		—		15	0
Career total			238	17	29	4	0	0	23	5	1	0	291	24

1. Appearances in the UEFA Cup
2. Appearances in the UEFA Champions League
3. 2005 FA Community Shield
4. Appearances in the UEFA Europa League

International goals

(Spain score listed first, score column indicates score after each Del Horno goal)

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	17 November 2004	Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid, Spain	England	1–0	1–0	Friendly[22]
2.	9 February 2005	Mediterráneo, Almería, Spain	San Marino	5–0	5–0	2006 World Cup qualification[30]

Honours

Chelsea

• Premier League: 2005–06^[31]
• FA Community Shield: 2005^[32]

Spain U18

• UEFA–CAF Meridian Cup: 1999

References

1. Garay, Jon (22 November 2013). "Un agujero negro en el lateral izquierdo" [A black hole in the left flank]. El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 June 2017.
2. Sánchez, Carlos Manuel (2 April 2009). "El increíble caso de Asier del Horno" [The incredible case of Asier del Horno]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 June 2017.
3. Ríos, Xoan (10 September 2000). "El Deportivo empieza a lo campeón y ya es líder" [Deportivo start like a champion and are already first]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 June 2017.
4. Hall, Andy (24 June 2005). "Del Horno cooking at Chelsea". UEFA. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
5. "Tottenham 0–2 Chelsea". BBC Sport. 27 August 2005. Retrieved 8 September 2009.
6. Haylett, Trevor (22 February 2006). "Eto'o winner gives Barça the edge". UEFA. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
7. "Messi hits back at Mourinho jibe". BBC Sport. 23 February 2006. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
8. "Valencia sign Chelsea's Del Horno". BBC Sport. 22 July 2006. Retrieved 1 October 2009.
9. López, José Luis (4 March 2007). "Cañizares y Morientes salvan al Valencia" [Cañizares and Morientes save Valencia]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 June 2017.
10. "Del Horno, fuera de los planes de Quique Flores" [Del Horno, out of Quique Flores' plans]. 20 minutos (in Spanish). 4 July 2007. Retrieved 13 July 2007.
11. "Soccer shorts: Barcelona striker Eto'o out two months". Toronto Star. 30 August 2007. Retrieved 1 October 2009.
12. Fernández, Elena (30 August 2007). "Asier del Horno regresa al Athletic" [Asier del Horno returns to Athletic] (in Spanish). Merca Fútbol. Archived from the original on 6 September 2017. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
13. "Del Horno estará entre 3 y 4 semanas de baja por una lesión muscular" [Del Horno will be 3 to 4 weeks out due to muscle injury]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 29 February 2008. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
14. "Del Horno fue operado hoy del tendón de Aquiles derecho" [Del Horno underwent right Achilles tendon surgery today]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 9 June 2009. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
15. "Del Horno se marcha cedido al Valladolid" [Del Horno goes to Valladolid on loan]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 30 January 2010. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
16. Federici, Stefano (21 August 2010). "Official: Levante sign Valencia duo Asier Del Horno & Nacho Gonzalez". Goal. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
17. "Levante wait on Del Horno". Sky Sports. 9 November 2010. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
18. "Del Horno será operado este martes del tendón de Aquiles" [Del Horno to undergo Achilles tendon surgery this Tuesday]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 6 May 2011. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
19. "Del Horno jugará en el Levante la próxima campaña" [Del Horno will play in Levante next season]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 2 August 2011. Retrieved 18 May 2013.
20. "Del Horno, baja entre 6 y 8 semanas por lesión de sóleo" [Del Horno, 6 to 8 weeks out due to soleus injury]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 5 December 2011. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
21. Ramírez Orsikowsky, Jorge (4 September 2004). "Apagón y caos en el España-Escocia" [Blackout and chaos in Spain-Scotland]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 June 2017.
22. "Spain 1–0 England". BBC Sport. 17 November 2004. Retrieved 1 October 2009.
23. "Del Horno set to miss World Cup". BBC Sport. 30 May 2006. Retrieved 1 October 2009.
24. "La RFEF solicita a FIFA la sustitución de Del Horno por Pernía" [RSFF asks FIFA to replace Del Horno with Pernía]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 5 December 2011. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
25. "Dos goles de Bolo terminan con la resistencia uruguaya" [Two Bolo goals end Uruguayan resistance]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 27 December 2003. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
26. "Euskadi vence a Honduras con dos goles de Yeste (2–0)" [Basque Country beat Honduras with two goals from Yeste (2–0)]. Diario Siglo XXI (in Spanish). 30 December 2004. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
27. "Euskadi venció a Venezuela con goles de Gabilondo, Aduriz y Etxeberria" [Basque Country beat Venezuela with goals from Gabilondo, Aduriz and Etxeberria]. El Diario Vasco (in Spanish). 21 June 2007. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
28. "1–1. Aduriz y Bojan dejaron en tablas el amistoso entre el País Vasco y Cataluña" [1–1. Aduriz and Bojan left friendly between Basque Country and Catalonia all square]. Público (in Spanish). 29 December 2007. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
29. "Del Horno". Soccerway. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
30. "España le enseña la manita a San Marino" [Spain show open hand to San Marino]. El País (in Spanish). Madrid. 9 February 2005. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
31. "Asier Del Horno: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
32. "Chelsea 2–1 Arsenal". BBC Sport. 7 August 2005. Retrieved 19 June 2018.

External links

• Asier del Horno at BDFutbol
• Asier del Horno at Athletic Bilbao
• CiberChe stats and bio (in Spanish)
• Asier del Horno at Soccerbase
• Asier del Horno at National-Football-Teams.com
• Asier del Horno – FIFA competition record (archived)
• Asier del Horno at EU-Football.info