Alejandro 'Álex' Balboa Bandeira (born 6 March 2001) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Eredivisie club Almere City. Born in Spain, he plays for the Equatorial Guinea national team.
 Balboa with Equatorial Guinea in 2022 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Alejandro Balboa Bandeira[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 6 March 2001[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)[3] | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Almere City | ||
| Number | 23 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2005–2013 | Aurrerá Vitoria | ||
| 2013–2020 | Alavés | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2020–2021 | San Ignacio | 11 | (2) |
| 2021–2023 | Alavés B | 37 | (0) |
| 2022–2024 | Alavés | 11 | (0) |
| 2023–2024 | → Huesca (loan) | 13 | (1) |
| 2024– | Almere City | 1 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2021– | Equatorial Guinea | 15 | (0) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 10 August 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 10 June 2024 | |||
Early life
editBalboa was born in Vitoria-Gasteiz to Equatoguinean parents. His maternal grandfather is originally from São Tomé and Príncipe. His paternal side, the Balboa, is of distant Cuban descent.[4]
Club career
editBalboa joined Deportivo Alavés' youth setup in 2013, from CD Aurrerá de Vitoria. He made his senior debut with farm team Club San Ignacio during the 2020–21 season in Tercera División, but finished the campaign playing with the reserves in Segunda División B.
Balboa made his first team debut on 30 November 2021, starting in a 3–0 away win over Unami CP, for the season's Copa del Rey.[5] He made his professional debut on 13 August of the following year, coming on as a late substitute for Jon Guridi in a 2–1 Segunda División away win over CD Leganés.
On 12 July 2023, Balboa renewed his contract with the Babazorros until 2026,[6] and moved on loan to SD Huesca in the second division on 8 August.[7]
In July 2024, Balboa joined Eredivisie club Almere City on a two-year deal with the option for a third.[8]
International career
editBalboa made his senior debut for Equatorial Guinea on 7 September 2021.[9]
Personal life
editBalboa's uncle is former Real Madrid footballer Javier Balboa,[10] who also played for the Equatorial Guinea national football team.
Career statistics
editClub
edit- As of 10 August 2024[3]
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| San Ignacio | 2020-21 | Tercera División | 11 | 2 | — | 11 | 2 | |
| Alavés B | 2020-21 | Segunda División B | 15 | 0 | — | 15 | 0 | |
| 2021-22 | Tercera División | 20 | 0 | — | 20 | 0 | ||
| 2022-23 | Segunda Federación | 2 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 37 | 0 | — | 37 | 0 | |||
| Alavés | 2021-22 | La Liga | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2022-23 | Segunda División | 11 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 15 | 0 | |
| 2023-24 | La Liga | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 11 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 16 | 0 | ||
| Huesca (loan) | 2023-24 | Segunda División | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 0 |
| Almere City | 2024-25 | Eredivisie | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Career Total | 70 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 76 | 2 | ||
International
edit- As of 10 June 2024
| Equatorial Guinea | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2021 | 4 | 0 |
| 2022 | 3 | 0 |
| 2023 | 4 | 0 |
| 2024 | 4 | 0 |
| Total | 12 | 0 |
References
edit- ^ "Álex Balboa". Global Sports Archive. Retrieved 28 January 2022.
- ^ Álex Balboa at BDFutbol. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
- ^ a b Álex Balboa at Soccerway. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
- ^ "PRESENCIA DE LA SOCIEDAD ABAKUÁ EN FERNANDO POO A FINALES DEL SIGLO XIX" (PDF). p. 7.
Today, although there is no memory of their origins, many Cuban surnames are preserved among Creole families: Moreno, Castillo, Riquito, Mata, Rivas, Balboa, Valcárcel, etc.
- ^ "El último salto de Álex Balboa" [The latest jump of Álex Balboa] (in Spanish). El Correo. 30 November 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
- ^ "Alex Balboa, albiazul hasta 2026" [Alex Balboa, white-and-blue until 2026] (in Spanish). Deportivo Alavés. 12 July 2023. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
- ^ "Alex Balboa jugará cedido en el SD Huesca" [Alex Balboa will play on loan at SD Huesca] (in Spanish). Deportivo Alavés. 8 August 2023. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
- ^ "Álex Balboa de ring in namens Almere City FC" [Álex Balboa enters the ring for Almere City FC]. almerecity.nl (in Dutch). 4 July 2024. Retrieved 4 July 2024.
- ^ "Match Report of Equatorial Guinea vs Mauritania". Global Sports Archive. 7 September 2021. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
- ^ "El CD Castellón tantea la cesión del capitán del Alavés B" (in Spanish). 17 June 2021. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
External links
edit
- Álex Balboa on Instagram
- Álex Balboa at LaPreferente.com (in Spanish)
- Álex Balboa at Soccerway
- Álex Balboa at National-Football-Teams.com
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