Fernando Amorebieta

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Amorebietaand the second or maternal family name is Mardaras.

Fernando Amorebieta

Amorebieta in action for Fulham in 2014
Personal information
Full name	Fernando Gabriel Amorebieta Mardaras [1]
Date of birth	(1985-03-29) 29 March 1985 (age 39) [2]
Place of birth	Cantaura, Venezuela
Height	1.92 m (6 ft 4 in) [2]
Position(s)	Centre-back
Youth career
1995–1996	Colegio San Miguel
1996–2003	Athletic Bilbao
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2003–2004	Basconia	26	(1)
2004–2005	Bilbao Athletic	35	(1)
2005–2013	Athletic Bilbao	195	(3)
2013–2016	Fulham	44	(2)
2015	→ Middlesbrough (loan)	4	(0)
2015–2016	→ Middlesbrough (loan)	13	(0)
2016–2017	Sporting Gijón	27	(0)
2017–2018	Independiente	11	(0)
2019–2020	Cerro Porteño	11	(0)
Total		366	(7)
International career
2004	Spain U19	4	(0)
2007–2011	Basque Country	4	(0)
2011–2015	Venezuela	15	(1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Fernando Gabriel Amorebieta Mardaras (born 29 March 1985) is a Venezuelan former professional footballer who played as a central defender.

He spent most of his career with Athletic Bilbao, appearing in 254 competitive matches over eight La Liga seasons and scoring four goals. ^{[3] [4]} He also competed professionally in England (with Fulham and Middlesbrough), Argentina and Paraguay.

Internationally, Amorebieta played for Spain (where he spent most of his early life) at youth level, but later decided to represent his country of birth Venezuela as a senior, appearing for the nation at the 2015 Copa América.

Club career

Athletic Bilbao

Born in Cantaura, Pedro María Freites Municipality, Anzoátegui, Venezuela, Amorebieta joined Athletic Bilbao in 1996, aged 11; he met the club's eligibility standards having been raised in the Basque town of Iurreta and through his parents, both of whom hailed from the region. ^{[5] [6]} After progressing through the ranks – alongside Fernando Llorente ^[7] – including CD Basconia (the farm team) and Bilbao Athletic (the reserves), he made his first-team debut in 2005–06, becoming first choice in the subsequent La Liga seasons.

Amorebieta played a total of 47 official matches in 2009–10, helping Athletic to reach the round of 32 in the UEFA Europa League as well as an eighth-place finish in the league; he collected 18 yellow cards in the process, being sent off twice. ^[8]

Amorebieta began the 2012–13 campaign nursing a pubalgia ailment, ^[9] and was later involved in a dispute over the extension of his contract. ^{[10] [11]}

Fulham

On 15 April 2013, Amorebieta signed a four-year deal with Fulham on a free transfer effective as of 1 July. ^[12] The Premier League club officially announced him on 22 May, ^[13] and he made his debut on 14 September, coming on as a substitute for Kieran Richardson in a 1–1 draw against West Bromwich Albion at Craven Cottage. ^[14]

Amorebieta was sent off on 22 March 2014 for conceding a penalty with a foul on David Silva in an eventual 5–0 defeat at Manchester City. ^[15] He scored his first goal in English football on 26 April, his team's second in an eventual 2–2 home draw with Hull City. ^[16] He made 26 competitive appearances in his debut season, which ended with relegation. ^[17]

On 6 March 2015, after returning from three months out injured, ^[17] Amorebieta was sent off in Fulham's 5–1 home loss by AFC Bournemouth for bringing down Callum Wilson. ^[18] On the 25th, he was loaned to fellow Championship side Middlesbrough until the end of the campaign, with left-back James Husband moving in the opposite direction. ^[17] He scored his first goal for the latter on 8 May, replacing Lee Tomlin after 73 minutes and netting a last-minute winner for a 2–1 away win over Brentford in the play-off semi-finals; ^[19] he was unused in the final at Wembley Stadium, a 2–0 defeat to Norwich City. ^[20]

On 28 August 2015, Amorebieta returned to the Riverside Stadium for the entirety of the season, with Husband again being lent to Fulham for a month as part of the deal. ^[21] On 1 February of the following year, however, he was recalled. ^[22]

Sporting Gijón

Amorebieta returned to Spain and its top division on 22 July 2016, after agreeing to a three-year contract at Sporting de Gijón. ^[23] He made his debut on 21 August, playing the full 90 minutes in a 2–1 home victory against former club Athletic. ^[24]

Later years

On 10 July 2017, following Sporting's relegation, Amorebieta moved to Argentina and joined Club Atlético Independiente. ^[25] In January 2019, the free agent agreed to a two-year deal at Cerro Porteño of the Paraguayan Primera División. ^[26]

After retiring aged 35, Amorebieta worked as Club Portugalete's director of football. ^[27] Subsequently, he was assistant manager to his former Athletic teammate Ibai Gómez at Santutxu FC's youths ^[28] and Segunda Federación club Arenas Club de Getxo. ^{[29] [30]}

International career

Spain

Amorebieta was part of the Spain under-19 team that won the UEFA European Championship in 2004. ^[31] In August 2008, he was called up by new senior team manager Vicente del Bosque for a friendly against Denmark, ^[32] but did not leave the bench.

Venezuela

As early as 2006, Amorebieta expressed his interest in playing for the Venezuela national team. ^[33] However, according to FIFA rules at the time, he should have switched his affiliation prior to the age of 21, having previously played for Spain's youth sides; ^[34] FIFA removed the rule in 2009, ^[35] and talks between the player and the Venezuelan Football Federation resumed.

Finally, on 2 September 2011, Amorebieta made his senior debut in a friendly with Argentina, a 1–0 loss in Kolkata. ^[36] On 11 October, against the same opponent but for the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign, he scored in a 1–0 home win, which signified Venezuela's first-ever win against the Albiceleste in the tournament. ^[37]

Amorebieta was included in the squad for the 2015 Copa América, where he was sent off in the team's 1–0 defeat to Peru in the group stage for a stamp on Paolo Guerrero. ^[38] He retired from international football that November. ^[39]

Basque Country

Amorebieta also appeared in four matches for the Basque Country national team (a non-FIFA affiliate), debuting against Venezuela in San Cristóbal, Táchira on 20 June 2007. The friendly match, a 4–3 Basque victory, was the grand opening for the 43,000 all-seated Pueblo Nuevo Stadium, after two years of construction for the 2007 Copa América. ^[40]

Coaching

As of 2025, he serves as assistant coach to fellow former Athletic player Ibai Gómez at Arenas Club de Getxo in the Segunda Federación. ^[41]

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition ^{[42] [43] [44] [45]}

Club	Season	League			Cup		Continental		Other [a]		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Basconia	2003–04	Tercera División	26	1	–		–		–		26	1
Bilbao Athletic	2004–05	Segunda División B	24	1	–		–		–		24	1
	2005–06	Segunda División B	11	0	–		–		–		11	0
	Total		35	1	–		–		–		35	1
Athletic Bilbao	2005–06	La Liga	15	0	2	0	2	0	0	0	19	0
	2006–07	La Liga	27	0	1	0	–		–		28	0
	2007–08	La Liga	34	0	6	1	–		–		40	1
	2008–09	La Liga	29	0	7	0	–		–		36	0
	2009–10	La Liga	34	0	2	0	11	0	0	0	47	0
	2010–11	La Liga	17	0	0	0	–		–		17	0
	2011–12	La Liga	28	3	8	0	14	0	–		50	3
	2012–13	La Liga	11	0	2	0	4	0	–		17	0
	Total		195	3	28	1	31	0	0	0	254	4
Fulham	2013–14	Premier League	23	1	3	0	–		0	0	26	1
	2014–15	Championship	7	1	1	0	–		0	0	8	1
	2015–16	Championship	14	0	0	0	–		0	0	14	0
	Total		44	2	4	0	0	0	0	0	48	2
Middlesbrough (loan)	2014–15	Championship	4	0	0	0	–		1	1	5	1
	2015–16	Championship	13	0	3	0	–		0	0	16	0
	Total		17	0	3	0	0	0	1	1	21	1
Sporting Gijón	2016–17	La Liga	27	0	0	0	–				27	0
Independiente	2017–18	Argentine Primera División	11	0	0	0	11	0	0	0	22	0
Cerro Porteño	2019	Paraguayan Primera División	8	0	0	0	7	0	0	0	15	0
	2020	Paraguayan Primera División	3	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	6	0
	Total		11	0	0	0	10	0	0	0	21	0
Career total			366	7	35	1	52	0	1	1	454	9

1. Includes Supercopa de España, UEFA Super Cup, English Football League play-offs, FIFA Club World Cup.

International goals

Scores and results list Venezuela's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Amorebieta goal.

List of international goals scored by Fernando Amorebieta

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	11 October 2011	José Antonio Anzoátegui, Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela	Argentina	1–0	1–0	2014 FIFA World Cup qualification [37]

Honours

Athletic Bilbao

• Copa del Rey runner-up: 2008–09, 2011–12
• Supercopa de España runner-up: 2009
• UEFA Europa League runner-up: 2011–12

Independiente

• Copa Sudamericana: 2017 ^[46]

Spain U19

• UEFA European Under-19 Championship: 2004 ^[31]

See also

• List of sportspeople who competed for more than one nation

References

1. "Barclays Premier League squad numbers 2013/14". Premier League. 16 August 2013. Archived from the original on 25 September 2013. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
2. "Fernando Amorebieta". Eurosport . Retrieved 3 September 2021.
3. "Amorebieta cumplió su partido 200 con el Athletic" [Amorebieta played 200th match with Athletic] (in Spanish). La Vinotinto. 3 November 2011. Archived from the original on 27 May 2013. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
4. "El Fulham confirma el fichaje del defensa Fernando Amorebieta por cuatro temporadas" [Fulham confirm signing of defender Fernando Amorebieta for four seasons]. 20 minutos (in Spanish). 22 May 2013. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
5. Fain Binda, Raúl (9 May 2012). "¿Por qué en el Athletic de Bilbao solo juegan vascos?" [Why do Athletic Bilbao play with Basques only?] (in Spanish). BBC Mundo. Archived from the original on 2 June 2015. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
6. Griñán, Marta (29 March 2022). "¿Qué fue de Amorebieta? El regreso del hijo pródigo" [What happened to Amorebieta? The return of the prodigal son]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 13 January 2025.
7. Gómez Peña, J. (1 March 2012). "Amistoso entre Llorente y Amorebieta" [Friendly between Llorente and Amorebieta]. El Correo (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 3 October 2019. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
8. Martínez, Endika (12 November 2011). "Amorebieta se vuelve 'loco' con los grandes" [Amorebieta goes 'crazy' with big clubs]. Marca (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 18 May 2013. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
9. "Fútbol.– Amorebieta (Athletic), cuatros semanas de baja tras ser operado con éxito de sus molestias de pubalgia" [Football.– Amorebieta (Athletic), four weeks out after successful pubalgia surgery] (in Spanish). Europa Press. 20 July 2012. Archived from the original on 23 July 2012. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
10. Artetxe, José Luis (19 December 2012). "Amorebieta: lo tomas o lo dejas" [Amorebieta: take it or leave it]. Deia (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 29 June 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
11. Rodríguez Viñas, Sergio (30 January 2013). "Urrutia: 'Ya no hay oferta por Amorebieta'" [Urrutia: 'We no longer have an offer for Amorebieta']. El Mundo (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 23 May 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
12. Tighe, Sam (15 April 2013). "Scouting Fernando Amorebieta: Fulham's reported new signing". Bleacher Report. Archived from the original on 19 April 2013. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
13. "Amorebieta arrives". Fulham F.C. 22 May 2013. Archived from the original on 7 June 2013. Retrieved 22 May 2013.
14. Abraham, Tim (14 September 2013). "Fulham 1–1 West Brom". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 15 September 2013. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
15. "Premier League: Manchester City thrash Fulham 5–0 as Yaya Toure nets hat-trick". Sky Sports. 22 March 2014. Archived from the original on 13 October 2014. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
16. Oliver, Pete (26 April 2014). "Fulham 2–2 Hull City". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 26 April 2014. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
17. "Middlesbrough sign Amorebieta as Husband joins Fulham". BBC Sport. 25 March 2015. Archived from the original on 26 March 2015. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
18. "Fulham 1–5 AFC Bournemouth". BBC Sport. 6 March 2015. Archived from the original on 16 March 2015. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
19. Stevens, Rob (8 May 2015). "Brentford 1–2 Middlesbrough". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 10 May 2015. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
20. Shepka, Phil (25 May 2015). "Middlesbrough 0–2 Norwich". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 31 July 2015. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
21. "Fernando Amorebieta: Fulham defender joins Middlesbrough". BBC Sport. 28 August 2015. Archived from the original on 31 August 2015. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
22. "Fernando Amorebieta leaves Boro and returns to Fulham". Middlesbrough F.C. 1 February 2016. Archived from the original on 2 February 2016. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
23. "Amorebieta es ya jugador del Sporting" [Amorebieta is already a Sporting player] (in Spanish). Sporting Gijón. 22 July 2016. Archived from the original on 24 July 2016. Retrieved 23 July 2016.
24. Cuenca, Nika (21 August 2016). "El Sporting despacha a un Athletic atolondrado" [Sporting get rid of dazed Athletic]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 22 August 2016. Retrieved 22 August 2016.
25. "Amorebieta ya es jugador del Independiente de Avellaneda" [Amorebieta is already an Independiente de Avellaneda player]. El Comercio (in Spanish). 10 July 2017. Archived from the original on 13 July 2017. Retrieved 10 July 2017.
26. "Amorebieta ficha por el Cerro Porteño paraguayo" [Amorebieta signs for Paraguay's Cerro Porteño] (in Spanish). El Desmarque. 12 January 2019. Archived from the original on 22 January 2019. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
27. Rodríguez Beltrán, Javier (17 April 2023). "Fernando Amorebieta dimite como director deportivo del Portugalete" [Fernando Amorebieta resigns as Portugalete's sporting director]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 13 January 2025.
28. Rodríguez Beltrán, Javier (26 June 2023). "Ibai Gómez-Fernando Amorebieta, tándem para entrenar al Juvenil del Santutxu" [Ibai Gómez-Fernando Amorebieta, duo to coach Santutxu's Juvenil]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 13 January 2025.
29. Bergara, David (28 August 2024). "Ibai Gómez: "Queremos que la gente se enganche de nuevo al juego del Arenas"" [Ibai Gómez: "We want people to get hooked on Arenas' play again"]. Deia (in Spanish). Retrieved 13 January 2025.
30. Velasco, Juanma (10 January 2025). "Arenas y Athletic recaudarán fondos para los afectados por la DANA" [Arenas and Athletic to raise money for those affected by DANA]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 January 2025.
31. "FOTOS CON HISTORIA: 2004, cuando la Sub-19 abrió el camino a la Absoluta" [HISTORIC PHOTOS: 2004, when the Under-19s paved the way for the A-team] (in Spanish). Royal Spanish Football Federation. 25 November 2014. Archived from the original on 7 February 2021. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
32. "Amorebieta e Iraola, sorpresas en la lista de Del Bosque" [Amorebieta and Iraola, surprises in Del Bosque's list]. Marca (in Spanish). 14 August 2011. Archived from the original on 31 May 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2011.
33. "Fernando Amorebieta dispuesto a jugar ya con Venezuela" [Fernando Amorebieta willing to play for Venezuela immediately]. Marca (in Spanish). 19 December 2006. Archived from the original on 31 May 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2011.
34. "Fernando Amorebieta no podrá jugar con la selección de Venezuela como quería" [Fernando Amorebieta will not be able to play with Venezuela national team as he intended]. Marca (in Spanish). 19 January 2007. Archived from the original on 31 May 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2011.
35. "Age limit on players switching nations is removed". ESPN Soccernet. 4 June 2009. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2011.
36. "Amorebieta debuta con Venezuela" [Amorebieta makes Venezuela debut]. Marca (in Spanish). 2 September 2011. Archived from the original on 26 September 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2011.
37. "Venezuela hizo historia a costa de una desorientada y cansada Argentina" [Venezuela made history at the expense of dizzy and tired Argentina]. La Capital (in Spanish). 11 October 2011. Archived from the original on 29 December 2012. Retrieved 12 October 2011.
38. "Claudio Pizarro goal pushes Peru past 10-man Venezuela". ESPN FC. 18 June 2015. Archived from the original on 19 June 2015. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
39. "Venezuela: Salomon Rondon and squad in quit threat to board". BBC Sport. 1 December 2015. Archived from the original on 1 December 2015. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
40. "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. Archived from the original on 7 March 2018. Retrieved 6 March 2018.
41. Velasco, Juanma (10 January 2025). "Arenas y Athletic recaudarán fondos para los afectados por la DANA". MARCA (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 January 2025.
42. Fernando Amorebieta at Athletic Bilbao
43. Fernando Amorebieta at ESPN FC
44. Fernando Amorebieta at Soccerway
45. Fernando Amorebieta at Soccerbase
46. "Independiente é campeão em cima do Flamengo e cala o Maracanã" [Independiente top Flamengo to become champions and silence the Maracanã]. Gazeta Esportiva (in Portuguese). 13 December 2017. Archived from the original on 15 December 2018. Retrieved 12 December 2018.

External links

• Fernando Amorebieta at Athletic Bilbao
• Fernando Amorebieta at BDFutbol
• Fernando Amorebieta at Soccerbase
• Fernando Amorebieta at National-Football-Teams.com
• Fernando Amorebieta – FIFA competition record (archived)