Wikipedia

Abel Ruiz

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Ruiz and the second or maternal family name is Ortega.

Abel Ruiz Ortega (Spanish pronunciation: [aˈβel ˈrwiθ]; born 28 January 2000) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a forward for La Liga club Girona and the Spain national team.

Abel Ruiz
Ruiz with Spain U19 in 2019
Personal information
Full name Abel Ruiz Ortega[1]
Date of birth (2000-01-28) 28 January 2000 (age 24)
Place of birth Almussafes, Spain
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[2]
Position(s) Forward
Team information
Current team
 Girona
Number 9
Youth career
2008–2012 Valencia
2012–2017 Barcelona
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2017–2020 Barcelona B 68 (9)
2019–2020 Barcelona 1 (0)
2020–2024 Braga 123 (20)
2024– Girona 9 (2)
International career‡
2015–2017 Spain U17 38 (25)
2017–2018 Spain U18 4 (7)
2017–2019 Spain U19 18 (7)
2019–2023 Spain U21 27 (13)
2024 Spain U23 (O.P.) 5 (1)
2021– Spain 3 (0)
Medal record
Men's football
Representing  Spain
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2024 Paris Team
UEFA European Under-21 Championship
Runner-up 2023 Georgia–Romania
UEFA European Under-19 Championship
Winner 2019 Armenia
Mediterranean Games
Winner 2018 Spain
FIFA U-17 World Cup
Runner-up 2017 India
UEFA European Under-17 Championship
Winner 2017 Croatia
Runner-up 2016 Azerbaijan
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 16:18, 6 October 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 9 August 2024

Formed at Barcelona, where he made one first-team appearance, he moved to Braga in January 2020, where he won the Taça de Portugal in 2021.

Ruiz set the record for caps and goals for Spain's under-17 team, winning the European Championship in 2017 and finishing runners-up in 2016 and at the 2017 World Cup. He made his senior international debut in 2021.

Club career

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Barcelona

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Born in Almussafes, Valencian Community, Ruiz joined Barcelona's youth setup in 2012, from Valencia.[3] On 21 November 2016, he renewed his contract with the club.[4]

On 9 April 2017, while still a junior, Ruiz made his senior debut with the reserves, coming on as a late substitute for Jesús Alfaro in a 2–0 Segunda División B away win against Badalona; he also became the first player born in the 2000s to make an appearance for the club's senior ranks.[5]

After Barcelona B's promotion, Ruiz made his professional team debut on 28 August 2017, replacing David Concha in an 3–0 home loss against Tenerife in the Segunda División championship.[6] Four days later he scored his first professional goal in a 2–2 draw against Granada.[7]

Ruiz had his first-team debut in the Supercopa de Catalunya on 7 March 2018, scoring the winning penalty in a shootout against Espanyol.[8] His La Liga debut came on 12 May 2019 in a 2–0 win against Getafe, as a substitute for Philippe Coutinho for the final 21 minutes at the Camp Nou.[9]

Braga

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On 31 January 2020, Ruiz joined Portugal's Braga on loan for the rest of the season, with a mandatory purchase for €8 million and a buy-back clause.[10] He made his debut on 20 February in the round of 32 first leg of the UEFA Europa League away to Rangers, starting the game and scoring in a 3–2 loss.[11] Totalling eight appearances over the season, he scored his first Primeira Liga goal on 4 July soon after entering in a 4–0 home win over Aves.[12]

Ruiz was the top scorer in the Taça de Portugal as Braga won it in 2020–21, contributing seven goals in as many games.[13] This included two in a 3–2 win away to Porto in the semi-finals.[14]

In 2021–22, Ruiz scored in each leg of a 3–1 aggregate win over Monaco in the Europa League last 16.[15] He netted the only goal of the game in the next fixture against Rangers, though the Scots won 3–2 over the two games after extra time.[16]

Girona

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On 27 June 2024, Ruiz signed for La Liga club Girona on a contract until June 2029.[17]

International career

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Ruiz made his debut for the Spain under-17 team on 25 October 2015, starting and scoring the first in a 2–0 2016 UEFA European Under-17 Championship qualification win against Andorra.[18] He was also named in the list for the finals in Azerbaijan,[19] despite being one year younger than his teammates.

Ruiz finished the competition with four goals, being awarded the Silver Boot; he was also included in the tournament's best eleven.[20] During the 2017 edition in Croatia, he captained the side as Spain achieved their ninth title.[21]

On 22 September 2017, Ruiz was included in Santiago Denia's squad ahead of the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup,[22] and scored two braces in the tournament, scoring two goals in a 4–0 win against Niger on 10 October, and two more in a 3–1 semi-finals win against Mali on 25 October.[23]

Due to the isolation of some national team players following the positive COVID-19 test of Sergio Busquets, Spain's under-21 squad were called up for the international friendly against Lithuania on 8 June 2021.[24] Ruiz made his senior debut in the 4–0 win in Leganés, missing a penalty in the match.[25][26]

At the 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, in the 20th second of the match against Croatia, Ruiz scored the quickest goal in the history of the tournament, bringing a 1–0 victory to Spain and advancement to the quarter-finals.[27]

Career statistics

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Club

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As of match played 6 October 2024[28]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Europe Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Barcelona B 2016–17 Segunda División B 2 0 — — — — 2 0
2017–18 Segunda División 26 3 — — — — 26 3
2018–19 Segunda División B 21 3 — — — — 21 3
2019–20 Segunda División B 19 3 — — — — 19 3
Total 68 9 — — — — 68 9
Barcelona 2018–19 La Liga 1 0 0 0 — 0 0 — 1 0
Braga (loan) 2019–20 Primeira Liga 6 1 0 0 0 0 2[c] 1 — 8 2
Braga 2020–21 Primeira Liga 25 3 7 7 3 1 4[c] 0 — 39 11
2021–22 Primeira Liga 28 2 2 0 2 0 10[c] 3 1[d] 0 43 5
2022–23 Primeira Liga 34 8 5 2 4 1 8[e] 1 — 51 12
2023–24 Primeira Liga 30 6 3 0 4 0 11[f] 1 — 48 7
Total 117 19 17 9 13 2 33 6 1 0 181 36
Girona 2024–25 La Liga 9 2 0 0 — 0 0 — 9 2
Career total 201 31 17 9 13 2 35 6 1 0 267 48
  1. ^ Includes Taça de Portugal
  2. ^ Includes Taça da Liga
  3. ^ a b c Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  4. ^ Appearance in Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira
  5. ^ Six appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa League, two appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
  6. ^ Nine appearances and one goal in UEFA Champions League, two appearances in UEFA Europa League

International

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As of match played 24 July 2024[29]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Spain 2021 2 0
2022 0 0
2023 0 0
2024 1 0
Total 3 0

Honours

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Barcelona Youth

Barcelona

Braga

Spain U17

Spain U18

Spain U19

Spain U23

Individual

Records

References

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  1. ^ "Acta del Partido celebrado el 12 de mayo de 2019, en Barcelona" [Minutes of the Match held on 12 May 2019, in Barcelona] (in Spanish). Royal Spanish Football Federation. Archived from the original on 11 November 2020. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
  2. ^ "ABEL RUIZ" (in Portuguese). SC Braga. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
  3. ^ "Abel Ruiz, el futuro nueve de España" [Abel Ruiz, the future nine of Spain] (in Spanish). Sphera Sports. 20 May 2017. Archived from the original on 10 January 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2017.
  4. ^ "Abel Ruiz se queda en el Barça" [Abel Ruiz stays at Barça] (in Spanish). Sport. 21 November 2016. Retrieved 28 August 2017.
  5. ^ "El almusafense Abel Ruiz debuta con el filial del FC Barcelona en la Segunda B" [The almusafense Abel Ruiz debuts with the reserve team of FC Barcelona in Segunda B] (in Spanish). Levante-EMV. 9 April 2017. Retrieved 28 August 2017.
  6. ^ "El Tenerife se pone líder en Barcelona" [Tenerife become leader in Barcelona] (in Spanish). Marca. 28 August 2017. Retrieved 28 August 2017.
  7. ^ "Tercer empate de un Granada que no termina de arrancar" [Third draw of a Granada which cannot get going] (in Spanish). Marca. 1 September 2017. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
  8. ^ "Abel Ruiz, protagonista en la tanda de penaltis" [Abel Ruiz had his debut by scoring on the penalty shoot-out] (in Spanish). Sport. 7 March 2018. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
  9. ^ "Abel Ruiz makes first team debut". FC Barcelona. 12 May 2019. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  10. ^ "Abel Ruiz leaves for SC Braga". FC Barcelona. 31 January 2020.
  11. ^ "Rangers' Ianis Hagi completes thrilling Europa League comeback against Braga". The Guardian. 21 February 2020. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  12. ^ "Sporting blanks offer Braga hope in hunt for a top three finish". PortuGOAL. 6 July 2020. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
  13. ^ Tovar, Rui Miguel (24 May 2021). "Braga levanta a Taça em ano de centenário" [Braga lift the Taça in centenary year]. Wort (in Portuguese). Retrieved 1 June 2021.
  14. ^ Kundert, Tom (4 March 2021). "Braga knock Porto out of Portuguese Cup in a thriller at the Dragão". PortuGOAL. Retrieved 1 June 2021.
  15. ^ Mair, Steven (21 March 2022). "Braga frontman reacts to Rangers draw as Monaco slayer Abel Ruiz insists he's out to 'make history'". Daily Record. Retrieved 15 April 2022.
  16. ^ Ames, Nick (7 April 2022). "Abel Ruiz's winner gives Braga narrow first-leg victory over Rangers". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 April 2022.
  17. ^ "Abel Ruiz, red and white until 2029". Girona FC. 27 June 2024. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
  18. ^ "Abel Ruiz abre el camino de la victoria de la selección española sub'17 ante Andorra" [Abel Ruiz shows the way to victory of Spain under-17s against Andorra] (in Spanish). Sport. 25 October 2015. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
  19. ^ "Cuatro representantes valencianos, rumbo a la Eurocopa Sub-17 de Azerbaiyán" [Four Valencians, to the under-17 European Championship in Azerbaijan] (in Spanish). FFCV. 28 April 2016. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
  20. ^ "Ten to watch from U17 EURO in Azerbaijan". UEFA.com. 23 May 2016. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  21. ^ a b "Spain secure record third U17 EURO title". UEFA.com. 19 May 2017. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
  22. ^ "Oficial | Esta es la convocatoria para la Copa Mundial Sub-17 de India" [Official | This is the call-up for the Under-17 World Cup in India] (in Spanish). SeFutbol. 22 September 2017. Archived from the original on 6 July 2018. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
  23. ^ FIFA.com. "FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017". FIFA.com. Archived from the original on 23 October 2017. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
  24. ^ "Oficial | Lista de convocados para el encuentro ante Lituania" [Official | Squad list for the match against Lithuania]. Royal Spanish Football Federation (in Spanish). 6 June 2021. Archived from the original on 8 October 2021. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
  25. ^ "Spain youngsters impress in Lithuania rout". Marca. 8 June 2021. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  26. ^ "Explica .co – Latest news from around the world". Archived from the original on 3 July 2021. Retrieved 28 June 2021.
  27. ^ MacKenzie, Alasdair (24 June 2023). "Abel Ruiz scores quickest goal in U21 Euros history as Spain and Ukraine reach quarter-finals". Eurosport. Issy-les-Moulineaux, France. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  28. ^ Abel Ruiz at Soccerway
  29. ^ "Abel Ruiz". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  30. ^ "Chelsea 0–3 Barcelona". UEFA.com. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
  31. ^ Ribeiro, Patrick (23 May 2021). "Braga beat nine-man Benfica to lift Portuguese Cup". PortuGOAL. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
  32. ^ "Sp. Braga vence a Taça da Liga pela terceira vez" [Sp. Braga wins Taça da Liga for the third time]. Público (in Portuguese). 27 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  33. ^ Ronay, Barney (9 August 2024). "Camello's extra-time double clinches football gold for Spain against France". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  34. ^ "U17 Top scorers in Azerbaijan". UEFA.com. 21 May 2016. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  35. ^ "Technical Report – Team of the Tournament". UEFA. July 2017. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  36. ^ "Under-21 EURO Top Scorers: Abel Ruiz, Sergio Gómez and Georgiy Sudakov tie". UEFA. 8 July 2023. Retrieved 21 November 2023.
  37. ^ "2023 Under-21 EURO Team of the Tournament". UEFA. 11 July 2023. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
  38. ^ "Abel Ruiz and Amine Gouiri equal record". UEFA.com. 12 May 2017. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  39. ^ "Ruiz level with José Gomes as top U17 EURO scorer". UEFA.com. 19 May 2017. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
  40. ^ "Abel Ruiz, récord de la Sub 17" [Abel Ruiz, under-17s record holder] (in Spanish). Marca. 16 May 2017. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
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