Christian Benítez
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| Christian Benítez | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Christian Rogelio Benítez Betancourt | |
| Date of birth | May 1, 1986 | |
| Place of birth | Quito, Ecuador | |
| Height | 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)[1] | |
| Playing position | Striker | |
| Club information | ||
| Current club | Birmingham City | |
| Senior career1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 1997–2007 2007–2009 2009– |
El Nacional Santos Laguna Birmingham City |
83 (29) 58 (31) 0 (0) |
| National team2 | ||
| 2006– | Ecuador | 17 (10) |
|
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
||
Christian Rogelio Benítez Betancourt, also known as "Chucho" Benitez (born May 1, 1986) is an Ecuadorian footballer who played as a forward for Santos Laguna in Mexico. He was awarded as the most valuable player in Primera División de México in 2008.[citation needed] In June 2009 he signed for English club Birmingham City, subject to a medical and work permit.
Contents |
[edit] Club career
[edit] El Nacional
Known as one of the best players to ever compete in the Ecuadorian top flight, he was scouted by many important clubs, such as Villarreal CF of Spain in January 2007 due to his marvelous performances in his club El Nacional. Though later it was confirmed that there was no real interest from the Spanish team,[2] he was reported with a move to Red Star Belgrade in the Serbian Superliga on July 2007.[3]
[edit] Santos Laguna
In July 2007, he made an unexpected move to Santos Laguna of the Primera División de México. With his arrival and that of Vicente Matías Vuoso, Santos had a overly impressive season, with wins over several giant Mexican clubs. He is considered one of the best foreign strikers in the Mexican league alongside Giancarlo Maldonado, Humberto Suazo, Salvador Cabañas, and Hector Mancilla. Benitez also received an award in 2007 for being the best player playing outside of Ecuador, the previous recipient being PSV Eindhoven's Edison Mendez.[1]
Despite interest from Portugal,[4] Benitez decided to compete in the Mexican Clausura 2008, where he led the team to the title win, scoring 10 goals in the process and being voted the best player of the season. Benitez is the fourth Ecuadorian to win the Mexican championship along with Italo Estupiñan, Alex Aguinaga, and Agustin Delgado.
[edit] Birmingham City
On June 3, 2009, Birmingham City announced that they had signed the Ecuadorian international on a three-year contract for an undisclosed club record transfer fee which press reports speculated to be in the region of £6 million rising to £9m.[5] The deal is subject to the striker receiving a work permit, which his international appearances should make a formality, and to him passing a medical.[6][7]
[edit] International career
Benítez is the son of one of Ecuador's all time top scoring players, Ermen Benítez, and was a member of the Ecuador national team at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. His speed, elusiveness, and skill with the ball made him look good and ready for the World Cup in Germany.
Benitez was considered by many as a surprise selection from Ecuador's Colombian-born coach Luis Fernando Suarez, but several factors were impressive pre-World Cup showings against Netherlands and Japan and Copa Libertadores 2006 experience. He was a candidate for the Gillete Best Young Player Award that was awarded for the first time at the end of the FIFA World Cup to the best young player born on or after January 1, 1985. He only came on in the 3-0 loss to Germany in the World Cup, replacing Felix Borja in the middle of the game.
[edit] Post World Cup
His first international goal came in August 2006 against Peru. After that, in late April 2007, he scored another goal against Peru, in a friendly held in the Mini Estadi in Barcelona, Spain which Ecuador won 2-0. He also scored a goal in an international friendly between the Ecuadorian national team and the Republic of Ireland on May 23, 2006. They later drew 1-1 in New Jersey,[8] adding to the widespread belief that he could excel in Europe.[9]
Benitez started all three games during the Copa America 2007, scoring against Chile. Despite his attacking flair, Ecuador were eliminated in the first stage, losing all three matches. In an international friendly against El Salvador on 8 September 2007, Benitez scored a double in an emphatic 5-1 home win in Quito.[10]
He is considered as the successor to former international star Agustin Delgado, after inheriting the national team's number 11 shirt from him. In a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Bolivia, he scored a wonderful solo effort. Two months later he showed his ability in the air as well, when he scored the only goal of the match with a header against Chile.
[edit] Statistics
| Club | Season | League | Libertadores | Sudamericana | Interliga | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Goals | GP | Goals | GP | Goals | GP | Goals | GP | Goals | ||
 Santos Laguna |
2007-2008 | 40 | 17 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 40 | 17 |
| 2008-2009 | 18 | 14 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 18 | 14 | |
[edit] Honours
[edit] Club
[edit] Individual
- Serie A | 2006 - MVP
- Clausura 2008 - MVP[citation needed]
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.mediotiempo.com/jugador.php?id_jugador=7414&todos=1
- ^ (Spanish) "El Nacional no conoce interès del Villareal". CRE Satelital Ecuador. 2007-01-16. http://www.cre.com.ec/Desktop.aspx?Id=283&e=91238. Retrieved on 2007-05-20.
- ^ "Neka bude Makedonija". Vecernje Novosti. 2007-07-03. http://www.novosti.rs/code/navigate.php?Id=13&status=jedna&vest=105694&datum=2007-07-03. Retrieved on 2007-07-03.
- ^ (Spanish) "Alexis Sanchez y Christian Benitez en la mira de Benfica". Goal.com. 2007-11-25. http://www.goal.com/es/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=492061. Retrieved on 2008-01-25.
- ^ Walker, Andy (2009-06-04). "Birmingham City pay record £9m for Ecuador striker Christian Benitez". Birmingham Post. http://www.birminghampost.net/midlands-birmingham-sport/west-midlands-sports/birmingham-city-fc/2009/06/04/birmingham-city-pay-record-9m-for-ecuador-striker-christian-benitez-65233-23788306/. Retrieved on 2009-06-14.
- ^ "Blues make record signing". Birmingham City F.C.. 2009-06-03. http://www.bcfc.com/page/News/NewsDetail/0,,10412~1685586,00.html. Retrieved on 2009-06-03.
- ^ "Birmingham sign striker Benitez". BBC Sport. 2009-06-03. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/b/birmingham_city/8081077.stm. Retrieved on 2009-06-03.
- ^ "Ecuador 1-1 Ireland". ESPNsoccernet. 2007-05-23. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=433135&cc=5901. Retrieved on 2007-05-24.
- ^ (Spanish) "Christian Benitez, el hijo de la Pantera y el punta del futuro". Diario AS. 2007-06-01. http://www.as.com/articulo/futbol/Christian/Benitez/hijo/Pantera/punta/futuro/dasftb/20070601dasdaiftb_55/Tes/. Retrieved on 2007-06-01.
- ^ "Ecuador 5-1 El Salvador". ESPNsoccernet. 2007-09-08. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=461509&cc=5901. Retrieved on 2007-09-11.
[edit] External links
- Christian Benítez stats at MedioTiempo.com (Spanish)
- Player details at Ecuador Football Federation (in Spanish)
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