Spanish footballer (born 2000)
In this
Spanish name , the first or paternal
surname is
Ruiz and the second or maternal family name is
Ortega .
Abel Ruiz
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 Current team
Girona 2008–2012
Valencia 2012–2017
Barcelona Years
Team
Apps
(Gls ) 2017–2020
Barcelona B
68
(9) 2019–2020
Barcelona
1
(0) 2020
→ Braga (loan)
6
(1) 2020–2024
Braga
117
(19) 2024–
Girona
0
(0) 2015–2017
Spain U17
38
(25) 2017–2018
Spain U18
4
(7) 2017–2019
Spain U19
18
(7) 2019–2023
Spain U21
27
(13) 2021–
Spain
2
(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21:38, 18 May 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 8 July 2023
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 .
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
Barcelona
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
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
On 27 June 2024, Ruiz signed for La Liga club Girona on a contract until June 2029.[17]
International career
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
Club
As of match played 18 May 2024 [28]
International
As of match played 5 September 2021 [29]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team
Year
Apps
Goals
Spain
2021
2
0
Total
2
0
Honours
Barcelona Youth
Barcelona
Braga
Spain U17
Spain U18
Spain U19
Individual
UEFA European Under-21 Championship Team of the Tournament: 2023 [36]
Records
References
^ "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 .
^ "ABEL RUIZ" (in Portuguese). SC Braga. Retrieved 28 July 2020 .
^ "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 .
^ "Abel Ruiz se queda en el Barça" [Abel Ruiz stays at Barça ] (in Spanish). Sport . 21 November 2016. Retrieved 28 August 2017 .
^ "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 .
^ "El Tenerife se pone líder en Barcelona" [Tenerife become leader in Barcelona] (in Spanish). Marca . 28 August 2017. Retrieved 28 August 2017 .
^ "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 .
^ "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 .
^ "Abel Ruiz makes first team debut" . FC Barcelona. 12 May 2019. Retrieved 21 February 2020 .
^ "Abel Ruiz leaves for SC Braga" . FC Barcelona. 31 January 2020.
^ "Rangers' Ianis Hagi completes thrilling Europa League comeback against Braga" . The Guardian . 21 February 2020. Retrieved 21 February 2020 .
^ "Sporting blanks offer Braga hope in hunt for a top three finish" . PortuGOAL. 6 July 2020. Retrieved 28 July 2020 .
^ 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 .
^ Kundert, Tom (4 March 2021). "Braga knock Porto out of Portuguese Cup in a thriller at the Dragão" . PortuGOAL. Retrieved 1 June 2021 .
^ 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 .
^ Ames, Nick (7 April 2022). "Abel Ruiz's winner gives Braga narrow first-leg victory over Rangers" . The Guardian . Retrieved 15 April 2022 .
^ "Abel Ruiz, red and white until 2029" . Girona FC. 27 June 2024. Retrieved 27 June 2024 .
^ "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 .
^ "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 .
^ "Ten to watch from U17 EURO in Azerbaijan" . UEFA.com. 23 May 2016. Retrieved 29 August 2017 .
^ a b "Spain secure record third U17 EURO title" . UEFA.com. 19 May 2017. Retrieved 6 September 2017 .
^ "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 .
^ FIFA.com. "FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017" . FIFA.com . FIFA.com. Archived from the original on 23 October 2017. Retrieved 25 October 2017 .
^ "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 .
^ "Spain youngsters impress in Lithuania rout" . Marca . 8 June 2021. Retrieved 8 June 2021 .
^ "Explica .co – Latest news from around the world" . Archived from the original on 3 July 2021. Retrieved 28 June 2021 .
^ 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 .
^ Abel Ruiz at Soccerway
^ "Abel Ruiz" . National Football Teams . Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 5 September 2021 .
^ "Chelsea 0–3 Barcelona" . UEFA.com. Retrieved 13 July 2020 .
^ Ribeiro, Patrick (23 May 2021). "Braga beat nine-man Benfica to lift Portuguese Cup" . PortuGOAL. Retrieved 24 May 2021 .
^ "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 .
^ "U17 Top scorers in Azerbaijan" . UEFA.com. 21 May 2016. Retrieved 29 August 2017 .
^ "Technical Report – Team of the Tournament" . UEFA. July 2017. Retrieved 17 December 2017 .
^ "Under-21 EURO Top Scorers: Abel Ruiz, Sergio Gómez and Georgiy Sudakov tie" . UEFA . 8 July 2023. Retrieved 21 November 2023 .
^ "2023 Under-21 EURO Team of the Tournament" . UEFA . 11 July 2023. Retrieved 14 July 2023 .
^ "Abel Ruiz and Amine Gouiri equal record" . UEFA.com. 12 May 2017. Retrieved 29 August 2017 .
^ "Ruiz level with José Gomes as top U17 EURO scorer" . UEFA.com. 19 May 2017. Retrieved 6 September 2017 .
^ "Abel Ruiz, récord de la Sub 17" [Abel Ruiz, under-17s record holder] (in Spanish). Marca. 16 May 2017. Retrieved 29 August 2017 .
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Abel Ruiz .
Awards
Golden player Top goalscorer