_(cropped).jpg) Villanueva withVenezuela in 2019 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Mikel Villanueva Álvarez | ||
| Date of birth | (1993-04-14)14 April 1993 (age 32) | ||
| Place of birth | San Cristóbal, Venezuela | ||
| Height | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) | ||
| Position | Centre-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Al-Fayha | ||
| Number | 17 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Deportivo Táchira | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2012–2014 | Deportivo Táchira | 5 | (0) |
| 2014–2016 | ACD Lara | 20 | (4) |
| 2015–2016 | →Málaga B (loan) | 31 | (3) |
| 2016–2020 | Málaga | 31 | (1) |
| 2017–2018 | →Cádiz (loan) | 13 | (0) |
| 2018 | →Reus (loan) | 12 | (0) |
| 2019 | →Gimnàstic (loan) | 17 | (0) |
| 2020–2022 | Santa Clara | 61 | (2) |
| 2022–2025 | Vitória Guimarães | 69 | (1) |
| 2025– | Al-Fayha | 0 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2016– | Venezuela | 31 | (2) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 30 May 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 16:12, 13 October 2023 (UTC) | |||
Mikel Villanueva Álvarez (born 14 April 1993) is a Venezuelan professionalfootballer who plays as acentre-back for Saudi clubAl-Fayha.
He spent several years atMálaga, where he made 15La Liga appearances and was mainly loaned toSegunda División clubs. He also played in the PortuguesePrimeira Liga forSanta Clara andVitória Guimarães.
A full international forVenezuela since 2016, Villanueva represented the nation at threeCopa América tournaments.
Born inSan Cristóbal, Táchira, Villanueva was aDeportivo Táchira youth graduate. On 3 March 2013 he made his professional debut, starting in a 0–1 away loss againstEstudiantes de Mérida.
After being rarely used, Villanueva moved to fellowPrimera División teamACD Lara in 2014. He scored his first professional goal on 25 January 2015, netting the game's only in an away win againstCarabobo FC.[1]
On 22 February 2015, Villanueva scored a brace in a 3–1 home win againstTrujillanos FC. He finishedthe campaign with 20 appearances and four goals.
On 4 July 2015 Villanueva joinedMálaga CF, being assigned tothe reserves inTercera División.[2] On 3 May 2016, he was bought outright by the club, signing a permanent three-year deal and being promoted to the main squad inLa Liga.[3]
Villanueva made his debut in the main category of Spanish football on 16 October 2016, starting in a 1–1 away draw againstDeportivo Alavés.[4] The following 10 August he renewed his contract until 2020, and was immediately loaned toSegunda División clubCádiz CF for one year.[5]
On 24 July 2018, Villanueva joined fellow second division sideCF Reus Deportiu, on aseason-long loan.[6] On 28 December, he was one of the five players who left the club due to unpaid wages.[7]
On 9 January 2019, Villanueva moved toGimnàstic de Tarragona still in the second tier, on loan until June.[8] Back at his parent club, he scored his only goal in Spanish football on 20 October to open a 2–0 win atDeportivo de La Coruña.[9]
On 31 August 2020, Villanueva signed a two-year deal atC.D. Santa Clara in the PortuguesePrimeira Liga.[10] He missed only five games in hisfirst season as the club from theAzores came sixth, and scored a fourth-minute opener in a 5–1 home win overC.D. Nacional on 11 April.[citation needed]
Villanueva took part in the first continental campaign of his career in the2021–22UEFA Europa Conference League. On 29 July 2021, he scored in a 2–0 home win (5–0 aggregate) overKF Shkupi ofNorth Macedonia in the second leg of thesecond qualifying round.[11]
On 27 June 2022, at the end of his Santa Clara contract, Villanueva moved toVitória de Guimarães in the same league on a three-year deal.[12]
On 10 September 2025, Villanueva joined Saudi Pro League sideAl-Fayha on a one-year deal.[13]
On 20 January 2016, Villanueva was called up to theVenezuela national team for afriendly againstCosta Rica.[14] He made his full international debut on 2 February, starting in the 1–0 win inBarinas.[citation needed]
Villanueva scored his first international goal on 24 March 2016 in2018 FIFA World Cupqualification, netting the second in a 2–2 away draw againstPeru following an assist from Málaga teammateJuanpi.[15] He was named in theVinotinto's squad for the year'sCopa América Centenario in the United States, but did not play.[16]
Villanueva was called up for the2019 Copa América in Brazil.[17] He played the first two group games as the team reached the quarter-finals, goalless draws against Peru andthe hosts, but was then ruled out with fever.[18]
At the2021 Copa América, in the same country as before, Venezuela were the one team eliminated from five inGroup B. Villanueva played only in the last game, a 1–0 loss to Peru at theEstádio Nacional Mané Garrincha.[19]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 24 March 2016 | Estadio Nacional de Lima,Lima,Peru |  Peru | 2–1 | 2–2 | 2018 World Cup qualification | |
| 2. | 23 March 2017 | Estadio Monumental de Maturín,Maturín,Venezuela | Peru | 1–0 | 2–2 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification |
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