_(cropped).jpg) Prieto withReal Sociedad in 2018 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Xabier Prieto Argarate[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1983-08-29)29 August 1983 (age 42)[1] | ||
| Place of birth | San Sebastián, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Ikastola Santo Tomas Lizeoa | |||
| 2000–2002 | Real Sociedad | ||
| 2000–2001 | →Hernani (loan) | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2001–2004 | Real Sociedad B | 48 | (8) |
| 2003–2018 | Real Sociedad | 479 | (67) |
| Total | 527 | (75) | |
| International career | |||
| 2004–2005 | Spain U21 | 5 | (0) |
| 2004–2016 | Basque Country | 14 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Xabier "Xabi" Prieto Argarate (born 29 August 1983) is a Spanish retired professionalfootballer who played mainly as aright midfielder. A player of good dribbling skills, he was also apenalty kick specialist.[2][3]
Hespent his entire career withReal Sociedad, playing 530 competitive matches for the club.[4][5]
Born inSan Sebastián,Gipuzkoa, Prieto was a graduate of theyouth system at his hometown clubReal Sociedad, having joined from school aged 16 and spent time on loan with local amateursCD Hernani.[4] He made his senior debut in 2002 withthe reserves, helping them toachieve promotion toSegunda División B in his first season.
After starting the next campaign with the B side, Prieto made his first-team debut on 8 October 2003, playing the full 90 minutes in a2–1 away win againstReal Oviedo in theCopa del Rey.[6] HisLa Liga bow took place 18 days later,coming off the bench in the 1–0 home victory overNavarrese neighboursCA Osasuna;[7] he would go on to collect a further eight substitute appearances – seven of them late in the game – duringthat season. However, on 23 May of the following year, with the league's outcome already decided, he profited from his second start to score twice atReal Madrid in a 4–1 win, one of the goals coming from thepenalty spot.[8]
Subsequently, Prieto was definitely promoted to the first squad and, in2005–06, participated in all 38 games and netted nine times, six of them being penalties. He was also ever-present thefollowing campaign, but theBasques dropped down toSegunda División.
Prieto played 35 matches in2009–10, totalling exactly 3,000 minutes and contributing seven goals as Real Sociedad returned to the top flight after three years.[9][10][4] In the first fixture of thefollowing season, at home againstVillarreal CF, he scored the only goal after a backheel pass from newly-signedJoseba Llorente.[11]
On 6 January 2013, Prieto netted the firsthat-trick of his professional career, albeit in a 4–3 loss at Real Madrid: he scored once through a penalty and twice after one-on-one situations againstIker Casillas.[12][13] He added a brace on 22 February 2015 in another seven-goal thriller, but now in a 4–3 home defeat ofSevilla FC;[14] in the interim, he made seven appearances for theTxuriurdin in the2013–14 edition of theUEFA Champions League.
On 25 August 2017, Prieto played his 500th game for the Real Sociedad first team (only the fifth player to reach that milestone afterJuan Antonio Larrañaga,Alberto Górriz,Jesús María Zamora andLuis Arconada) a few days prior to his 34th birthday, and marked the occasion with a goal in a 3–0 victory against Villarreal at theAnoeta Stadium. He also received an ovation from supporters in the tenth minute, his shirt number, and a few weeks later he broke theclub record for most league appearances (including matches he played in the lower division, unlike the players he overtook).[15][4]
In April 2018, Prieto confirmed he would be retiring at the end ofthe season. To honour his contributions, Real Sociedad arranged for the club crest to be replaced with his portrait on the players' shirts for the final match of the campaign againstCD Leganés (which would also be theswan song for long-serving defenderCarlos Martínez).[16][17][18]
Prieto was selected for theSpain under-21 team on several occasions,[19] but never received acap forthe full side. He did feature in severalfriendlies with the unofficialBasque Country regional XI,[20] and as of 2017 was the team's most-capped player with 14 appearances.[21]
Prieto married Amaya Magaña in 2011.[22]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Real Sociedad B | 2002–03 | Tercera División | 34 | 5 | — | — | 34 | 5 | ||
| 2003–04[23] | Segunda División B | 14 | 3 | — | — | 14 | 3 | |||
| Total | 48 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 48 | 8 | ||
| Real Sociedad | 2003–04[23] | La Liga | 11 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | 13 | 2 | |
| 2004–05[23] | La Liga | 23 | 0 | 2 | 1 | — | 25 | 1 | ||
| 2005–06[23] | La Liga | 38 | 9 | 0 | 0 | — | 38 | 9 | ||
| 2006–07[23] | La Liga | 33 | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | 34 | 3 | ||
| 2007–08[23] | Segunda División | 36 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | 37 | 4 | ||
| 2008–09[23] | Segunda División | 32 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | 33 | 4 | ||
| 2009–10[23] | Segunda División | 35 | 7 | 1 | 0 | — | 36 | 7 | ||
| 2010–11[23] | La Liga | 37 | 7 | 2 | 0 | — | 39 | 7 | ||
| 2011–12[23] | La Liga | 34 | 2 | 4 | 2 | — | 38 | 4 | ||
| 2012–13[23] | La Liga | 35 | 9 | 2 | 0 | — | 37 | 9 | ||
| 2013–14[23] | La Liga | 30 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 7[a] | 0 | 43 | 2 | |
| 2014–15[24] | La Liga | 35 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 4[b] | 3 | 42 | 6 | |
| 2015–16[24] | La Liga | 36 | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | 37 | 3 | ||
| 2016–17[24] | La Liga | 38 | 8 | 5 | 0 | — | 43 | 8 | ||
| 2017–18[24] | La Liga | 26 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6[b] | 0 | 34 | 3 | |
| Total | 479 | 67 | 33 | 3 | 17 | 3 | 529 | 73 | ||
| Career total | 527 | 75 | 33 | 3 | 17 | 3 | 577 | 81 | ||
Real Sociedad