.jpg) Apoño withZaragoza in 2012 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Antonio Galdeano Benítez | ||
| Date of birth | (1984-02-13)13 February 1984 (age 41) | ||
| Place of birth | Málaga, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 26 de Febrero | |||
| 2000–2003 | Málaga | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2003–2004 | San Pedro | ||
| 2004–2007 | Marbella | 84 | (13) |
| 2007–2012 | Málaga | 120 | (15) |
| 2012 | →Zaragoza (loan) | 17 | (5) |
| 2012–2013 | Zaragoza | 32 | (9) |
| 2013–2014 | Las Palmas | 29 | (1) |
| 2014–2015 | OFI | 3 | (0) |
| 2015 | El Palo | 9 | (0) |
| 2016 | Marbella | 7 | (0) |
| 2017–2018 | El Palo | 24 | (8) |
| Total | 325 | (51) | |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Antonio Galdeano Benítez (born 13 February 1984), known asApoño, is a Spanish retiredfootballer who played as acentral midfielder. A player with both hard-working and playmaking skills, he was also apenalty kick specialist.[1]
He amassedLa Liga totals of 138 matches and 28 goals over five seasons, representing in the competitionMálaga andZaragoza. He also competed professionally in Greece.
Born inMálaga, Apoño began his career with localUD San Pedro and, for the2004–05 season, moved toAndalusia neighboursUD Marbella inSegunda División B, where he would remain three years.
In July 2007, Apoño joinedSegunda División sideMálaga CF – after having emerged through their youth system[2]– also in his native region, being an instrumental figure in theirreturn toLa Liga after a two-year absence. He was brought in as the club was coached byJuan Ramón López Muñiz, who had briefly managed the player at Marbella.
Inthe following campaign, Apoño remained a starter: he made his top division debut on 31 August 2008, in a 0–4 away loss againstAtlético Madrid,[3] and finished the campaign with nine league goals – best in the squad withstrikerNabil Baha – seven frompenalty kicks,[4] notably in a 3–4 loss at theSantiago Bernabéu Stadium againstReal Madrid.[5]
On 30 July 2010, aftera season with many injury problems,[6] with Málaga only ranking in 17th position, Apoño signed a contract extension running until June 2014.[7] He made his 100th official appearance for the club alongside teammateWeligton, in a 1–4 home defeat against Real Madrid on 16 October 2010,[8] and finished2010–11 with 27 league appearances (26 starts) and one goal.[9]
After the first match inthe following campaign, a 1–2 away loss toSevilla FC[10] in which he wasreplaced athalf-time – with the score at 2–0 for the hosts – reacting angrily, Apoño was suspended by coachManuel Pellegrini.[11][12] He returned to action nearly two months after, playing the full 90 minutes in a 0–4 home defeat against Real Madrid; on 9 January 2012 theChilean told the player to start looking for a new club, as their altercation had continued for too long.[13]
On 19 January 2012, Apoño was loaned out to fellow league sideReal Zaragoza for the rest of the season.[14] He made his debut for his new team three days later, starting in a 0–0 draw atLevante UD.[15]
Apoño scored his first goal(s) for theAragonese on 21 March, netting a brace (one penalty) for bottom-placed Zaragoza in a 2–1 away win againstValencia CF.[16] The following round, again from the 11-meter spot, he scored in the95th minute for the game's only goal in a home success over Atlético Madrid,[17] and featured heavily as the club again retained its division status in the last round.
On 5 September 2013,free agent Apoño joined second level'sUD Las Palmas on a one-year deal.[18] He netted twice during his spell in theCanary Islands,[19] including once in thepromotion play-offs at home toCórdoba CF (1–1 home draw,away goals rule elimination).[20]
Subsequently, after an unassuming spell in theSuperleague Greece withOFI Crete FC, 31-year-old Apoño returned to Spain and went on to representCD El Palo and Marbella again.[21][22][23] On 6 May 2015, representing the former against the latter, he was handed a 12-match ban after beingsent off during a third tier match held five days earlier, having allegedly insulted therefereeing team as well as making death threats.[24]
Apoño's younger brother,Juan, was also a footballer and a midfielder. He also appeared for Málaga, but only for theB-team. The siblings shared teams at El Palo.[25][26][27]