.jpg) Martínez withBayern Munich in 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Javier Martínez Aginaga[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1988-09-02)2 September 1988 (age 37) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Estella, Spain[2][a] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in)[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Current team | Al Bidda | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1993–1995 | Berceo | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1995–1997 | Logroñés | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1997–2000 | Arenas de Ayegui | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000 | Izarra | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2001–2005 | Osasuna | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2005–2006 | Osasuna B | 32 | (3) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2012 | Athletic Bilbao | 201 | (22) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2021 | Bayern Munich | 165 | (9) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021–2025 | Qatar SC | 77 | (11) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2025– | Al Bidda | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2005 | Spain U17 | 5 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2007 | Spain U19 | 5 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2007–2011 | Spain U21 | 24 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | Spain Olympic (O.P.) | 4 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2014 | Spain | 18 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2010 | Basque Country | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 2 February 2025 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Javier "Javi"Martínez Aginaga (Spanish pronunciation:[xaˈβjeɾˈxaβimaɾˈtineθaɣiˈnaɣa]; born 2 September 1988) is a Spanish professionalfootballer who plays as adefensive midfielder orcentre-back forQatari Second Division clubAl Bidda.
He arrived atAthletic Bilbao in 2006, before his 18th birthday, quickly imposing himself as a starter and going on to make 251 appearances over the course of sixLa Liga seasons, scoring 26 goals. In 2012, he signed forBayern Munich for €40 million, going on to win nine consecutiveBundesliga titles as well as theUEFA Champions League in2013 and2020.
ASpanish international, Martínez was a member of the squads that won the2010 FIFA World Cup andUEFA Euro 2012, and also played at the2014 FIFA World Cup.
Martínez was born inEstella,Navarre and raised in the nearby village ofAyegui;[3][a] and was a promisingbasketball player in his youth.[4]Athletic Bilbao signed him as a raw 17-year-old for €6 million in the summer of 2006, from fellowLa Liga clubOsasuna,[5] despite him never having played a game with the first-team; he had scored three goals in 32 appearances for thereserve team.[6]
Martínez soon became a regular inhis debut season with powerful displays, his highlight being scoring twice against in a 2–0 away win againstDeportivo La Coruña on 16 December 2006,[7] and finished with 35 games and three goals.[8] He was ever-present again over the following two years, helping Athletic to the final of theCopa del Rey in2009.[9]
In the2009–10 season, Martínez was the midfield engine once more[10]– 46 official matches, nine goals – and netted a career-best six times in the league campaign as the side narrowly missed on anotherqualification to theUEFA Europa League. In the2011–12 season, under new managerMarcelo Bielsa, he began to be used regularly as acentral defender,[11] making 50 starts in the demanding role and receiving threered cards[12][13][14] during the latter season,[15] which saw them reachanother domestic cup final as well as thedecisive game in the UEFA Europa League, only to lose both matches 3–0.[16][17]
On 29 August 2012, afterBayern Munich paid the buyout clause of €40 million in his contract, Martínez signed a five-year contract with the German club.[18] He thus became the transfer record in the 50-year history of theBundesliga.[19] Martínez made his debut on 2 September – the day of his 24th birthday – coming on as a 77th minutesubstitute forBastian Schweinsteiger in a 6–1 home win overVfB Stuttgart.[20] He scored his first goal for his new club againstHannover 96 on 24 November, netting the opener in an eventual 5–0 home triumph through abicycle kick.[21]
Martínez scored his second goal for Bayern in their 6–1 demolition ofWerder Bremen on 23 February 2013, heading home from anArjen Robben free-kick to make the score 2–0 after 30 minutes.[22] Following the team's impressive 4–0 victory overBarcelona inthe first-leg of theirUEFA Champions League semi-final clash on 23 April, he was lauded by many pundits for his all-around display and was credited as the key man in breaking up thetiki-taka football of national teammatesXavi andAndrés Iniesta;[23] in the final game ofhis first season, he netted the first goal as the club came back from 0–2 and 1–3 down to win it 4–3 atBorussia Mönchengladbach.[24] He finished the season with three goals in 43 appearances.[25]
Martínez started the2013–14 campaign on the substitutes bench, under new managerPep Guardiola. On 30 August 2013, inthat year'sUEFA Super Cup, he took the pitch early into the second-half of the match againstChelsea, and scored the 2–2 equalizer in thelast minute ofextra-time, as theBavarians went on to win the trophy inPrague after apenalty shootout.[26] Martínez finished the season with one goal in 34 appearances.[8][27]
On 13 August 2014, Martínez tore the ligaments on his left knee 30 minutes into theGerman Super Cup encounter againstBorussia Dortmund (eventual0–2 loss), going on to miss the vast majority ofthe season.[28] He returned to action on 2 May 2015, starting in central defence in a 2–0 league defeat againstBayer Leverkusen.[29] Ten days later, he came on as an 87th-minute substitute in theChampions League semi-final second leg against Barcelona.[30] In addition to playing in the German Super Cup,[28] Martínez also played in one Bundesliga match and one Champions League match.[31]
Martínez made his first appearance of the2015–16 season on 19 September 2015, featuring 24 minutes and beingbooked in a 3–0 win againstDarmstadt 98.[32] His first start of the campaign came as a stopper in a 3–0 defeat ofMainz 05, the following matchday.[33]
On 4 October 2015, Martínez played 90 minutes for the first time in one year and five months, in a 5–1Klassiker win against Borussia Dortmund.[34] On 18 December he signed a new contract, keeping him at the club until 2021.[35] He finished the season with a goal in 27 appearances.[36]
Martínez started the2016–17 season by playing in theGerman Super Cup.[37] Martínez finished the season with two goals in 37 appearances.[38]
Martínez started the2017–18 season by playing in theGerman Super Cup.[39] On 31 October 2017, Martínez scored the winning goal in a 2–1 away victory overCeltic during theChampions League group stage, which confirmed Bayern's passage to the knockout phase. In the process, he sustained a cut to his face in a clash of heads withNir Bitton;[40] it was his first ever goal inEuropean competitions, in 59 appearances.[41] Martínez finished the season with two goals in 37 appearances.[42]
Martínez started the2018–19 season by winning theGerman Super Cup as Bayern defeatedEintracht Frankfurt with a 5–0 victory.[43] On 19 January 2019, following a 3–1 win overHoffenheim, he reached 100 Bundesliga wins with Bayern Munich in his 120th appearance for the club, breaking the record previously held byArjen Robben, who took 126 matches.[44]
On 18 May 2019, Martínez won his seventh consecutive Bundesliga title as Bayern finished two points above Borussia Dortmund with 78 points. A week later, Martínez won his fourthDFB-Pokal as Bayern defeatedRB Leipzig 3–0 in thefinal.[45] He finished the season with four goals in 33 appearances.[46]
He made a total of 24 appearances in the2019–20 treble-winning season.[47]
On 24 September 2020, Martínez (at that time heavily linked in the media with a return to Athletic Bilbao)[3] scored in extra-time to win the2020 UEFA Super Cup for Bayern Munich with a 2–1 victory overSevilla; it was his second goal in two appearances in the UEFA Super Cup.[48] Having scored the decisive goal once again in extra-time for Bayern as he did earlier in the 2013 final against Chelsea in the UEFA Super Cup, he famously earned the nickname of "Mr. Super Cup" (later made famous in the sports media) from his teammateThomas Müller who became Man of the Match.[49] On 4 May 2021, Bayern announced that Martínez would be leaving the club at the end of the season, since both parties agreed not to extend his contract.[50]
On 20 June 2021, Martínez signed forQatar Stars League clubQatar SC on a three-year deal starting on 1 July. On 4 August 2024, Martínez signed a one-year contract extension with the club.[51][52][53]
On 29 July 2025, Martínez joinedAl Bidda.[54]
At the age of 19, Martínez began appearing forSpain's under-21 team, representing the nation at the2009 UEFA European Championships inSweden, in a group stage exit. On 20 May 2010, he was named in thesenior side's list of 23 for theFIFA World Cup inSouth Africa, chosen by managerVicente del Bosque.[55] On 29 May, he made his debut, replacingBarcelona'sXavi in the 74th minute of a 3–2friendly win againstSaudi Arabia, inInnsbruck,Austria;[56] on 3 June he started in another exhibition game, withSouth Korea (1–0 triumph, in the same venue), playing 80 minutes until he was substituted forDavid Silva.[57]
Martínez played once in the2010 World Cup, replacingXabi Alonso for the final 20 minutes of an 2–1 win againstChile in the group stage on 25 June,[58] as Spain emerged victorious in the tournament. He returned to the under-21 setup for the2011 European Championships in Denmark,captaining the nation to its third title in the category.[59]
Martínez also appeared in one game atUEFA Euro 2012 for the eventual champions, again substituting Alonso midway through the second-half, this time in a 4–0 win against theRepublic of Ireland in the group stage.[60] He was described by del Bosque as "a complete player", with the manager comparing him toPatrick Vieira;[61] additionally, he was part of thesquad at the2012 Summer Olympics,[62] which ended ingroup stage elimination.
Martínez was named in Spain's 30-man provisional squad for the2014 FIFA World Cup,[63] as well as the final 23-man squad for the tournament.[64] He made his debut in the tournament in the group stage, against Chile in theMaracanã starting in place ofGerard Piqué in a 0–2 defeat that confirmed elimination for the defending world-champions.[65]
Martínez is a versatile player who can play both as a holding midfielder and as a centre-back;[66] he is also capable of playing as asweeper in a three-man back-line in a 3–4–3 or 3–5–2 formation, due to his ability to play the ball out from the back.[67][68][69] His versatility enabledBayern Munich's effective adoption of a flexible tactical approach underPep Guardiola, allowing the team to switch between different formations throughout the course of a single match.[66][67][70][71] In addition to his good tackling, physical power, ability in the air, and defensive awareness,[72][73][74] Martínez has also stood out for his passing ability, technique, and vision, as well as his strong mentality, which also enable him to play in a variety ofmidfield roles, including as adeep-lying playmaker.[70][75][76][77] Ahead of Euro 2012,Garth Crooks described Martínez as "as silky as a bar of Toblerone."[78]
Martínez's older brother,Álvaro, was also a footballer, who played as adefender. Having played mainly in the lower leagues, he had a brief spell in thesecond division withSD Eibar.[79][80]Javi has cited Álvaro as being a positive influence over his early career.[4]
In addition to his nativeSpanish, Martínez also speaksGerman andEnglish.[81]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[b] | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Osasuna B | 2005–06[6] | Segunda División B | 32 | 3 | — | — | — | 32 | 3 | |||
| Athletic Bilbao | 2006–07[8] | La Liga | 35 | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 36 | 3 | ||
| 2007–08[8] | La Liga | 34 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 36 | 0 | |||
| 2008–09[8] | La Liga | 32 | 5 | 9 | 1 | — | — | 41 | 6 | |||
| 2009–10[8] | La Liga | 34 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 11[c] | 2 | — | 46 | 9 | ||
| 2010–11[8] | La Liga | 35 | 4 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 38 | 4 | |||
| 2011–12[8] | La Liga | 31 | 4 | 9 | 0 | 14[c] | 0 | — | 54 | 4 | ||
| Total | 201 | 22 | 25 | 2 | 25 | 2 | — | 251 | 26 | |||
| Bayern Munich | 2012–13[25] | Bundesliga | 27 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 11[d] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 3 |
| 2013–14[8][27] | Bundesliga | 18 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 8[d] | 0 | 3[e] | 1 | 34 | 1 | |
| 2014–15[28][31] | Bundesliga | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[d] | 0 | 1[f] | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2015–16[36] | Bundesliga | 16 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 8[d] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 1 | |
| 2016–17[37][38] | Bundesliga | 25 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 7[d] | 0 | 1[f] | 0 | 37 | 2 | |
| 2017–18[39][42] | Bundesliga | 22 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 10[d] | 1 | 1[f] | 0 | 37 | 2 | |
| 2018–19[46] | Bundesliga | 21 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 6[d] | 1 | 1[f] | 0 | 33 | 4 | |
| 2019–20[47] | Bundesliga | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7[d] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 0 | |
| 2020–21[83] | Bundesliga | 19 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8[d] | 0 | 2[g] | 1 | 30 | 1 | |
| Total | 165 | 9 | 28 | 1 | 66 | 2 | 9 | 2 | 268 | 14 | ||
| Qatar SC | 2021–22[8] | Qatar Stars League | 21 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 23 | 4 | |
| 2022–23[82] | Qatar Stars League | 17 | 1 | 3 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 20 | 2 | ||
| 2023–24 | Qatar Stars League | 16 | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 16 | 4 | ||
| Total | 54 | 8 | 5 | 2 | — | 0 | 0 | 59 | 10 | |||
| Career total | 452 | 42 | 58 | 5 | 91 | 4 | 9 | 2 | 610 | 53 | ||
Source:[84]
| Spain | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2010 | 3 | 0 |
| 2011 | 4 | 0 |
| 2012 | 2 | 0 |
| 2013 | 5 | 0 |
| 2014 | 4 | 0 |
| Total | 18 | 0 |
Athletic Bilbao[85]
Spain U19[89]
Spain U21[85]
Spain[85]
Individual
Spain squads | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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