| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | José María Martín Bejarano-Serrano[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1987-12-06)6 December 1987 (age 37)[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Rota, Spain[1] | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Defensive midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Roteña [es] | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2006–2007 | Roteña [es] | 21 | (3) |
| 2007–2009 | Sanluqueño | 56 | (0) |
| 2009–2010 | Murcia B | 28 | (0) |
| 2010–2012 | Jaén | 67 | (2) |
| 2012–2014 | Zaragoza | 38 | (0) |
| 2014 | Colorado Rapids | 20 | (4) |
| 2015–2016 | Levante | 26 | (0) |
| 2016–2024 | Cádiz | 157 | (3) |
| Total | 413 | (16) | |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
José María Martín Bejarano-Serrano (born 6 December 1987), commonly known asJosé Mari, is a Spanish retired professionalfootballer who played as adefensive midfielder.
He spent most of his career in the lower leagues of his country, competing inLa Liga withZaragoza,Levante andCádiz while totalling 104 games and one goal, and also played a season with theColorado Rapids in the United States.
Born inRota, Andalusia, José Mari played amateur football until the age of nearly 22, representingUD Roteña [es] andAtlético Sanluqueño CF. In the summer of 2009 he joinedReal Murcia Imperial ofSegunda División B,being relegated in his only season.
Subsequently, José Mari stayed in that level, spending two years atReal Jaén.[2] In summer 2012 he moved straight toLa Liga, signing for two years withReal Zaragoza and initially being assigned tothe reserves after the preseason was over;[3] however, he managed to convince first-team coachManolo Jiménez and, in August, was definitely promoted.[4]
José Mari made his professional – and top flight – debut on 20 August 2012, playing the second half in a 1–0 home loss againstReal Valladolid.[5] He finishedthe campaign with 27 matches in all competitions, scoring once in theCopa del Rey,[6] but theAragonese were eventually relegated.
On 6 February 2014, it was announced that José Mari and Zaragoza had agreed to mutually terminate his contract.[7] He netted his first league goal for the club in his last appearance, a 2–1 home victory overCórdoba CF on 8 December of the previous year.[8]
On 11 February 2014, José Mari joined theColorado Rapids ofMajor League Soccer, for a preseason trial.[9] The team announced early in the following month that he had been signed to the active roster, and would be eligible to play pending receipt of his U.S. P-1 work visa and an international transfer certificate.[10] He made his debut for the club as the season opened on 15 March, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–1 away draw against theNew York Red Bulls.[11] A week later, in his first match atDick's Sporting Goods Park, he wassent off for a second yellow card in the last minute of a 2–0 defeat of thePortland Timbers.[12]
José Mari scored his first goals for the Rapids on 5 April 2014, as they came from behind to beat theVancouver Whitecaps FC 2–1 away.[13] He netted a further two times in hisonly MLS season, in which he was affected by injuries and his team did not qualify forthe playoffs.[14]
José Mari returned to Spain on 17 January 2015, after agreeing to a one-and-a-half-year deal with top-tierLevante UD.[15] He made his debut on 7 February, coming on as asubstitute forDavid Barral for the last two minutes of a 4–1 home win overReal Sociedad after the latter had scored ahat-trick.[16]
José Mari left theGranotes in May 2016 as his contract was due to expire, and the side alsosuffered relegation.[17][18]
On 16 August 2016, José Mari signed a two-year deal withCádiz CF.[19] In October 2019, aged 31, he agreed to an extension until 2020.[20]
José Mari appeared in his 100th competitive match on 6 March 2020, againstCD Lugo.[21] He played a further 28 games duringthe season (one goal),[22] as the team returned to the top division after a 14-year absence.[23]
José Mari scored his only goal in the top tier on 16 May 2021, opening a 3–1 home loss toElche CF.[24] On 2 November, he renewed his contract until 2024.[25]
On 19 November 2024, having struggled severely with a knee injury, José Mari announced his retirement at the age of 36.[26]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Roteña [es] | 2006–07 | Primera Andaluza | 21 | 3 | — | — | 21 | 3 | ||
| Sanluqueño | 2007–08 | Tercera División | 22 | 0 | — | — | 22 | 0 | ||
| 2008–09 | Tercera División | 34 | 4 | — | — | 34 | 4 | |||
| Total | 56 | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | 56 | 4 | |||
| Murcia B | 2009–10 | Segunda División B | 28 | 0 | — | — | 28 | 0 | ||
| Real Jaén | 2010–11 | Segunda División B | 34 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 35 | 0 | |
| 2011–12 | Segunda División B | 33 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 35 | 2 | |
| Total | 67 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 70 | 2 | ||
| Zaragoza | 2012–13 | La Liga | 24 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | 27 | 1 | |
| 2013–14 | Segunda División | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 14 | 0 | ||
| Total | 38 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | 41 | 1 | |||
| Colorado Rapids | 2014 | Major League Soccer | 20 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | 23 | 4 | |
| Levante | 2014–15 | La Liga | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 14 | 0 | |
| 2015–16 | La Liga | 12 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 14 | 0 | ||
| Total | 26 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 28 | 0 | |||
| Cádiz | 2016–17 | Segunda División | 30 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 33 | 0 |
| 2017–18 | Segunda División | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 11 | 0 | ||
| 2018–19 | Segunda División | 34 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 35 | 1 | ||
| 2019–20 | Segunda División | 29 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 29 | 1 | ||
| 2020–21 | La Liga | 22 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 23 | 1 | ||
| 2021–22 | La Liga | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 11 | 0 | ||
| 2022–23 | La Liga | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 19 | 0 | ||
| 2023–24 | La Liga | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | ||
| Total | 157 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 166 | 3 | ||
| Career total | 413 | 16 | 16 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 433 | 17 | ||