Juan Valera (footballer)

Juan Valera Espín (born 21 December 1984) is a Spanish retired professional footballer. He operated as a right-back or right midfielder.

He amassed La Liga totals of 200 matches and eight goals over 11 seasons, representing in the competition Murcia, Atlético Madrid, Racing de Santander and Getafe.

Club career

Born in Murcia, Valera made his professional debut at hometown's Real Murcia CF, and first played in La Liga in 2003–04, appearing in ten games during the season. For 2005–06 he moved to Atlético Madrid on a three-year deal, where his progression was marred by injuries. On 25 February 2006, he scored twice as a substitute in a 5–0 home win against Málaga CF.

Valera agreed to a one-year loan at Racing de Santander on 1 September 2008. He scored his first goal for the Cantabrians on 5 October, in a 1–0 last-minute away victory over CA Osasuna. He also found the net in December, but in an insufficient 3–1 UEFA Cup group-stage defeat of Manchester City.

Recalled for 2009–10, Valera also suffered initially with physical problems. However, he would manage to feature regularly over the course of the campaign – 36 competitive appearances – mainly as a right-back, competing with internationals Luis Perea and Tomáš Ujfaluši for the position. He contributed seven matches in the Colchoneros Europa League victorious run, although only three complete, including the 2–1 away defeat against Liverpool in the semi-finals (2–2 aggregate win); he also featured one minute in the final.