Carlos Llorens
Encyclopedia
Carlos Llorens Mestre is a retired Spanish
footballer who played as a left defender.
A player of offensive penchant, he was also a penalty kick
specialist. He played for 11 different teams during his career, amassing La Liga
totals of 125 games and four goals, in representation of Rayo Vallecano
, Osasuna
and Alavés
, retiring at the age of 40.
, Valencian Community
, Llorens had to wait until the age of 26 to make his professional debuts, in the second division
, with UE Lleida
. He went on to establish himself in the category, with CD Leganés
and Rayo Vallecano
, winning a promotion with the latter, a club to which he would later be intimately connected. His first match in La Liga
arrived at almost 30 (August 22, 1999) in a derby
win at Atlético Madrid (2–0). Rayo finished the season ninth - best ever - and qualified for the UEFA Cup, via the fair play
award.
In the summer of 2000 Llorens, unwilling to leave the club, was nonetheless part of a package deal that sent him to precisely Atlético, by then in level two. In January 2001, however, he returned to the topflight, with CA Osasuna
. Subsequently, he experienced two very different seasons at Deportivo Alavés
: in his first, he netted six times in 36 matches (four in penalties
) and the Basque
qualified for Europe once again, but would be relegated in the following.
After three additional seasons in the second division with modest Polideportivo Ejido
, Llorens returned to Rayo at 37, helping it return to level two in his second year. In the next season, as the Madrid
outfit eventually finished in mid-table, he was still going strong, at nearly 40 years of age; he finished his second stint in June 2009, retiring shortly after, with professional totals of 454 games and 33 goals.
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
footballer who played as a left defender.
A player of offensive penchant, he was also a penalty kick
Penalty kick
A penalty kick is a type of direct free kick in association football, taken from twelve yards out from goal and with only the goalkeeper of the defending team between the penalty taker and the goal.Penalty kicks are performed during normal play...
specialist. He played for 11 different teams during his career, amassing La Liga
La Liga
The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...
totals of 125 games and four goals, in representation of Rayo Vallecano
Rayo Vallecano
Rayo Vallecano de Madrid, S.A.D., often abbreviated to Rayo, is a Spanish football team based in Madrid, in the neighbourhood of Vallecas...
, Osasuna
CA Osasuna
Club Atlético Osasuna, known as Osasuna, is a Spanish football team based in Iruñea-Pamplona, in the autonomous community of Navarre.Founded in 1920, it currently plays in the Spanish first division, holding home games at the 19,553-capacity Estadio Reyno de Navarra...
and Alavés
Deportivo Alavés
Deportivo Alavés, S.A.D., usually abbreviated to Alavés, is a Spanish football club based in Vitoria-Gasteiz, in the Basque Country. Founded in 1921, it plays in Segunda División B, holding home matches at the 19,500-seater Estadio Mendizorrotza....
, retiring at the age of 40.
Football career
Born in AlicanteAlicante
Alicante or Alacant is a city in Spain, the capital of the province of Alicante and of the comarca of Alacantí, in the south of the Valencian Community. It is also a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city of Alicante proper was 334,418, estimated , ranking as the second-largest...
, Valencian Community
Valencian Community
The Valencian Community is an autonomous community of Spain located in central and south-eastern Iberian Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Valencia...
, Llorens had to wait until the age of 26 to make his professional debuts, in the second division
Segunda División
The Segunda División is the lower tier of the two professional football leagues in Spain. From the season 2008-09 onwards, the name of the league is Liga Adelante.-History:...
, with UE Lleida
UE Lleida
Club Lleida Esportiu is a Spanish football team based in Lleida, Catalonia. Founded in 2011, it plays in Segunda División B, holding home games at Camp d'Esports, with a capacity of 13,500 seats.-History:...
. He went on to establish himself in the category, with CD Leganés
CD Leganés
Club Deportivo Leganés, S.A.D. is a Spanish football team from Leganés, in the Madrid outskirts. Founded on 26 June 1928, it currently plays in Segunda División B, holding home games at Estadio Municipal de Butarque, which seats 8,000 spectators....
and Rayo Vallecano
Rayo Vallecano
Rayo Vallecano de Madrid, S.A.D., often abbreviated to Rayo, is a Spanish football team based in Madrid, in the neighbourhood of Vallecas...
, winning a promotion with the latter, a club to which he would later be intimately connected. His first match in La Liga
La Liga
The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...
arrived at almost 30 (August 22, 1999) in a derby
Local derby
In many countries the term local derby, or simply just derby means a sporting fixture between two, generally local, rivals, particularly in association football...
win at Atlético Madrid (2–0). Rayo finished the season ninth - best ever - and qualified for the UEFA Cup, via the fair play
Fair Play
Fair Play or Fairplay usually refers to Sportsmanship.It may also refer to:* Fair and unfair play, in cricket* The Fair Play for Cuba Committee, an activist group in the United States early in 1960...
award.
In the summer of 2000 Llorens, unwilling to leave the club, was nonetheless part of a package deal that sent him to precisely Atlético, by then in level two. In January 2001, however, he returned to the topflight, with CA Osasuna
CA Osasuna
Club Atlético Osasuna, known as Osasuna, is a Spanish football team based in Iruñea-Pamplona, in the autonomous community of Navarre.Founded in 1920, it currently plays in the Spanish first division, holding home games at the 19,553-capacity Estadio Reyno de Navarra...
. Subsequently, he experienced two very different seasons at Deportivo Alavés
Deportivo Alavés
Deportivo Alavés, S.A.D., usually abbreviated to Alavés, is a Spanish football club based in Vitoria-Gasteiz, in the Basque Country. Founded in 1921, it plays in Segunda División B, holding home matches at the 19,500-seater Estadio Mendizorrotza....
: in his first, he netted six times in 36 matches (four in penalties
Penalty kick
A penalty kick is a type of direct free kick in association football, taken from twelve yards out from goal and with only the goalkeeper of the defending team between the penalty taker and the goal.Penalty kicks are performed during normal play...
) and the Basque
Basque Country (autonomous community)
The Basque Country is an autonomous community of northern Spain. It includes the Basque provinces of Álava, Biscay and Gipuzkoa, also called Historical Territories....
qualified for Europe once again, but would be relegated in the following.
After three additional seasons in the second division with modest Polideportivo Ejido
Polideportivo Ejido
Club Polideportivo Ejido, S.A.D. is a Spanish football team based in El Ejido, Province of Almería, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1969, it currently plays in Segunda División B – Group 4....
, Llorens returned to Rayo at 37, helping it return to level two in his second year. In the next season, as the Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
outfit eventually finished in mid-table, he was still going strong, at nearly 40 years of age; he finished his second stint in June 2009, retiring shortly after, with professional totals of 454 games and 33 goals.