Mikel Alonso
Encyclopedia
Mikel Alonso Olano is a Spanish
footballer who plays for Charlton Athletic
in England
, as a midfielder
. He is the brother of Spanish
international midfielder
Xabi Alonso
, who plays for Real Madrid
and used to play for Liverpool FC.
's youth ranks, as younger brother Xabi, Alonso was born in Tolosa
, Basque Country
, and made his debut in La Liga
on 22 April 2001, against Real Valladolid
. However, the presence of his sibling and Mikel Aranburu
in central midfield meant that he was restricted to a supporting role, and he was then sent on loan to second division
's CD Numancia
for the 2003–04 season but, while he was dedicated to the Soria
team's bid for promotion, he remained keen to establish himself at Real Sociedad, returning at the end of the season. Under the management of José Mari Bakero
, the player's importance to the team was demonstrated in 2005–06, when he was the club's most used footballer, playing in 37 matches.
After brother Xabi had already settled in England
with Liverpool
(having arrived during the summer of 2004), Alonso also decided to move to the Premier League. He joined Bolton Wanderers
, another team in north-west England
, on a loan deal on 10 July 2007 with the option of a permanent deal at the end of the season. However, a change of club management meant Alonso fell out of favour and, under new coach Gary Megson
, he only made two first team appearances. At the end of the season Bolton opted not to make the loan deal a permanent one.
Alonso went back to Spain for 2008–09 but, upon his return to San Sebastián
, discovered he was not a part of coach Juan Manuel Lillo
's plans and was sent on trial to Olympiacos FC. The trial was unsuccessful, however, and Real Sociedad exercised their right to buy the remainder of his contract, releasing him as a free agent.
boss Roberto Martínez
offered the fellow Spaniard a chance to regain fitness. After his brother highly recommended both coach Martínez and the move to Swansea, Alonso accepted the offer and joined the squad in training.
However, Alonso would not remain in Wales
and, in late January 2009, moved to second division outfit CD Tenerife
, after being contacted regarding a season-long contract. He accepted the offer and stated that he had "heard good things" about Tenerife. However, he remained a fan of his former club Real Sociedad, stating that, although the team were rivals to Tenerife, he hoped they gained promotion. He contributed with 11 matches as the Canary Islands
side returned to the top level after a seven-year absence.
In the 2009–10 season, Alonso began as a starter, scoring with a rare header in the second matchday, a 1–0 home win against Athletic Bilbao
. However, he appeared less regularly in the final stretch, as Tenerife were eventually relegated back.
team Charlton Athletic
. He made his official debut on 5 October in the Football League Trophy
tie at The Valley against Brentford
, committing a penalty
in an eventual 0–3 home loss.
, Alonso grew up surrounded by football: he and his younger brother, Xabi
- who also appeared for Real Sociedad before representing with individual and team success Liverpool
and Real Madrid
- would go training with their father when he was playing for CE Sabadell FC; all three were midfielders.
Influenced by his father, Alonso followed his example and became a professional footballer at the Basque
side.
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 plays for Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic F.C.
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, in the London Borough of Greenwich. They compete in Football League One, the third tier of English football. The club was founded on 9 June 1905, when a number of youth clubs in the southeast London area,...
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, as a midfielder
Midfielder
A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...
. He is the brother of Spanish
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...
international midfielder
Midfielder
A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...
Xabi Alonso
Xabi Alonso
Xabier "Xabi" Alonso Olano is a Spanish World Cup-winning footballer who plays for Real Madrid as a midfielder.Alonso began his career at Real Sociedad, the main team of his home region Gipuzkoa. After a brief loan period at Eibar he returned to Sociedad where then manager John Toshack appointed...
, who plays for Real Madrid
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...
and used to play for Liverpool FC.
Real Sociedad
A product of Real SociedadReal Sociedad
Real Sociedad de Fútbol, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in the city of San Sebastián, Basque Country, founded on 7 September 1909...
's youth ranks, as younger brother Xabi, Alonso was born in Tolosa
Tolosa, Spain
Tolosa is a town and municipality to the south of Donostia-San Sebastián in the Basque province of Gipuzkoa, Spain. It is located in a valley of the river Oria and overlooked by Uzturre, a white cross-topped mountain.-Famous people from Tolosa:...
, Basque Country
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....
, and made his debut 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...
on 22 April 2001, against Real Valladolid
Real Valladolid
Real Valladolid Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Valladolid, in the autonomous community of Castile and León, from where the nickname Pucela is derived....
. However, the presence of his sibling and Mikel Aranburu
Mikel Aranburu
Mikel Aranburu Eizagirre is a Spanish footballer who plays for Real Sociedad as a midfielder....
in central midfield meant that he was restricted to a supporting role, and he was then sent on loan to 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:...
's CD Numancia
CD Numancia
Club Deportivo Numancia de Soria, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Soria, in the autonomous community of Castile and León. Founded on 9 April 1945, it plays in Segunda División, holding home games at Nuevo Estadio Los Pajaritos, with a 10,200-seat capacity.Besides football it has other...
for the 2003–04 season but, while he was dedicated to the Soria
Soria
Soria is a city in north-central Spain, the capital of the province of Soria in the autonomous community of Castile and León. , the municipality has a population of c. 39,500 inhabitants, nearly 40% of the population of the province...
team's bid for promotion, he remained keen to establish himself at Real Sociedad, returning at the end of the season. Under the management of José Mari Bakero
José Mari Bakero
José María Bakero Escudero is a retired Spanish footballer, and the current coach of Lech Poznań in Poland.Having played mainly for Real Sociedad and FC Barcelona, he began his career as a forward but was converted into an attacking midfielder, who possessed passing and netting ability José María...
, the player's importance to the team was demonstrated in 2005–06, when he was the club's most used footballer, playing in 37 matches.
After brother Xabi had already settled in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
with Liverpool
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
(having arrived during the summer of 2004), Alonso also decided to move to the Premier League. He joined Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers F.C.
Bolton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the area of Horwich in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester. They began their current spell in the Premier League in 2001....
, another team in north-west England
North West England
North West England, informally known as The North West, is one of the nine official regions of England.North West England had a 2006 estimated population of 6,853,201 the third most populated region after London and the South East...
, on a loan deal on 10 July 2007 with the option of a permanent deal at the end of the season. However, a change of club management meant Alonso fell out of favour and, under new coach Gary Megson
Gary Megson
Gary John Megson is an English former football player and is currently manager of Sheffield Wednesday.He has previously managed Norwich City, Blackpool, Stockport County, Stoke City, West Bromwich Albion, Nottingham Forest, Leicester City and Bolton Wanderers...
, he only made two first team appearances. At the end of the season Bolton opted not to make the loan deal a permanent one.
Alonso went back to Spain for 2008–09 but, upon his return to San Sebastián
San Sebastián
Donostia-San Sebastián is a city and municipality located in the north of Spain, in the coast of the Bay of Biscay and 20 km away from the French border. The city is the capital of Gipuzkoa, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country. The municipality’s population is 186,122 , and its...
, discovered he was not a part of coach Juan Manuel Lillo
Juan Manuel Lillo
Juan Manuel 'Juanma' Lillo Díez is a Spanish football manager.Having entered the coaching business before his 20s, Lillo became the youngest manager ever to coach a La Liga side, having taken over UD Salamanca at not yet 30.-Manager career:Lillo began coaching local team Amaroz KE at just 16 and,...
's plans and was sent on trial to Olympiacos FC. The trial was unsuccessful, however, and Real Sociedad exercised their right to buy the remainder of his contract, releasing him as a free agent.
Tenerife
Following his release from Real Sociedad, Swansea CitySwansea City A.F.C.
Swansea City Association Football Club are a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. One of the most successful clubs in Welsh football, it has won 10 Welsh Cups and led the English Football League First Division in December 1981, before finishing the season in 6th position...
boss Roberto Martínez
Roberto Martínez
Roberto Martínez Montoliú is a Spanish former professional footballer and is currently manager of Wigan Athletic.Martínez played as a midfielder and began his career at lower league Spanish side CF Balaguer. Two years later he went to English Division Three side Wigan Athletic...
offered the fellow Spaniard a chance to regain fitness. After his brother highly recommended both coach Martínez and the move to Swansea, Alonso accepted the offer and joined the squad in training.
However, Alonso would not remain in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and, in late January 2009, moved to second division outfit CD Tenerife
CD Tenerife
Club Deportivo Tenerife, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, in Tenerife . Founded in 1922, it currently plays in Segunda División B, holding home matches at Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez López, with a 24,000-seat capacity.-History:Club Deportivo Tenerife was founded in...
, after being contacted regarding a season-long contract. He accepted the offer and stated that he had "heard good things" about Tenerife. However, he remained a fan of his former club Real Sociedad, stating that, although the team were rivals to Tenerife, he hoped they gained promotion. He contributed with 11 matches as the Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
side returned to the top level after a seven-year absence.
In the 2009–10 season, Alonso began as a starter, scoring with a rare header in the second matchday, a 1–0 home win against Athletic Bilbao
Athletic Bilbao
Athletic Club, also known as Athletic Bilbao, is an association football club from Bilbao in Biscay, Spain. The club has played in the Primera División of La Liga since its start in 1928. They have won La Liga on eight occasions...
. However, he appeared less regularly in the final stretch, as Tenerife were eventually relegated back.
Charlton
In late June 2011, following another Tenerife relegation, 31-year old Alonso returned to England, joining Football League OneFootball League One
Football League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
team Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic F.C.
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, in the London Borough of Greenwich. They compete in Football League One, the third tier of English football. The club was founded on 9 June 1905, when a number of youth clubs in the southeast London area,...
. He made his official debut on 5 October in the Football League Trophy
Football League Trophy
The Football League Trophy, currently known as the Johnstone's Paint Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English association football knock-out competition open to the 48 clubs in Football League One and Football League Two, the bottom two divisions in the four fully professional top...
tie at The Valley against Brentford
Brentford F.C.
Brentford Football Club are a professional English football club based in Brentford in the London Borough of Hounslow. They are currently playing in Football League One....
, committing a penalty
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...
in an eventual 0–3 home loss.
Personal
The first son of Periko Alonso, who played with Real Sociedad and FC BarcelonaFC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona , also known as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça, is a professional football club, based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain....
, Alonso grew up surrounded by football: he and his younger brother, Xabi
Xabi Alonso
Xabier "Xabi" Alonso Olano is a Spanish World Cup-winning footballer who plays for Real Madrid as a midfielder.Alonso began his career at Real Sociedad, the main team of his home region Gipuzkoa. After a brief loan period at Eibar he returned to Sociedad where then manager John Toshack appointed...
- who also appeared for Real Sociedad before representing with individual and team success Liverpool
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
and Real Madrid
Real Madrid C.F.
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...
- would go training with their father when he was playing for CE Sabadell FC; all three were midfielders.
Influenced by his father, Alonso followed his example and became a professional footballer at 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....
side.