Pablo Barrera
Encyclopedia
Pablo Edson Barrera Acosta (born June 21, 1987 in Tlalnepantla
, Mexico ) is a Mexican
footballer who plays as a winger or outside forward
for La Liga
side Real Zaragoza
, on loan from West Ham United
. He spent the early part of his career playing for Club Universidad Nacional
in Mexico
, and has also represented the Mexico national team
.
for Mexico City
Universidad Nacional
, also known as Pumas. He joined Pumas youth system at the age of 11 and worked his way through the ranks to make his debut in the Primera División
in 2005. Barrera is a fast player and is known for his great crosses, he was involved in all the plays when Pumas beat Veracruz 8-0.
In July 2008, Barrera had surgery to repair a ruptured cruciate ligament
in his left knee that would sideline him for six months.
In early January, Barrera came back from his injury and in his very first game back he scored a goal against Necaxa
. He was a starter until manager Ricardo Ferreti put him on the bench. He scored another goal that same season against Puebla. He made it with Pumas to the final in which they faced Pachuca and scored the winning goal that gave Pumas the win in the second half of overtime. Barrera enjoyed his finest season in the Torneo Bicentenario 2010 scoring six goals in 13 games though his season was cut short as he was called up for Mexico national football team
pre-World Cup training camp.
, coming on as a second-half substitute for Luis Boa Morte.
After making only six Premier League starts, scoring no goals and having zero assists, and not being able to help keep West Ham out of relegation, Barrera's first season in England was considered a "flop". It was reported during the summer 2011 transfer window that La Liga
club Real Zaragoza
wanted to sign Barrera, which would have re-united him with ex-Mexico national team coach Javier Aguirre
.
club Real Zaragoza
on a season-long loan.
in Canada
, where he scored two goals.
, making his debut in a friendly against Guatemala on 17 October 2007.
He scored his first international goal against Nicaragua
on 5 July 2009 at the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup
. He scored his second goal with "El Tri" in a game against Haiti national football team
at the Gold Cup.
for Mexico. Barrera made his debut in the second match against France
, coming in in the 31st minute for an injured Carlos Vela
. Barrera caused the second goal for Mexico when French defender Éric Abidal
knocked him down in the penalty area and was given a penalty which Cuauhtémoc Blanco
scored and Mexico ended up winning the match 2–0.
. He scored the fourth goal in the 4–1 win against Costa Rica
.
On 25 June Barerra scored a brace against the United States
in the final
where Mexico won 4–2.
|-
|-
|2005–06||rowspan="5"|UNAM
||rowspan="5"|Primera División
||1||0||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||1||0
|-
|2006–07||5||0||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||5||0
|-
|2007
–08
||31||4||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||31||4
|-
|2008–09
||20||3||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||2||0|||22||3
|-
|2009–10
||28||11||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||3||3|||31||14
|-
|-
|2010–11
||rowspan="2"|West Ham United|||Premier League||14||0|||3||0||4||0||colspan="2"|–||21||0
|-
|2011–12
|||Championship
||1||0|||0||0||1||0||colspan="2"|–||2||0
|-
|2011–12
||Zaragoza
||La Liga
||12||1||0||0||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||12||1
85||18||–||–||||||5||3|||90||21
|15||0||3||0||5||0|| || ||23||0
|12||1||0||0||–||–||0||0||12||1
112||19||3||0|| |5||0||5||3||125||22
|-
| 1. || 5 July 2009 || Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland
, United States
|| || align=center|2–0 || align=center|2–0 || 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup
|-
| 2. || 19 July 2009 || Cowboys Stadium, Arlington
, United States || || align=center|4–0 || align=center|4–0 || 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup
|-
| 3.|| 24 February 2010 || Candlestick Park, San Francisco
, United States || || align=center|1–0 || align=center|5–0 || Friendly
|-
| 4.|| 12 June 2011 || Soldier Field
, Chicago
, United States || || align=center|4–0 || align=center|4–1 || 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup
|-
| 5.|| rowspan="2"|25 June 2011 || rowspan="2"|Rose Bowl
, Pasadena
, United States || rowspan="2"| || align=center|1–2 || rowspan="2" align=center|4–2 || rowspan="2"|2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup
|-
| 6. || align=center|3–2
|-
|}
Tlalnepantla de Baz
Tlalnepantla de Baz is a city and a municipality of the State of Mexico in the north of Mexico City . Tlalnepantla comes from the Náhuatl words tlalli and nepantla to mean the middle land...
, Mexico ) is a Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
footballer who plays as a winger or outside forward
Outside forward
Outside forward is a position in association football which refers to a footballer who plays as an advanced forward on the right or left wing - as an outside right or outside left. Typically as part of a 2-3-5 formation or one of its variants...
for 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...
side Real Zaragoza
Real Zaragoza
Real Zaragoza, S.A.D. is a Spanish association football team from Zaragoza in Spain. Founded on 18 March 1932, Real Zaragoza have spent the majority of their 78 year history in the Spanish top-flight. Real Zaragoza are Spain's 9th highest ranked team in overall league points...
, on loan from West Ham United
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
. He spent the early part of his career playing for Club Universidad Nacional
Club Universidad Nacional
Club Universidad Nacional A.C., more commonly known as Pumas de la UNAM, or just Pumas, is a Mexican professional football club based in Mexico City...
in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, and has also represented the Mexico national team
Mexico national football team
The Mexican national football team represents Mexico in association football and is governed by the Mexican Football Federation , the governing body for football in Mexico. Mexico's home stadium is the Estadio Azteca and their head coach is José Manuel de la Torre...
.
Club Universidad Nacional
He began his career as a MidfielderMidfielder
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...
for Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
Universidad Nacional
Club Universidad Nacional
Club Universidad Nacional A.C., more commonly known as Pumas de la UNAM, or just Pumas, is a Mexican professional football club based in Mexico City...
, also known as Pumas. He joined Pumas youth system at the age of 11 and worked his way through the ranks to make his debut in the Primera División
Primera División de México
The Primera División Profesional , known simply as the Primera División, is the top level of the Mexican football league system and is administered by the Mexican Football Federation. It was established in 1943 and as of 2011 has 18 clubs. Up to June 2011, it was divided into three groups competing...
in 2005. Barrera is a fast player and is known for his great crosses, he was involved in all the plays when Pumas beat Veracruz 8-0.
In July 2008, Barrera had surgery to repair a ruptured cruciate ligament
Anterior cruciate ligament injury
An injury to the anterior cruciate ligament can be a debilitating musculoskeletal injury to the knee, seen most often in athletes. Non-contact tears and ruptures are the most common causes of ACL injury....
in his left knee that would sideline him for six months.
In early January, Barrera came back from his injury and in his very first game back he scored a goal against Necaxa
Necaxa
Necaxa is a Mexican football club and is based in the city of Aguascalientes. it plays in the Estadio Victoria. Necaxa is ranked seventh overall and 1st in ranking in Mexican football within the IFFHS Central and North America's Clubs of the Century in the CONCACAF behind CD Saprissa San Juan de...
. He was a starter until manager Ricardo Ferreti put him on the bench. He scored another goal that same season against Puebla. He made it with Pumas to the final in which they faced Pachuca and scored the winning goal that gave Pumas the win in the second half of overtime. Barrera enjoyed his finest season in the Torneo Bicentenario 2010 scoring six goals in 13 games though his season was cut short as he was called up for Mexico national football team
Mexico national football team
The Mexican national football team represents Mexico in association football and is governed by the Mexican Football Federation , the governing body for football in Mexico. Mexico's home stadium is the Estadio Azteca and their head coach is José Manuel de la Torre...
pre-World Cup training camp.
West Ham United
On 16 July 2010 Barrera signed for West Ham United on a four-year contract, with a one-year option, for fee of £4m. He became West Ham's second summer signing of 2010. He made his Premier League debut, on 14 August, in a 3-0 loss to Aston VillaAston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
, coming on as a second-half substitute for Luis Boa Morte.
After making only six Premier League starts, scoring no goals and having zero assists, and not being able to help keep West Ham out of relegation, Barrera's first season in England was considered a "flop". It was reported during the summer 2011 transfer window that 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...
club Real Zaragoza
Real Zaragoza
Real Zaragoza, S.A.D. is a Spanish association football team from Zaragoza in Spain. Founded on 18 March 1932, Real Zaragoza have spent the majority of their 78 year history in the Spanish top-flight. Real Zaragoza are Spain's 9th highest ranked team in overall league points...
wanted to sign Barrera, which would have re-united him with ex-Mexico national team coach Javier Aguirre
Javier Aguirre
Javier Aguirre Onaindía , popularly nicknamed El Vasco , is a Mexican football manager and former midfielder. He was also a member of the Mexico national team and later became manager in two different occasions, but resigned after the 2010 FIFA World Cup...
.
Real Zaragoza (loan)
On 25 August 2011, Barrera joined SpanishSpain
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...
club Real Zaragoza
Real Zaragoza
Real Zaragoza, S.A.D. is a Spanish association football team from Zaragoza in Spain. Founded on 18 March 1932, Real Zaragoza have spent the majority of their 78 year history in the Spanish top-flight. Real Zaragoza are Spain's 9th highest ranked team in overall league points...
on a season-long loan.
U20 National Team
Barrera participated at the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup
The 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the sixteenth edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup , hosted by Canada from June 30 to July 22, 2007. Argentina defeated Czech Republic in the title game by the score of 2–1, thus managing a back-to-back world title, its fifth in the past seven editions, and sixth...
in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, where he scored two goals.
Debut, 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup
Barrera has appeared for the Mexico national football teamMexico national football team
The Mexican national football team represents Mexico in association football and is governed by the Mexican Football Federation , the governing body for football in Mexico. Mexico's home stadium is the Estadio Azteca and their head coach is José Manuel de la Torre...
, making his debut in a friendly against Guatemala on 17 October 2007.
He scored his first international goal against Nicaragua
Nicaragua national football team
The Nicaragua national football team is the national team of Nicaragua and is controlled by the Nicaraguan Football Federation. It is among the weakest teams in Central America and achieved its first qualification to a major international competition in 2009, when they qualified for the 2009...
on 5 July 2009 at the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup
2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup
The 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the tenth edition of the Gold Cup competition, and the twentieth association football championship of North America, Central America and the Caribbean . It was contested from 3 July to 26 July 2009 in the United States. This competition was the fourth tournament...
. He scored his second goal with "El Tri" in a game against Haiti national football team
Haiti national football team
The Haiti national football team represents Haiti in association football and is controlled by the Fédération Haïtienne de Football, the governing body for football in Haiti. Haiti's home ground is Stade Sylvio Cator in Port-au-Prince and their head coach is Edson Tavares...
at the Gold Cup.
2010 FIFA World Cup
Barrera appeared in three matches at the 2010 FIFA World Cup2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010...
for Mexico. Barrera made his debut in the second match against France
France national football team
The France national football team represents the nation of France in international football. It is fielded by the French Football Federation , the governing body of football in France, and competes as a member of UEFA, which encompasses the countries of Europe...
, coming in in the 31st minute for an injured Carlos Vela
Carlos Vela
Carlos Alberto Vela Garrido is a Mexican association football player, currently playing as a striker for La Liga club Real Sociedad on loan from Arsenal. He also plays for the Mexico national football team. He started his career at Mexican club C.D...
. Barrera caused the second goal for Mexico when French defender Éric Abidal
Éric Abidal
Éric Sylvain Abidal is a French footballer who plays as a left or central defender for FC Barcelona and the France national team.-Club career:...
knocked him down in the penalty area and was given a penalty which Cuauhtémoc Blanco
Cuauhtémoc Blanco
Cuauhtémoc Blanco Bravo is a Mexican professional footballer currently signed for Irapuato in the Mexican Liga de Ascenso.Known for his aggressive yet charismatic personality on the field, playing most of his career as a deep-lying forward and his last years as an attacking midfielder...
scored and Mexico ended up winning the match 2–0.
2011 Gold Cup
He was called up to participate in the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup
The 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the 11th edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup competition and 21th CONCACAF regional championship overall in CONCACAF's fifty years of existence...
. He scored the fourth goal in the 4–1 win against Costa Rica
Costa Rica national football team
The Costa Rica national football team, nicknamed La Sele, is the national team of Costa Rica and is controlled by the Federación Costarricense de Fútbol. Costa Rica is the third most successful team in CONCACAF after Mexico and the United States...
.
On 25 June Barerra scored a brace against the United States
United States men's national soccer team
The United States men's national soccer team represents the United States in international association football competitions. It is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF...
in the final
2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup Final
The 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup Final was the 11th final of the CONCACAF Gold Cup, the international championship tournament for CONCACAF, the governing body of association football in North and Central America. The match took place on 25 June 2011 and took place at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena,...
where Mexico won 4–2.
Career statistics
As of 7 November 2011|-
|-
|2005–06||rowspan="5"|UNAM
Club Universidad Nacional
Club Universidad Nacional A.C., more commonly known as Pumas de la UNAM, or just Pumas, is a Mexican professional football club based in Mexico City...
||rowspan="5"|Primera División
Primera División de México
The Primera División Profesional , known simply as the Primera División, is the top level of the Mexican football league system and is administered by the Mexican Football Federation. It was established in 1943 and as of 2011 has 18 clubs. Up to June 2011, it was divided into three groups competing...
||1||0||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||1||0
|-
|2006–07||5||0||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||5||0
|-
|2007
Primera División de México Apertura 2007
Primera División de México Apertura 2007 is a Mexican football tournament - one of two shorter tournaments that together make up the Mexican football season - to determine the champion of Mexican football. It began on Friday, August 3, 2007. On June 10, 2007, FMF General Secretary Decio de Maria...
–08
Primera División de México Clausura 2008
Primera División de México Clausura 2008 was a Mexican football tournament - the second of two tournaments held in the 2007/2008 season. It began January 18, 2008 and ran until June 1, 2008. Veracruz and Morelia inaugurated the season, with Morelia winning 1-0...
||31||4||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||31||4
|-
|2008–09
Primera División de México Clausura 2009
The 2009 Primera División Clausura was the second football tournament of the Mexican Primera División 2008−2009 season. The tournament began on January 16th, 2009 and ended on May 31st, 2009. Necaxa was relegated to the Primera División A after being in last place of the relegation table. On May...
||20||3||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||2||0|||22||3
|-
|2009–10
2009–10 Primera División de México season
The 2009–10 Primera División de México season is the 63rd professional season of Mexico's top-flight football league, and 13th season in which the Apertura and Clausura system is used...
||28||11||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||3||3|||31||14
|-
|-
|2010–11
2010–11 Premier League
The 2010–11 Premier League was the 19th season of the Premier League since its establishment in 1992. The 2010–11 fixtures were released on 17 June 2010 at 09:00 BST. The season began on 14 August 2010, and ended on 22 May 2011...
||rowspan="2"|West Ham United|||Premier League||14||0|||3||0||4||0||colspan="2"|–||21||0
|-
|2011–12
2011–12 Football League Championship
The 2011–12 Football League Championship is the eighth season of the league under its current title and nineteenth season under its current league division format....
|||Championship
Football League Championship
The Football League Championship is the highest division of The Football League and second-highest division overall in the English football league system after the Premier League...
||1||0|||0||0||1||0||colspan="2"|–||2||0
|-
|2011–12
2011–12 La Liga
The 2011–12 La Liga season is the 81st since its establishment. Barcelona are the defending champions, having won their 21st La Liga title in the previous season for the third time in a row. The campaign began on 27 August 2011, and will end on 13 May 2012...
||Zaragoza
Real Zaragoza
Real Zaragoza, S.A.D. is a Spanish association football team from Zaragoza in Spain. Founded on 18 March 1932, Real Zaragoza have spent the majority of their 78 year history in the Spanish top-flight. Real Zaragoza are Spain's 9th highest ranked team in overall league points...
||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...
||12||1||0||0||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||12||1
85||18||–||–||||||5||3|||90||21
|15||0||3||0||5||0|| || ||23||0
|12||1||0||0||–||–||0||0||12||1
112||19||3||0|| |5||0||5||3||125||22
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mexico Mexico national football team The Mexican national football team represents Mexico in association football and is governed by the Mexican Football Federation , the governing body for football in Mexico. Mexico's home stadium is the Estadio Azteca and their head coach is José Manuel de la Torre... |
2007 | 1 | 0 |
| 2008 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2009 | 9 | 2 | |
| 2010 | 17 | 1 | |
| 2011 | 15 | 3 | |
| Total | 43 | 6 | |
International goals
- Scores and results list Mexico's goal tally first.
|-
| 1. || 5 July 2009 || Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
|| || align=center|2–0 || align=center|2–0 || 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup
2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup
The 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the tenth edition of the Gold Cup competition, and the twentieth association football championship of North America, Central America and the Caribbean . It was contested from 3 July to 26 July 2009 in the United States. This competition was the fourth tournament...
|-
| 2. || 19 July 2009 || Cowboys Stadium, Arlington
Arlington, Texas
Arlington is a city in Tarrant County, Texas within the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. According to the 2010 census results, the city had a population of 365,438, making it the third largest municipality in the Metroplex...
, United States || || align=center|4–0 || align=center|4–0 || 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup
|-
| 3.|| 24 February 2010 || Candlestick Park, San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, United States || || align=center|1–0 || align=center|5–0 || Friendly
|-
| 4.|| 12 June 2011 || Soldier Field
Soldier Field
Soldier Field is located on Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, Illinois, United States, in the Near South Side. It is home to the NFL's Chicago Bears...
, Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, United States || || align=center|4–0 || align=center|4–1 || 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup
2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup
The 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the 11th edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup competition and 21th CONCACAF regional championship overall in CONCACAF's fifty years of existence...
|-
| 5.|| rowspan="2"|25 June 2011 || rowspan="2"|Rose Bowl
Rose Bowl (stadium)
The Rose Bowl is an outdoor athletic stadium in Pasadena, California, U.S., in Los Angeles County. The stadium is the site of the annual college football bowl game, the Rose Bowl, held on New Year's Day. In 1982, it became the home field of the UCLA Bruins college football team of the Pac-12...
, Pasadena
Pasadena, California
Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...
, United States || rowspan="2"| || align=center|1–2 || rowspan="2" align=center|4–2 || rowspan="2"|2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup
|-
| 6. || align=center|3–2
|-
|}
Club
UNAM- Primera Division (1): Clausura 2009Primera División de México Clausura 2009The 2009 Primera División Clausura was the second football tournament of the Mexican Primera División 2008−2009 season. The tournament began on January 16th, 2009 and ended on May 31st, 2009. Necaxa was relegated to the Primera División A after being in last place of the relegation table. On May...
International
Mexico- CONCACAF Gold CupCONCACAF Gold CupThe CONCACAF Gold Cup is the main association football competition of the men's national football teams governed by CONCACAF, determining the regional champion of North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.The Gold Cup is held every two years and when it does not fall the same year as an...
(2): 20092009 CONCACAF Gold CupThe 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the tenth edition of the Gold Cup competition, and the twentieth association football championship of North America, Central America and the Caribbean . It was contested from 3 July to 26 July 2009 in the United States. This competition was the fourth tournament...
, 20112011 CONCACAF Gold CupThe 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the 11th edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup competition and 21th CONCACAF regional championship overall in CONCACAF's fifty years of existence...