Club Career
Born in Elgoibar, Gipuzkoa, Etxeberria began his career with Real Sociedad. He made his La Liga debut at only 17, in a 2–0 home win against RCD Español on 29 January 1995. That summer he moved to neighbouring Basque outfit Athletic Bilbao, in a controversial transfer that cost over €3 million; at the time, it was the highest transfer fee paid for an under-18 player in Spanish football.
In 1997–98 Etxeberria scored 11 league goals as Athletic finished second, achieving a career-best 14 five seasons later, while he was also eventually awarded club captaincy. In his first 12 years he never appeared in less than 28 league games, his lowest scoring output being three in 2004–05 and 2006–07.
On 1 October 2008, already playing second-fiddle for the team, Etxeberria agreed a deal with the club according to which he effectively played 2009–10, his last season as a professional, for free, after his contract expired in June 2009.
Etxeberria's last year was not a successful one individually, as he only appeared in seven league matches (plus another seven – with two goals – in the season's UEFA Europa League). On 15 May 2010 he was replaced to a standing ovation in Athletic's 2–0 home win against Deportivo de La Coruña, and represented his main club in 514 official matches (104 goals), third-best in the team's history, only behind José Ángel Iribar and Txetxu Rojo.
Etxeberria's testimonial match at the San Mamés Stadium was played against 200 children, and he scored twice in a 5–3 win for Athletic Bilbao.
Read more about this topic: Joseba Etxeberria
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