Rubén Duarte

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Wikipedia

Rubén Duarte
Duarte with UNAM in 2025
Personal information
Full name Rubén Duarte Sánchez[1]
Date of birth (1995-10-18) 18 October 1995 (age 30)[1]
Place of birth Almería, Spain
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1]
Position Defender
Team information
Current team
 UNAM
Number 5
Youth career
Los Molinos
2008–2009 Poli Ejido
2009–2012 Espanyol
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2012–2015 Espanyol B 72 (1)
2015–2017 Espanyol 36 (0)
2017–2024 Alavés 218 (3)
2024– UNAM 45 (2)
International career
2011 Spain U16 4 (1)
2012 Spain U17 2 (1)
2013 Spain U18 2 (0)
2013–2014 Spain U19 10 (0)
2015–2016 Spain U21 9 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 21:41, 27 October 2025 (UTC)

Rubén Duarte Sánchez (born 18 October 1995) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Liga MX club UNAM. Mainly a left-back, he can also play as a central defender.

He made his La Liga debut with Espanyol, and spent most of his career with Alavés, totalling 231 appearances in seven seasons.[2]

Club career

Espanyol

Born in Almería, Andalusia, Duarte joined RCD Espanyol's youth system in 2009, aged 13,[3] after spells at Los Molinos CF and Polideportivo Ejido. In 2012, he was linked to Manchester City,[4] and made his senior debut with the reserves in the Segunda División B.

On 7 January 2015, Duarte made his first-team debut, playing the full 90 minutes in a 2–1 away loss against Valencia CF in that season's Copa del Rey.[5] His maiden La Liga appearance occurred on 8 February, against the same opponent and with the same scoreline, but at the Estadi Cornellà-El Prat.[6]

Duarte renewed his contract with the Catalan club on 11 June 2015, signing until 2019 and being promoted to the main squad.[7]

Alavés

On 29 May 2017, after falling down the pecking order, Duarte signed a three-year deal at Deportivo Alavés in the same league.[8] He played 24 matches in his first season, in a 14th-place finish.[9]

Duarte scored his first goal in the Spanish top division – and as a professional – on 16 May 2021, in a 4–2 home win over Granada CF.[10][11] In July 2023, after helping to another promotion to the main tier, he renewed his contract until 2026.[12]

On 9 July 2024, Duarte became a free agent.[13]

UNAM

Hours after leaving Alavés, Duarte moved abroad for the first time in his career, being announced at Liga MX side Club Universidad Nacional.[14]

International career

After playing for Spain at under-16, under-17, under-18, under-19 and under-21 levels, Duarte was first called to the full side on 26 May 2015 for a friendly with Costa Rica and a UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying match against Belarus.[15]

Career statistics

As of match played 26 May 2024[16][17]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Espanyol B 2012–13 Segunda División B 210——210
2013–14 321——321
2014–15 190——190
Total 7210000721
Espanyol 2014–15 La Liga 11040—150
2015–16 22030—250
2016–17 3020—50
Total 3609000450
Alavés 2017–18 La Liga 24020—260
2018–19 33000—330
2019–20 31000—310
2020–21 31100—311
2021–22 3400000340
2022–23 Segunda División 3723040442
2023–24 La Liga 2824100323
Total 218591402316
Career total 3266181403487

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Rubén Duarte". Diario AS. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
  2. ↑ "El almeriense Rubén Duarte, rumbo al Pumas de México" [Almería native Rubén Duarte, heading to Mexico's Pumas]. Diario de Almería (in Spanish). 3 July 2024. Retrieved 7 August 2024.
  3. ↑ "Rubén Duarte, infantil del Poli Ejido, ficha por el RCD Espanyol" [Rubén Duarte, infantil from Poli Ejido, signs for RCD Espanyol] (in Spanish). Join Futbol. 22 July 2009. Archived from the original on 8 January 2015. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  4. ↑ "Ruben Duarte (RCD Espanyol), en la órbita del Manchester City" [Ruben Duarte (RCD Espanyol), Manchester City's target] (in Spanish). Join Futbol. 18 July 2012. Archived from the original on 8 January 2015. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  5. ↑ Aldunate, Ramiro (7 January 2015). "El Valencia aprovecha la inercia" [Valencia take advantage of inertia]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  6. ↑ Villalobos, Fran (8 February 2015). "A Champions por la izquierda" [Taking the left lane to the Champions League]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 24 March 2015.
  7. ↑ "Duarte, renovado hasta 2019" [Duarte, renewed until 2019] (in Spanish). RCD Espanyol. 11 June 2015. Retrieved 12 June 2015.
  8. ↑ "El Alavés incorpora a Rubén Duarte, el primer fichaje de la temporada" [Alavés add Rubén Duarte, the first signing of the season] (in Spanish). Deportivo Alavés. 29 May 2017. Retrieved 30 May 2017.
  9. ↑ Fuentes, Luis (28 June 2018). "El Alavés se ahorra 100.000 euros con Duarte" [Alavés save 100.000 euros with Duarte]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  10. ↑ Lekuona, Javier (16 May 2021). "Festín del Alavés para seguir un año más en Primera" [Alavés feast to remain in Primera one more year]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  11. ↑ Aroca, Jon (17 May 2021). "Bautismo de oro en el día soñado" [Golden baptism in dreamed day]. El Correo (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  12. ↑ "Rubén Duarte amplía su vinculación con el Deportivo Alavés hasta 2026" [Rubén Duarte extends his link with Deportivo Alavés until 2026] (in Spanish). Deportivo Alavés. 8 July 2023. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
  13. ↑ "Rubén Duarte finaliza su etapa en el Deportivo Alavés" [Rubén Duarte ends his spell at Deportivo Alavés] (in Spanish). Deportivo Alavés. 9 July 2024. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  14. ↑ Regis, Juan (9 July 2024). "Rubén Duarte, anunciado oficialmente como jugador de Pumas para el Apertura 2024" [Rubén Duarte, officially announced as Pumas player for the 2024 Apertura] (in Spanish). TUDN. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  15. ↑ Juárez, María Carmen (26 May 2015). "Rubén Duarte, convocado por Del Bosque" [Rubén Duarte, called up by Del Bosque]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 May 2015.
  16. ↑ Rubén Duarte at BDFutbol
  17. ↑ Rubén Duarte at Soccerway