Mikel Alonso

Real Sociedad

A product of Real Sociedad's youth ranks, as was younger brother Xabi, Alonso was born in Tolosa, Gipuzkoa, and made his debut in La Liga on 22 April 2001 against Real Valladolid (seven minutes played, 3–1 home win). 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 Segunda División's Numancia for 2003–04 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 the 2005–06 campaign, when he was their most used footballer at 37 games. After his 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 and 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, after coach Sammy Lee was dismissed he fell out of favour and, under Gary Megson, he only made two competitive appearances; subsequently, the Trotters opted to not extend his contract. Alonso went back to Spain for 2008–09 but, upon his return to the Basque Country, discovered he was not a part of coach Juan Manuel Lillo's plans and was sent on trial to Olympiacos. This proved unsuccessful,…

Alonso earned five caps for the Basque Country regional team.

The first son of Periko Alonso, who played with Real Sociedad and Barcelona, 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, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich – would go training with their father when he was playing for Sabadell; all three were midfielders. Influenced by his father, Alonso followed his example and became a professional footballer in the San Sebastián side.