Aritz Aduriz

Athletic Bilbao

Learning to play football on the sand at La Concha beach, he was brought through the ranks of local youth club Antiguoko where he shared teams with future elite players Xabi Alonso, Mikel Arteta and Andoni Iraola, but was not initially picked up by a professional club like his teammates. He became part of the famed Lezama youth system at Athletic Bilbao, although he was already 19 when he arrived from amateurs Aurrerá de Vitoria.

After two seasons in the reserves, Aduriz made his first-team debut on 14 September 2002 against Barcelona in a 0–2 home loss, but made only two more league appearances during the campaign, still turning out for the B-side where he made just short of 100 appearances in the Segunda División B. He went on to spend almost three seasons elsewhere (one with Burgos, one and a half at Real Valladolid in the Segunda División) before returning to Athletic in December 2005. Aduriz showed continuous progress, attested by his nine La Liga goals in 34 games in 2006–07, including a hat-trick against Real Zaragoza on 19 May 2007, albeit in a 3–4 defeat. He was overshadowed by the younger Fernando Llorente in the following campaign, but still managed to net seven times in 33 league appearances.

Mallorca

On 4 August 2008, Aduriz became the first player to score at the Colchester Community Stadium, in a friendly match with Colchester United. He was sold to Mallorca on the 23rd, signing a four-year contract. On 26 October 2008,…

Spain

After an impressive start to his Valencia career, 29-year-old Aduriz earned a first call-up to the Spain national team, being picked for two UEFA Euro 2012 qualifiers in October 2010. He made his debut on the 8th, replacing Llorente for the last 15 minutes of a 3–1 home win against Lithuania. Six years later, at the age of 35, Aduriz was recalled by manager Vicente del Bosque for friendlies with Italy and Romania. He started and scored in the first match, a 1–1 draw at the Stadio Friuli, and was selected for UEFA Euro 2016 in France. He made two substitute appearances in the group stage, always replacing Juventus' Álvaro Morata in the second half. On 27 June, in the round-of-16 clash against Italy at the Stade de France, he came out for Nolito at the start of the second half, but had to leave the pitch injured in an eventual 0–2 loss. On 12 November 2016, after contributing to a 4–0 victory over Macedonia in the 2018 World Cup qualifying phase in Granada, Aduriz became Spain's oldest ever goal scorer at the age of 35 years and 275 days.

Basque Country

Aduriz made his debut for the Basque representative team on 8 October 2006, opening a 2–2 draw at the Camp Nou against Catalonia. He also scored braces in victories over FIFA members Estonia, Bolivia and Peru. As of 2017, Aduriz had 12 goals in friendly matches for the Basque team, making him their record goalscorer.

Aduriz was known for his aerial ability and first touch.

Born in San Sebastián, Gipuzkoa, Aduriz came from a family keen on sport but more inclined towards the likes of surfing, mountaineering and cross-country skiing. He excelled at the latter as a child, finishing runner-up in the junior national championship.