(Football news) If there is a legend at Real Betis, it is Joaquin Sanchez Rodriguez. The Spaniard has been an icon for the last 23 years but now he has decided to call it quits. Joaquin made his professional debut for his boyhood club way back in 2000. He quickly became a first team regular and impressed the fans with his lightning quick pace and incredible dribbling skills.

Joaquin played a big part in Betis’ Copa Del Rey win in 2005 which was Betis’ first trophy in 28 years. In August 2006, Joaquin shocked the world by publicly stating his desire to leave Real Betis. He had agreed a deal with Valencia which initially fell through but was later completed in sort of an ugly way. Valencia paid €25 million which made Joaquin their most expensive transfer.

Joaquin had 5 moderately successfull seasons at Valencia winning the Copa Del Rey in 2008, before moving on to Malaga. He played 2 seasons at Malaga and 2 seasons at Fiorentina before rejoining Real Betis in 2015. He also bought 2% share of his boyhood club in 2017. In 2020 he became the outfield player with the most La Liga appearances with only goalkeeper Andoni Zubizarreta ahead of him.

In his 2nd spell at Betis, Joaquin became the captain and was a leader on and off the pitch. It was under his captaincy that Betis broke their drought for silverware by winning the Copa Del Rey 2021/22. Now at the age of 41 he retires as a legend of Real Betis and La Liga.

For Spain Joaquin made 51 appearances and scored goals. He played the World Cup in 2002 and 2006 along with the Euros in 2004. The winger missed the penalty that knocked Spain out of the 2002 World Cup. In 2008 he publicly called the national team set-up a mess saying that the manager Luis Aragones doesn’t know how to clean up the mess. He was subsequently dropped from the squad and never played for his country as Spain won 2 Euros and the World Cup. His international career was disappointing but at club level with his longevity he is a legend.

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