Place of birth Barbate, Spain Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) Name Francisco Malia | Current team Racing Santander | |
Full name Francisco Jesus Perez Malia Date of birth (1981-12-17) 17 December 1981 (age 34) Playing position | ||
Francisco Jesús Pérez Malia (born 17 December 1981), commonly known as Francis, is a former Spanish footballer who played mainly as a right back.
During his 17-year professional career he played mainly with Xerez and Racing de Santander, appearing in 222 competitive games with the former. He amassed Segunda División totals of 219 games and one goal over the course of nine seasons, and competed in La Liga with both clubs.
Football career
Born in Barbate, Cádiz, Francis made his senior debuts with local Xerez CD. After two consecutive loans with third division clubs, including Getafe CF, he returned to his alma mater and made his professional debuts in 2003–04's second level, scoring once in 26 games. He went on to become an important first-team member, with the Andalusians achieving a first-ever La Liga promotion in the 2008–09 season.
Francis spent most of the short-lived top flight campaign as a right back. On 8 May 2010, as Xerez still harboured chances of staying up, he netted his only goal of the season, in a 3–2 home win against Real Zaragoza; late into that month, his contract expired and he signed with Racing de Santander for four years.