Full name Joan Verdu Fernandez 1988–1993 Poble Sec Weight 71 kg Number 21 Height 1.78 m | Playing position Role Footballer Place of birth Barcelona, Spain Name Joan Verdu Career start 2002 | |
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Date of birth (1983-05-05) 5 May 1983 (age 32) Current team ACF Fiorentina (#21 / Midfielder) | ||
Lo mejor de Joan Verdú | Temporada 12/13
Joan Verdú Fernández (born 5 May 1983) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Chinese club Qingdao Huanghai FC.
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A versatile midfielder, adept as both central or attacking midfielder, he started professionally at Barcelona, but played mainly for local rivals Espanyol during his career, amassing La Liga totals of 262 games and 35 goals over the course of nine seasons and also representing in the competition Deportivo, Betis and Levante.
Club career
Born in Barcelona, Catalonia, Verdú was a product of FC Barcelona's youth system. He played mainly for its B-side as a senior, making his debut with the main squad on 27 October 2004 in a 0–1 away loss against UDA Gramenet for the season's Copa del Rey; his second and last appearance took place on 7 December, in a 0–2 defeat at FC Shakhtar Donetsk for the UEFA Champions League.
For 2006–07, Verdú moved to Deportivo de La Coruña, being relatively used by the Galicians throughout the campaign and scoring in a 2–0 away win over Villarreal CF on 11 February 2007. He produced similar numbers in his second year in La Liga.
Profiting from Juan Carlos Valerón's age and recurrent physical problems, Verdú had a breakthrough year in 2008–09, often assuming the playmaking duties of the former while also adding seven league goals. However, after a new deal could not be agreed, the free agent moved back to his native region after three years, signing a four-year contract with RCD Espanyol.
On 19 September 2009, Verdú netted against his previous team in a 3–2 away triumph, and started most of his first year, also benefitting from age and injury-related problems of another teammate, Iván de la Peña. Without any real competitor in the following season – de la Peña only saw 30 minutes of action– he improved his numbers to 37 games and five goals, as the Pericos finished comfortably in midtable.
In the 2013 summer, free agent Verdú signed a four-year deal with another club in the category, Real Betis. After suffering relegation, he went on to represent in quick succession Baniyas Club (United Arab Emirates), ACF Fiorentina (Italy) and Levante UD.