Full name Ruben Gonzalez Rocha Playing position Years Team Role Footballer Weight 83 kg Current team FC Baku (#15 / Defender) | Place of birth Compostela, Spain Number 5 Name Ruben Rocha Height 1.87 m Career start 2001 | |
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Date of birth (1982-01-29) 29 January 1982 (age 33) | ||
Ruben Gonzalez Rocha (born 29 January 1982), known simply as Ruben, is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Real Zaragoza as a central defender.
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He came through the youth ranks at Real Madrid, but appeared in only 11 official games in four years. He amassed La Liga totals of 118 games and five goals over the course of ten seasons, also representing in the competition Albacete, Racing de Santander, Mallorca and Osasuna.
Club career
Ruben was born in Santiago de Compostela, Galicia. A youth product of La Liga powerhouse Real Madrid, who signed him from local SD Compostela, he would only amass four first-team league appearances in three seasons, his debut coming on 10 May 2002 in a 0–3 away loss against Deportivo de La Coruna. On 9 November 2003 he was taken out after just 25 minutes and an own goal, in an eventual 1–4 defeat at Sevilla FC; he finished the 2003–04 campaign on loan, to German club Borussia Monchengladbach.
After a loan period with Albacete Balompie in 2004–05, with the Castile-La Mancha side finishing dead last in the top flight, Ruben returned to Real Madrid, spending the next season with the B-team in Segunda Division. In the 2006–07 campaign he finally developed as a top level player, with Racing de Santander, helping the Cantabrians finish tenth while scoring his first goals in the category in consecutive 2–1 wins, at RCD Mallorca and with Villarreal CF; however, he returned the following year to division two, joining Celta de Vigo.
In late August 2009 Ruben signed with Mallorca, arriving for free in a 2+1 deal. In his first season he played mostly as a backup, to starters Jose Nunes and Ivan Ramis, but still managed to net twice, which resulted in four points away from home (2–1 win against Real Valladolid, 1–1 draw against Real Zaragoza); he added his third on 19 April 2010 – all came through headers from corner kicks – in a 2–0 home triumph against CA Osasuna, as the Balearic Islands club finished fifth and qualified for the UEFA Europa League.
After one season with Baku FC in the Azerbaijan Premier League, Ruben signed a two-year contract with Zaragoza on 12 August 2014, arriving from the same team as countryman Mario.