Introduction
Alejandro Balde Martínez (born 18 October 2003) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a left-back for La Liga club Barcelona and the Spain national team.
Club career
Born in Barcelona, Catalonia, to a Bissau-Guinean father and a Dominican mother, Balde joined FC Barcelona in 2011 at the age of eight after coming up through ranks at RCD Espanyol. In July 2021, he signed a contract renewal with Barcelona until 2024 with a release clause of 500 million euros.
Balde impressed during pre-season in the summer 2021, and began the new campaign as Jordi Alba's primary back-up at Camp Nou. He sat on the bench for the opening match against Real Sociedad and the next game against Athletic Bilbao.On 14 September 2021, he played his first official match for Barcelona's first team replacing Alba in the 74th minute of a 3–0 loss to Bayern Munich in the group stage of the UEFA Champions League.
From the start of 2022–23 season, Balde was given a more prominent role by coach Xavi, starting in more league matches than Jordi Alba and receiving more minutes in important matches.
International career
Balde received a surprised call up to the Spain national team two days before the start of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, as fellow left-back José Gayà had injured his ankle in training. On 23 November 2022, he made his first international appearance in a 7–0 win against Costa Rica, substituting for Jordi Alba in the 64th minute.
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 16 September 2023
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Barcelona Atlètic | 2020–21 | Segunda División B | 15 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | 16 | 0 | ||
| 2021–22 | Primera División RFEF | 14 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | |||
| Total | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 30 | 0 | ||
| Barcelona | 2021–22 | La Liga | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 2022–23 | La Liga | 33 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 44 | 1 | |
| 2023–24 | La Liga | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |
| Total | 42 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 55 | 1 | ||
| Career total | 71 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 85 | 1 | ||
International
- As of match played 12 September 2023
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spain | 2022 | 4 | 0 |
| 2023 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 6 | 0 | |
Honours
Barcelona
- La Liga: 2022–23
- Supercopa de España: 2022–23
Individual
- La Liga Team of the Season: 2022–23