Daniel Jarque
Spanish footballer (1983–2009)
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Daniel Jarque González (1 January 1983 – 8 August 2009) was a Spanish professional footballer who played as a central defender and spent his entire career with Espanyol. He was named team captain one month before his death from a heart attack at the age of 26.[2]
|
Jarque in action for Espanyol in 2009 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Daniel Jarque González[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 1 January 1983[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Barcelona, Spain | ||
| Date of death | 8 August 2009 (aged 26) | ||
| Place of death | Florence, Italy | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Centre-back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Cooperativa | |||
| 1995–2001 | Espanyol | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2001–2004 | Espanyol B | 82 | (1) |
| 2002–2009 | Espanyol | 173 | (8) |
| Total | 255 | (9) | |
| International career | |||
| 2001 | Spain U17 | 4 | (0) |
| 2001–2002 | Spain U19 | 10 | (1) |
| 2003 | Spain U20 | 3 | (0) |
| 2003–2005 | Spain U21 | 19 | (3) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Club career
Born in Barcelona, Catalonia, and a product of local Espanyol's youth system, Jarque made his La Liga debut with his hometown club on 20 October 2002, in a match against Recreativo de Huelva in 2002–03.[3] After only 15 appearances over two seasons, he went on to become a defensive mainstay for a team that won the 2006 edition of the Copa del Rey.[4] On 18 September 2005, he scored the game's only goal to help the hosts defeat Real Madrid.[5]
In 2006–07, after renewing his contract until 2009,[6] Jarque appeared in 14 UEFA Cup games as Espanyol reached the final, lost on penalties to Sevilla.[7] In the previous league campaign, he contributed four league goals as the Pericos finished 15th.[8][9][10][11]
Jarque relieved Raúl Tamudo of his captain duties at the start of 2009–10.[12][13] He totalled 212 matches for his only club, scoring ten times.[14]
Death and tributes
According to several online Spanish newspapers, Jarque was found dead during Espanyol's pre-season in the Centro Tecnico Federale di Coverciano near Florence, Italy. On 8 August 2009, he was on the phone with his girlfriend in the team hotel when he suffered a heart attack.[15] Some other news sources say that Jarque's girlfriend, who was seven months into her pregnancy,[16] reported his absence to his roommate Coro.[2][17]
On 15 August 2009, Arsenal player Cesc Fàbregas, a former teammate of Jarque in the Spain under-21 side, dedicated his second goal in his team's 6–1 Premier League win at Everton to him by raising a shirt with his name and number (#21, which he wore mainly as a professional).[18] The homage was again paid the following month – as Espanyol won the first match at their new Estadi Cornellà-El Prat – against Málaga – by 2–1 scorer Iván Alonso, as Jarque's pregnant girlfriend was also giving birth to the couple's daughter.[19]
On 11 July 2010, Jarque's close friend Andrés Iniesta celebrated his 116th-minute winner in the FIFA World Cup final by removing his jersey to reveal an undershirt with the sentence "Dani Jarque siempre con nosotros" ("Dani Jarque, always with us").[20] Two years later, after Spain won UEFA Euro 2012, Fàbregas again donned a T-shirt during the trophy celebrations to remember him.[21][22]
The Espanyol training ground and B-team stadium was also renamed in Jarque's memory.[23]
Honours
Espanyol
- Copa del Rey: 2005–06[4]
- UEFA Cup runner-up: 2006–07[7]
- Supercopa de España runner-up: 2006[24]
Spain U19
