Álvaro Vázquez

Spain and Swansea City

Born in Barcelona, Catalonia, Vázquez spent most of his life in Badalona.^[2] He joined RCD Espanyol's youth system in 2005 at the age of 14, and four years later he made his senior debut, appearing with the reserves in the Segunda División B and suffering relegation.

Vázquez made his first-team – and La Liga – debut on 21 September 2010, coming on as a substitute for Sergio García midway through the second half of a 3–0 away loss to Real Madrid.^[3] Only five days later, he scored the game's only goal in a home fixture against CA Osasuna,^[4] and remained with the main squad for the rest of the season, mainly acting as backup to Dani Osvaldo.^[5]

After Osvaldo departed for AS Roma in summer 2011, Vázquez was made starter by manager Mauricio Pochettino.^[6] In January 2012, over only four days, he scored four goals in two games: first, he equalised through a header in the last minutes of the local derby against FC Barcelona (1–1 home draw),^[7] then added a hat-trick to help defeat Córdoba CF in the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey (4–2 home win, 5–4 on aggregate).^[8]

After spending the 2012–13 campaign with fellow league side Getafe CF,^[9] Vázquez became coach Michael Laudrup's eighth Spanish signing for his Swansea City team on 2 September 2013, with the loan move being subject to international clearance.^[10][11] He made his Premier League debut on the 22nd in a 2–0 away victory over Crystal Palace, setting up Nathan Dyer for the second goal.^[12]

Vázquez returned to his first club Espanyol on 31 August 2016 after agreeing to a four-year contract.^[13] On 11 January 2018, after being rarely used, he was loaned to Gimnàstic de Tarragona of Segunda División for six months.^[14]

On 23 August 2018, Vázquez joined fellow second-division team Real Zaragoza on a one-year loan.^[15] Upon returning, he terminated his contract with Espanyol on 18 June 2019^[16] and signed a three-year deal with Sporting de Gijón on 10 July.^[17]

Vázquez moved to second-tier CE Sabadell FC on 12 January 2021, on loan for the remainder of the season.^[18]

Kerala Blasters

On 30 August 2021, Vázquez signed a one-year contract with Kerala Blasters FC.^[19][20] He made his debut in the Indian Super League on 19 November, losing 4–2 at ATK Mohun Bagan FC.^[21][22][23] He scored his first goal for the club on 5 December in the 2–1 home defeat of Odisha FC,^[24][25] repeating the feat the following week against East Bengal FC (1–1) and also having a goal disallowed early on.^[26][27] He scored for the third consecutive match on 19 December, doubling the lead against defending champions Mumbai City FC in an eventual 3–0 win;^[28] he was voted player of the match for his performance in the latter.^[29]

On 4 February 2022, Vázquez netted from behind the half-line (59 meters) against NorthEast United FC,^[30] which proved crucial to a 2–1 victory.^[31] His side reached the season's final, losing to Hyderabad FC on penalties.^[32]

Vázquez left the Blasters in May 2022.^[33]

Goa

In April 2022, it was reportedly agreed that Vázquez would join FC Goa as a free agent;^[34] on 24 June, the player agreed to a two-year deal.^[35] He scored his only goal on 10 December, as the hosts defeated Odisha 3–0.^[36]

Later career

Vázquez resumed his career in the Spanish Primera Federación, where he represented SD Ponferradina^[37] and Linares Deportivo.^[38] On 25 July 2024, the 33-year-old moved down to Tercera Federación with CF Badalona.^[39][40]