Xabier Alonso Olano, better known as Xabi Alonso, is a professional football player and was born on November 25, 1981 in Tolosa, located in Basque Country, Spain. This midfielder hails from a well-known football family that includes his dad, Miguel Angel “Periko” Alonso, who was a top player for Barcelona and a winner of league titles with Real Sociedad. One of his brothers, Mikel Alonso, is a midfielder and an international footballer, and his other brother, Jon, is a referee.
Xabi Alonso represents Spain on the international arena and has won 48 international caps for his national side, as of 2008. These appearances include being a part of the national team at Euro 2004, Euro 2008 and the 2006 World Cup. Xabi Alonso netted his first international goal at the 2006 Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup against Ukraine on June 14, 2006. In a friendly match against Denmark held on August 20, 2008 at Parken Stadium, Denmark, Xabi Alonso scored two goals, taking his international goals tally to three.
He started playing professional football at Antiguoko Kirol Elkarte youth club and in 1999, he signed to play for Real Sociedad’s senior team. During the 2000-2001 season, Xabi Alonso played 14 matches for SD Eibar football club on loan and returned to Real Sociedad playing as a prominent midfielder during the 2002-2003 season. He stayed with this club till 2004 and has appeared in 94 games, scoring 9 goals for the club.
Xabi Alonso signed to play for Liverpool in August 2004, and by the end of the month made his debut for this club against Bolton Wanderers. He scored his first goal for the club on October 16, 2004 in a match against Fulham and helped his team emerge victorious from the brink of defeat. In 2005, Xabi Alonso was in the squad that played against Juventus in a Champions League game and played through the ninety minutes to help his team win the game.
In the final match of the Champions League, Xabi Alonso performed exceptionally well and helped Liverpool equalize the scores by 3-3 after they were down by 0-3 at half time. In the third round of his team’s Football Assosciation Challenge (FA) Cup campaign, he displayed a remarkable performance by scoring two goals against Luton Town and helped Liverpool register a 5-3 win. Xabi Alonso netted another brilliant goal on September 20, 2006 in a game against Newcastle in the Premiership match. As of 2008, he has played 110 games for Liverpool and has 12 goals to his credit.
Xabi Alonso is known for his self control, confident footwork, and his ability to deliver long-range passes, which make him one of the best central mid-fielders.
Apart from football, Xabi Alonso likes playing golf and padel, which is a kind of mini-tennis that is popularly played in Spain. During his leisure time, he likes to take a stroll and drink coffee with his friends.
