Xiker

A product of Athletic Bilbao's famed academy, Xiker joined the club at the age of ten and spent nine seasons developing his game at the Lezama training ground.{{cite web|url=http://www.aupaathletic.com/xiker-ozerinjauregi-mendikoetxea/futbolista/4216|title=Xiker Ozerinjauregi Mendikoetxea|website=Aupa Athletic|access-date=4 January 2017}}{{in lang|es}}{{cite web|url=http://www.cdtoledo.es/noticia/xiker-ozerinjauregui-nuevo-jugador-del-cd-toledo|title=Xiker Ozerinjauregui nuevo jugador del CD Toledo|website=Toledo|access-date=4 January 2017}}{{in lang|es}} During his time with Athletic, he represented the club at the UEFA Youth League and was considered to be one of Spain's brightest defensive prospects.{{cite web|url=http://www.uefa.com/uefayouthleague/season=2015/clubs/player=250076111/profile/index.html|title=Xiker Ozerinjauregi|website=UEFA|access-date=4 January 2017}}{{dead link|date=March 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}{{cite web|url=http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1963773-7-athletic-club-bilbao-youth-stars-that-you-should-be-aware-of/page/2|title=7 Athletic Club Bilbao Youth Stars That You Should Be Aware Of|website=Bleacher Report|last=Atkinson|first=Tre'|date=9 May 2014|access-date=4 January 2017}} His progression through the ranks was interrupted, however, when he suffered a serious injury while on international duty with the Spanish youth team.{{cite web|url=http://www.eldigitalcastillalamancha.es/articulo_deportivo.asp?idarticulo=53933|title=CD Toledo completes its defense with an international|website=El Digital Deportivo|date=5 August 2016|access-date=4 January 2017|language=es}}{{in lang|es}}

Following his injury, Xiker saw his game time with Athletic feeder-club CD Basconia reduced, and on 5 August 2016 Segunda División B side Toledo announced that the club had signed him on a two-year deal after Athletic agreed to the termination of his contract. Part of the agreement was that Athletic retained the option of re-purchase on Xiker at the end of each season.{{cite web|url=http://bizkaia.eldesmarque.com/athletic-club/noticias/54482-xiker-son-muchos-anos-en-el-athletic-viene-bien-salir|title=Xiker: "Son muchos años en el Athletic, viene bien salir"|website=El Desmarque|last=Beltrán|first=Javi|date=9 August 2016|access-date=4 January 2017}}{{in lang|es}}{{cite web|url=http://www.athletic-club.eus/cas/noticias/16946/fb.html?source=fb|website=Athletic Bilbao|title=Rescisión de contrato de Xiker|date=5 August 2016|access-date=4 January 2017}}{{in lang|es}} He made his debut for the club on 3 September, starting in a 2–0 loss to Arenas Club.{{cite web|url=https://int.soccerway.com/matches/2016/09/03/spain/segunda-b/arenas-club-de-getxo/toledo/2297170/|title=Arenas Club de Getxo v Toledo: 2–0|website=Soccerway|date=3 September 2016|access-date=4 January 2017}} On 23 October, Xiker suffered a muscular injury in Toledo's 1–0 win over Real Unión and was ruled out for the remainder of the year, with doctors only giving him the clear to return to training on 3 January 2017.{{cite web|url=http://cadenaser.com/emisora/2017/01/03/ser_toledo/1483463800_053961.html|title=Los médicos dan el OK a Xiker|website=Cadena Ser|last=Delgado|first=Ruben|date=3 January 2017|access-date=4 January 2017}}{{in lang|es}} He made his long-awaited return to the first team on the final day of the regular season on 14 May, starting in a 3–0 loss to Bilbao Athletic.{{cite web|url=http://www.marca.com/futbol/mas-futbol/segunda-b-grupo-ii/2017/05/14/59186698e2704e204f8b45e2.html|title=Despedida amarga del Toledo antes de afrontar el play-off|website=Marca|date=14 May 2017|access-date=14 May 2017}}{{in lang|es}} The result saw Toledo end the campaign in second position, four points behind champions Albacete, and thereby qualified for the play-offs to the Segunda División.{{cite web|url=http://www.marca.com/estadisticas/futbol/segundab/2016_17/grupo_2/|title=Estadicas Segunda Division B Grupo 2 2016-17|website=Marca|access-date=14 May 2017}}{{in lang|es}} The club were ultimately unsuccessful in their bid for promotion, however, as they were knocked out by Atlético Baleares after a 3–1 aggregate defeat.{{cite web|url=http://www.marca.com/futbol/mas-futbol/2017/05/28/592ac2a022601dbd2c8b459a.html|title=El Atlético Baleares despierta al Toledo de su sueño por el ascenso|website=Marca|last=Galicia|first=Samuel|date=28 May 2017|access-date=28 May 2017}}{{in lang|es}}

Having been restricted to just seven appearances as a result of his injury, Xiker rescinded his contract with Toledo and signed for newly-promoted Segunda División B side Peña Sport on 16 July 2017.{{cite web|url=http://www.eldigitalcastillalamancha.es/futbol/42171425/2aB-Xiker-se-desvincula-del-Toledo-y-ficha-por-el-Pena-Sport.html|title=2ªB: Xiker se desvincula del Toledo y ficha por el Peña Sport|website=El Digital Castilla la Mancha|date=16 July 2017|access-date=16 July 2017}}{{in lang|es}} He made his debut for the club on 20 August, starting in a 1–0 defeat to Real Unión.{{cite web|url=http://navarra.elespanol.com/articulo/futbol/cronica-pena-sport-real-union-segunda-b/20170820114441138082.html|title=Un gol del navarro Jorge Galán echa por tierra las ilusiones de la Peña Sport en su regreso a Segunda B|website=Navarra|date=20 August 2017|access-date=20 August 2017}}{{in lang|es}} Ten days later, he featured in the Copa del Rey for the first time, though Peña were unable to hold onto the lead in a 2–1 defeat to Mirandés.{{cite web|url=http://navarra.elespanol.com/articulo/futbol/cronica-pena-sport-mirandes-copa-rey/20170830191808139528.html|title=Una derrota cruel: la Peña Sport pierde en el minuto 92 y queda eliminada de la Copa por el Mirandés|website=Navarra|last=Cervantes|first=Patxi|date=30 August 2017|access-date=2 September 2017}}{{in lang|es}} He scored his first senior goal on 14 January 2018, netting Peña's third in a 3–3 draw with Arenas Club. In doing so, he helped the club to their eighth consecutive match without defeat, having previously not won in their first 13.{{cite web|url=http://navarra.elespanol.com/articulo/futbol/cronica-pena-sport-arenas-futbol-segunda-b/20180114160823165054.html|title=La Peña Sport sigue sumando ante el Arenas y alcanza ya ocho jornadas seguidas sin perder|website=Navarra|date=14 January 2018|access-date=14 January 2018}}{{cite news|url=https://www.vavel.com/es/futbol/2018/05/03/segunda-division-b-grupo-2/910473-xiker-hace-tres-meses-nadie-daba-un-duro-por-nosotros.html|title=Xiker: "Hace tres meses nadie daba un duro por nosotros"|publisher=VAVEL|date=3 May 2018|access-date=16 May 2018|last=Valera|first=Inigo|language=es}} The club's resurgence ultimately came too late, though, and they suffered relegation in the penultimate match of the season following a 3–0 defeat to UD Logroñés.{{cite web|url=https://www.sport.es/es/noticias/segunda-division-b/el-logrones-apabulla-al-pena-sport-3-0-6803509|title=El Logroñés apabulla al Peña Sport (3-0)|website=Sport|date=6 May 2018|access-date=6 May 2018|language=es}} He ended the campaign having scored twice in 37 league appearances.{{cite news|url=https://www.mundodeportivo.com/futbol/real-sociedad/20180605/444128245198/xiker-ozerinjauregi-refuerzo-para-el-sanse.html|title=Xiker Ozerinjauregi, refuerzo para el Sanse|publisher=Mundo Deportivo|last=Parcero|first=Bruno|date=5 June 2018|access-date=14 June 2018|language=es}}

In June 2018, following a collaborative agreement between Peña Sport and Real Sociedad, Xiker joined the latter on a two-year deal where he linked up with the Real Sociedad B side.{{cite news|url=http://www.noticiasdegipuzkoa.eus/2018/06/27/la-real/la-real-se-interesa-por-paul-miguelez|title=La Real se interesa por Paul Miguélez|publisher=Noticias de Gipuzkoa|last=Recalde|first=Mikel|date=27 June 2018|access-date=30 June 2018|language=es}} He made his debut on 9 September, starting in a 2–0 defeat to Barakaldo.{{cite news|url=https://real-sociedad.diariovasco.com/sanse-sigue-cero-20180910003816-ntvo.html|title=El Sanse sigue a cero lejos de Zubieta|publisher=El Diario Vasco|date=9 September 2018|access-date=11 September 2018|language=es}} He struggled for game time thereafter, however, and made just three appearances before leaving the club in January in seek of first-team opportunities.{{cite news|url=https://www.lasegundab.es/blog/2019/01/30/xiker-se-va-al-grupo-iii-97743.html|title=Xiker se va al Grupo III|publisher=La Segunda B|date=30 January 2019|access-date=4 February 2019|language=es}} On 28 January 2019, Xiker signed for Cornellà after his contract with Real Sociedad was terminated by agreement.{{cite news|url=https://eldesmarque.com/gipuzkoa/real-sociedad/noticias-rs/1246654-la-real-rescinde-el-contrato-de-xiker-ozerinjauregi|title=La Real rescinde el contrato de Xiker Ozerinjauregi|publisher=El Desmarque|last=Gonzalo|first=Marta|date=28 January 2019|access-date=30 January 2019|language=es}} He made his debut for the club on 2 February in a 1–0 loss to Badalona. In his debut season, he made 14 appearances as Cornellà reached the final of the Copa Federación, where they were defeated 5–2 on aggregate by Mirandés, and the promotion playoffs.{{cite news|url=https://www.rfef.es/noticias/cronica-ue-cornella-cd-mirandes-final-vuelta/|title=CD Mirandés wins its first RFEF Cup against an UE Cornellà that has tried it until the end (2-2)|publisher=Real Federacion Espanola de Futbol|date=28 March 2019|access-date=3 April 2019|language=es}}

On 19 July, Xiker was on the move again when he signed with Real Betis, joining up with the club's reserve side.{{cite news|url=https://eldesmarque.com/sevilla/real-betis/1163842-xiker-ozerinjauregi-nuevo-jugador-del-betis-deportivo|title=Xiker Ozerinjauregi, nuevo jugador del Betis Deportivo|publisher=El Desmarque|date=19 July 2019|access-date=19 July 2019|language=es}} He ultimately made 10 appearances for the club before leaving midway through the season.{{cite news|url=https://www.isabadell.cat/sabadell/esports/futbol/xiker-ozerinjauregi-tanca-el-mercat-arlequinat/|title=Xiker Ozerinjauregi tanca el mercat arlequinat|publisher=iSabadell|last=Munoz|first=Joan|date=31 January 2020|access-date=3 February 2020|language=es}} On 31 January 2020, Xiker rescinded his contract with Betis in order to sign a new deal with Sabadell. There, he made four appearances for the remainder of the campaign, which was largely interrupted by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, including one in the play-off final victory over Barcelona B which secured the club's promotion to the Segunda División.{{cite news|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/barcelona/barcelona-b-miss-out-promotion-segunda-liga-play-off-defeat-sabadell-a4509021.html|title=Barcelona B miss out on promotion to Segunda after play-off defeat vs Sabadell|publisher=The Evening Standard|last=Hayward|first=Ben|date=27 July 2020|access-date=28 July 2020}} However, his contract with Sabadell was not renewed following the conclusion of the campaign and he was one of eight players released by the club ahead of the new season.{{cite news|url=https://as.com/futbol/2020/07/30/mas_futbol/1596100853_448768.html|title=El Sabadell ya cuenta con ocho bajas para el próximo curso|publisher=AS|date=7 July 2020|access-date=22 September 2020|language=es|last=Suelves|first=Marc Bernad}}

File:Xiker Ozerinjauregi playing for SD Logroñés in 2021 (5).jpg in 2021]]

Following the expiration of his deal with Sabadell, Xiker signed a season-long contract with Ebro and made 18 appearances across all competitions for the campaign, before departing to join SD Logroñés in the newly-branded Primera División RFEF.{{cite news|url=https://www.cartv.es/aragondeporte/nuestro-deporte/el-cd-ebro-ficha-a-xiker-ozerinjauregi|title=El CD Ebro ficha a Xiker Ozerinjauregi|publisher=Aragon Deporte|date=26 August 2020|access-date=22 September 2020|language=es}}{{cite news|url=https://sdlogrones.com/xiker-ozerinjauregi-ficha-por-la-sd-logrones/|title=XikerOZerinjauregi ficha por la SD Logroñés|date=18 June 2021|accessdate=13 January 2022|language=es}}

On 18 June 2021, Xiker was officially unveiled as a new signing by Logroñés, who had narrowly missed out on achieving back-to-back promotions to the Segunda División the season before. He quickly established himself as a regular in the starting XI, which included an appearance against Bilbao Athletic in October, and helped the club end the calendar year as the "best year in the club's history."{{cite news|url=https://nuevecuatrouno.com/2021/12/26/deportes-primera-rfef-sdlogrones-resumen-2021-mejor-ano/|title=La SD Logroñés cierra el mejor año de su historia|last=Arnaiz|first=Daniel Garcia|publisher=Nuevecuatrouno|date=26 December 2021|accessdate=13 January 2022|language=es}} He made 20 league appearances in total for the season, before joining Amorebieta on a free transfer the in July the following year.{{cite news|url=https://sdamorebieta.eus/es/xiker-ozerinjauregi-nuevo-central-de-la-sda/|title=Xiker Ozerinjauregi, new central defender of the SDA|publisher=SD Amorebieta|language=ES|date=18 July 2022|accessdate=21 July 2022}}

File:Spain vs Croatia.jpg side at the SBS Cup in Japan in 2015.]]

Xiker is a former Spanish youth international and represented the nation at all levels from the U16s to the U19s between 2013 and 2015.{{cite web|url=http://www.lacanteradelezama.com/xiker-rescinde-con-el-athletic-y-ficha-por-el-cd-toledo/|title=Xiker rescinde con el Athletic y ficha por el CD Toledo|website=La Cantera de Lezama|date=5 August 2016|access-date=4 January 2017}}{{in lang|es}} In 2015, he was part of the Spain U18 squad which won the Atlantic Cup after beating Portugal, Costa Rica and the Canary Islands.{{cite web|url=http://bizkaia.eldesmarque.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=57911:bernaola-unico-representante-del-athletic-para-el-torneo-atlantico&catid=13&Itemid=121|title=Bernaola, único representante del Athletic para el Torneo Atlántico|website=El Desmarque|date=30 January 2017|access-date=6 February 2017}}{{in lang|es}} Later that year, he was included in Spain's preliminary squad for the UEFA European Under-19 Championship in Greece.{{cite web|url=http://bizkaia.eldesmarque.com/athletic-club/noticias/47077-unai-simon-y-xiker-en-la-preseleccion-para-el-europeo-sub-19|title=Unai Simón y Xiker en la preselección para el Europeo Sub'19|website=El Desmarque|date=16 June 2015|access-date=4 January 2017}}{{in lang|es}} He was one of six players cut from the final squad, however, as Spain went on to claim their seventh title in the competition.{{cite web|url=http://www.marca.com/2015/06/29/futbol/cantera/1435591697.html|title=Marco Asensio, Ceballos, Vallejo y Meré lideran la sub 19|website=Marca|last=Egea|first=Pablo|date=29 June 2015|access-date=4 January 2017}}{{in lang|es}}{{cite web|url=https://www.uefa.com/under19/match/2017613--spain-vs-russia/|title=Spain see off Russia for seventh Under-19 crown|website=UEFA|date=19 July 2015|access-date=4 January 2017}}

{{updated|match played 28 April 2024}}

¹ Includes Copa del Rey matches.

² Includes Copa Federación and Copa Catalunya matches.

{{reflist}}

{{commons category}}

• {{Athletic Bilbao profile|id=1770/xiker-ozerinjauregi-mendikoetxea}}
• {{BDFutbol|22384}}

{{Portal bar|Association football}}

Category:1997 births

Category:Living people

Category:People from Enkarterri

Category:Footballers from Biscay

Category:Spanish men's footballers

Category:Men's association football defenders

Category:Primera Federación players

Category:Segunda División B players

Category:Segunda Federación players

Category:Tercera División players

Category:CD Basconia footballers

Category:CD Toledo players

Category:Real Sociedad B footballers

Category:UE Cornellà players

Category:CE Sabadell FC footballers

Category:CD Ebro players

Category:SD Logroñés players

Category:SD Amorebieta footballers

Category:CF Badalona Futur players

Category:Spain men's youth international footballers

Category:21st-century Spanish sportsmen