Rafa Márquez has extended his contract with FC Barcelona until June 2012. He stands in tenth place in the ranking of foreign stars that have played the most competitive matches for Barça.
On Monday, Rafa Márquez signed the new deal that will keep him at the Club until 30th June 2012.
His buyout clause remains at 100 million euros. The 30-year-old Mexican international
defender’s previous deal was set to expire next summer.
At the signing ceremony were the player and his representative Jorge Mendes, Club president
Joan Laporta, sports vice-president Rafael Yuste, Club director general Joan Oliver, technical
secretary Txiki Begiristain and director of football Raül Sanllehí.
Happy to renew
Márquez was clearly delighted with the new deal: “I’m very
happy to renew with a club where I’ve felt very wanted, where I’ve enjoyed myself and
where I’ve suffered. I have to enjoy these moments – they pass very quickly. Now I need
to recover full match fitness to try and win back a place in the starting eleven, though
competition is tough. I think I still have a good chance of being in the starting line-up”.
Praise from the president
Joan Laporta told us: “He’s an emblematic player who has been a reference point
for the team and the Club. He’s a man of great human and footballing quality and closely
linked to the Club. He has a quality that goes beyond football. He’s a committed man who has
always stuck up for the team and for Barça and has shown great respect for the Club, which I
appreciate. I believe he’s one of the great defenders in the history of FC Barcelona ".
The Kaiser of the Camp Nou
Márquez signed for Barça from Monaco in the summer of 2003. Since then
he has played
227 competitive matches for Barça . In the ranking of foreign players that have played the most competitive matches for the Club
he stands at number ten. Although he has often been held back by injury, he has averaged 36 matches
per season. His ability to play the ball out from defence has been much appreciated by the two
managers he has worked under, Frank Rijkaard and Pep Guardiola.
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The eighth contract renewal in five months
Barça have now renegotiated contract extensions with eight key players in the past five months:
Marquez, Touré Yaya, Valdés, Pedro, Messi, Puyol, Abidal and Iniesta.