1. Early life and background
Daniel Aranzubia Aguado was born on 18 September 1979 in Logroño, La Rioja, Spain. He stands at 6.1 ft (1.86 m) and weighs 176 lb (80 kg). Despite his birthplace, he is a product of Athletic Bilbao's renowned youth academy, known as Lezama, located in the Basque Country. He progressed through the club's lower ranks, including playing for the third team, CD Basconia, and the second team, Bilbao Athletic, before making his way to the senior squad.
2. Playing career
Aranzubia's professional football career as a goalkeeper spanned from the late 1990s until 2014, playing for several prominent Spanish clubs and representing his country at various levels.
2.1. Club career
Aranzubia's club career saw him play for three major Spanish teams: Athletic Bilbao, Deportivo La Coruña, and Atlético Madrid, accumulating significant experience in La Liga.
2.1.1. Athletic Bilbao
Aranzubia made his first-team debut for Athletic Bilbao on 10 June 2001, in a 1-3 home derby loss against Real Sociedad. For his first two seasons, he served as a backup to Iñaki Lafuente. However, he eventually established himself as the team's undisputed starter, notably helping Athletic Bilbao qualify for the UEFA Cup in the 2003-04 season. His strong performances led to a four-year contract extension with the club in April 2004.
Following the 2005-06 campaign, Aranzubia faced further competition for the starting position from Lafuente. His position at the club became increasingly uncertain after the emergence of Gorka Iraizoz. Despite Iraizoz suffering a severe injury during the 2007-08 season, Aranzubia was considered surplus to requirements by the Basque club and did not feature. Instead, Athletic Bilbao opted to bring in veteran goalkeeper Armando on loan from Cádiz CF, who then became the starting goalkeeper. This signaled the end of Aranzubia's long tenure at his boyhood club.
2.1.2. Deportivo La Coruña
On 13 July 2008, Aranzubia signed a three-year contract with Deportivo de La Coruña. He quickly made an impact, helping the Galician side win the UEFA Intertoto Cup and secure qualification for the UEFA Cup. He became the team's primary goalkeeper, starting almost every match during the 2008-09 season, missing only one game due to suspension. A notable performance occurred on 2 October 2008, when he saved three penalties in a shootout against SK Brann in a UEFA Cup first round match, securing a 2-0 home win and advancing Deportivo to the group stage.
Aranzubia faced an injury setback at the start of the 2010-11 season, missing the first six matches due to a shoulder injury that required plasma treatment. Despite this, he regained his starting position and once again finished the season as Deportivo's first-choice goalkeeper. A historic moment in his career came on 20 February 2011, during a match against UD Almería. In the 95th minute, with his team trailing 1-0, Aranzubia ventured forward for a corner kick and scored a dramatic equalizing goal with a header, securing a 1-1 draw. This made him the first goalkeeper in La Liga history to score a goal from open play. Despite his individual efforts and the defensive solidity he provided, Deportivo suffered from a lack of scoring throughout the season and were ultimately relegated to the Segunda División after finishing 18th.
Aranzubia remained with Deportivo and played a crucial role in their immediate return to La Liga, winning the Segunda División title in the 2011-12 season. He continued as the starting goalkeeper during the 2012-13 La Liga season, but the club was once again relegated.
2.1.3. Atlético Madrid
In August 2013, Aranzubia joined Atlético Madrid on a one-year contract, primarily serving as a backup goalkeeper to the highly-rated Thibaut Courtois. He made his UEFA Champions League debut on 11 December 2013, shortly after his 34th birthday, in a 2-0 group stage home victory against FC Porto. During the match, he saved a penalty kick from Porto's Josué.
Aranzubia's first La Liga appearance for Atlético Madrid came on 8 February 2014, when he started against Almería due to Courtois's injury. However, the match ended in a 0-2 loss, and Aranzubia was sent off in the final minutes after committing a foul on Jonathan Zongo inside the penalty box. He concluded his spell at the Vicente Calderón Stadium with a total of five competitive appearances across all competitions. Despite his limited playing time, he was part of the Atlético Madrid squad that won the La Liga title and finished as runners-up in the UEFA Champions League during the 2013-14 season.
2.2. International career
Aranzubia represented Spain at various youth levels, achieving significant success before making his single senior international appearance.
He was a key member of the Spain U20 squad that won the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship in Nigeria, starting in the final match. The tournament's runner-up was Japan. The following year, he played for the Spain U23 team at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, where they secured a silver medal, with Aranzubia again starting in the final. Notably, in both of these youth tournaments, Aranzubia was the starting goalkeeper, despite the presence of a younger Iker Casillas, who would later become Spain's long-standing first-choice senior goalkeeper.
Aranzubia made his only appearance for the senior Spanish national team on 5 June 2004. This occurred in a friendly match against Andorra at the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez in Getafe. He entered the match as a substitute in the 60th minute, replacing Santiago Cañizares, who had himself earlier replaced Iker Casillas. Aranzubia was subsequently selected as the third-choice goalkeeper for the UEFA Euro 2004 tournament. However, due to the strong presence of goalkeepers like Casillas, his opportunities at the senior international level remained limited.
3. Coaching career
Following his retirement as a player, Dani Aranzubia transitioned into a coaching role, specializing as a goalkeeper coach. In the summer of 2016, he was appointed as the goalkeeper coach for SD Amorebieta, working under manager Aitor Larrazábal. After three years with Amorebieta, in 2019, Aranzubia joined the coaching staff of Athletic Bilbao B, where he reunited with his former Athletic Bilbao teammate Joseba Etxeberria, who became the manager of the reserve team.
4. Statistics
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Athletic Bilbao | 2000-01 | La Liga | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| 2001-02 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | ||
| 2002-03 | 25 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 0 | ||
| 2003-04 | 34 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 0 | ||
| 2004-05 | 37 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 42 | 0 | ||
| 2005-06 | 18 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 0 | ||
| 2006-07 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 0 | ||
| 2007-08 | 10 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | ||
| Total | 162 | 0 | 23 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 189 | 0 | ||
| Deportivo | 2008-09 | La Liga | 37 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 47 | 0 |
| 2009-10 | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 0 | ||
| 2010-11 | 32 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 1 | ||
| 2011-12 | Segunda División | 38 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 0 | |
| 2012-13 | La Liga | 35 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 0 | |
| Total | 178 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 188 | 1 | ||
| Atlético Madrid | 2013-14 | La Liga | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Total | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 341 | 1 | 26 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 382 | 1 | ||
5. Honors
Aranzubia achieved several team and individual honors throughout his playing career.
5.1. Club
- Basconia
- Tercera División: 1997-98
- Deportivo La Coruña
- UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2008
- Segunda División: 2011-12
- Atlético Madrid
- La Liga: 2013-14
- UEFA Champions League runner-up: 2013-14
- Supercopa de España runner-up: 2013
5.2. International
- Spain U20
- FIFA World Youth Championship: 1999
- Spain U23
- Summer Olympics silver medal: 2000