1. Early Life and Youth Career
David López Silva was born in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, on 9 October 1989. He began his formative years in youth football academies, developing his skills across several clubs. From 1997 to 1999, he was part of the San Cugat youth setup, followed by a six-year period at Mercantil from 1999 to 2005. He then joined the CF Dam academy, where he played from 2005 to 2007. López concluded his youth career with local club RCD Espanyol, joining their academy in 2007 before making his senior debut with the reserves in the 2008-09 season in Tercera División.
2. Club Career
David López Silva's professional football career has seen him contribute to several clubs, marked by two significant stints at Espanyol and a period in Italy with Napoli, before joining Girona.
2.1. Early Career and Loans
López made his senior debut with Espanyol B in the 2008-09 season. In August 2009, he was loaned to Terrassa FC in the Segunda División B, where he was a regular starter despite the team's eventual relegation.
Upon his return to Espanyol in June 2010, López made his main squad and La Liga debut on 26 September, coming on as a late substitute in a 1-0 home victory against CA Osasuna. However, he continued to appear more regularly with the B team during this period. On 11 August 2011, López was again loaned out, this time to CD Leganés in the third tier. A year later, he joined Segunda División club SD Huesca on a similar loan basis, further developing his professional experience in the lower divisions.
2.2. Espanyol (First Spell)
López returned to Espanyol on 16 June 2013 after the Pericos (Espanyol's nickname) recalled him. He quickly established himself, scoring his first goal in the top flight on 24 August, which was his team's first goal in a 3-1 home victory over Valencia CF. During the 2013-14 season, he featured in 33 league matches for Espanyol, becoming an integral part of the squad before his move to Italy.
2.3. Napoli
On 31 August 2014, SSC Napoli confirmed the signing of David López on a five-year contract, marking his move to Italy's Serie A. He made his Serie A debut on 21 September, playing the full 90 minutes and receiving a yellow card in a 1-0 defeat at Udinese Calcio. López quickly became a regular player under then-manager Rafael Benítez, helping to solidify Napoli's midfield.
On 22 December 2014, he won the Supercoppa Italiana with Napoli in Qatar. Despite making an error that led to Carlos Tevez of Juventus FC opening the scoring, his team ultimately won the match in a penalty shootout after a 2-2 draw. López scored his first competitive goal for Napoli (in his 39th appearance) on 7 May 2015, giving his team the lead in an eventual 1-1 home draw against FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk in the semi-finals of the UEFA Europa League.
2.4. Espanyol (Second Spell)
On 26 August 2016, López returned to RCD Espanyol on a four-year deal, beginning his second spell with his boyhood club. During much of this period, he was utilized by manager Quique Sánchez Flores as a central defender. From this defensive position, he scored a notable goal in a 4-1 away loss to FC Barcelona in the Derbi barceloní on 18 December 2016.
In August 2018, López agreed to extend his contract with Espanyol until 2023, reflecting his importance to the team. In the 2019-20 campaign, he scored a personal best of four goals in the top flight, but unfortunately, the team was relegated to Segunda División. One of these goals was the opener on 4 January 2020, in a 2-2 draw with Barcelona at the RCDE Stadium. On 23 February of the same year, he received his first red card for the club, being sent off for two yellow cards within the opening 25 minutes of a 2-1 defeat at Real Valladolid.
López remained a regular player for Espanyol in the 2020-21 season, during which the team secured promotion back to La Liga as champions in May 2021. He scored once that season, equalizing in a 3-1 away win against CD Castellón on 26 March. On 10 June 2022, David López departed RCD Espanyol as his contract expired. Across his two spells with the club, he featured in a total of 237 official matches, scoring 12 times.
2.5. Girona
López remained in the top flight of Spanish football and his native region, joining Girona FC on 25 July 2022, signing a two-year contract. In December 2023, at the age of 34, he further extended his commitment to Girona until June 2026. On 2 October 2024, López achieved a significant milestone for his current club by scoring Girona's first-ever international goal, opening the scoreline in a UEFA Champions League match against Dutch-side Feyenoord, though Girona ultimately lost the game 2-3.
3. International Career
David López Silva was never capped by the Spain national team at any level. However, he did make an appearance for the unofficial Catalonia team on 30 December 2013. He came on as a substitute in a match against the Cape Verde national team, which Catalonia won 4-1.
4. Career Statistics
| Club | Season | League | National cup (including Copa del Rey and Coppa Italia) | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Espanyol B | 2008-09 | Tercera División | 29 | 0 | - | - | - | 29 | 0 | |||
| 2010-11 | Tercera División | 25 | 0 | - | - | - | 25 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 54 | 0 | - | - | - | 54 | 0 | |||||
| Terrassa (loan) | 2009-10 | Segunda División B | 31 | 2 | - | - | - | 31 | 2 | |||
| Espanyol | 2010-11 | La Liga | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2013-14 | La Liga | 33 | 2 | 4 | 1 | - | - | 37 | 3 | |||
| 2014-15 | La Liga | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | 1 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 37 | 2 | 4 | 1 | - | - | 41 | 3 | ||||
| Leganés (loan) | 2011-12 | Segunda División B | 30 | 4 | 2 | 0 | - | - | 32 | 4 | ||
| Huesca (loan) | 2012-13 | Segunda División | 38 | 3 | 2 | 0 | - | - | 40 | 3 | ||
| Napoli | 2014-15 | Serie A | 32 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 44 | 2 |
| 2015-16 | Serie A | 25 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 0 | - | 35 | 1 | ||
| Total | 57 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 17 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 79 | 3 | ||
| Espanyol | 2016-17 | La Liga | 36 | 3 | 1 | 0 | - | - | 37 | 3 | ||
| 2017-18 | La Liga | 37 | 1 | 6 | 0 | - | - | 43 | 1 | |||
| 2018-19 | La Liga | 21 | 0 | 3 | 0 | - | - | 24 | 0 | |||
| 2019-20 | La Liga | 32 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | - | 36 | 4 | ||
| 2020-21 | Segunda División | 37 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | 38 | 1 | |||
| 2021-22 | La Liga | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 18 | 0 | |||
| Total | 181 | 9 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 0 | - | 196 | 9 | |||
| Girona | 2022-23 | La Liga | 20 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 20 | 3 | ||
| 2023-24 | La Liga | 25 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 25 | 3 | |||
| 2024-25 | La Liga | 22 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 2 | |
| Total | 67 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 73 | 8 | ||
| Career total | 495 | 29 | 25 | 1 | 25 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 546 | 32 | ||
5. Honours
Napoli
- Supercoppa Italiana: 2014
Espanyol
- Segunda División: 2020-21