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'{{short description|Spanish footballer (born 2003)}} {{family name hatnote|Balde|Martínez|lang=Spanish}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2022}} {{Infobox football biography | name = Alejandro Balde | image = Esapana-inglaterra-74 (48899354493).jpg | caption = Balde with [[Spain national under-17 football team|Spain U17]] in 2019 | full_name = Alejandro Balde Martínez<ref name=Official>{{cite web |url=https://players.fcbarcelona.com/en/player/2829-balde-alejandro-balde-martinez |title=Alejandro Balde Martínez |publisher=FC Barcelona |language=en|access-date=14 August 2021}}</ref> | birth_date = {{birth date and age|2003|10|18|df=y}}<ref name=Official/> | birth_place = [[Barcelona]], Spain | height = 1.75 m<ref>{{Cite web |title=Alejandro Balde |url=https://www.fcbarcelona.com/en/football/barca-b/players/1863190/balde|access-date=26 September 2021 |website=www.fcbarcelona.com |language=en}}</ref> | position = [[Full-back (association football)|Left-back]] | currentclub = [[FC Barcelona|Barcelona]] | clubnumber = 3 | youthyears1 = 2007–2009 | youthclubs1 = [[CE Sant Gabriel|Sant Gabriel]] | youthyears2 = 2009–2011 | youthclubs2 = Cs Longueuil | youthyears3 = 2011–2021 | youthclubs3 = [[FC Barcelona|Barcelona]] | years1 = 2020–2022 | clubs1 = [[FC Barcelona Atlètic|Barcelona B]] | caps1 = 29 | goals1 = 0 | years2 = 2021– | clubs2 = [[FC Barcelona|Barcelona]] | caps2 = 56 | goals2 = 1 | nationalyears1 = 2019 | nationalteam1 = [[Spain national under-16 football team|Spain U16]] | nationalcaps1 = 6 | nationalgoals1 = 0 | nationalyears2 = 2019–2020 | nationalteam2 = [[Spain national under-17 football team|Spain U17]] | nationalcaps2 = 9 | nationalgoals2 = 0 | nationalyears3 = 2019 | nationalteam3 = [[Spain national under-18 football team|Spain U18]] | nationalcaps3 = 3 | nationalgoals3 = 0 | nationalyears4 = 2021 | nationalteam4 = [[Spain national under-19 football team|Spain U19]] | nationalcaps4 = 5 | nationalgoals4 = 0 | nationalyears5 = 2022 | nationalteam5 = [[Spain national under-21 football team|Spain U21]] | nationalcaps5 = 2 | nationalgoals5 = 0 | nationalyears6 = 2022– | nationalteam6 = [[Spain national football team|Spain]] | nationalcaps6 = 7 | nationalgoals6 = 0 | club-update = 22 January 2024 | nationalteam-update = 12 October 2023 }} '''Alejandro Balde Martínez''' (born 18 October 2003) is a Spanish professional [[Association football|footballer]] from [[Catalonia]] who plays as a [[Full-back (association football)|left-back]] for [[La Liga]] club [[FC Barcelona|Barcelona]] and the [[Spain national football team|Spain national team]].<ref> The 25 best left backs in world football - ranked 90Min.com https://www.90min.com/posts/the-25-best-left-backs-in-world-football-ranked. Retrieved 13 December 2023.</ref> ==Club career== Born in [[Barcelona]], [[Catalonia]], to a [[Guinea-Bissau|Bissau-Guinean]] father and a [[Dominican Republic|Dominican]] mother,<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.sport.es/en/news/barca/alejandro-balde-a-great-opportunity-for-the-la-masia-left-back-11895698 |title=Alejandro Balde: A great opportunity for the la Masia left back |website=sport.es |date=13 July 2021}}</ref> Balde joined [[FC Barcelona|Barcelona]] in 2011 at the age of eight after coming up through ranks at [[RCD Espanyol|Espanyol]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Rogé |first1=Albert |title=Profile: Electric Alejandro Balde has a lot to offer |url=https://www.sport.es/en/news/barca/profile-electric-alejandro-balde-has-a-lot-to-offer-8201674 |website=sport |date=12 November 2020}}</ref> In July 2021, he signed a contract renewal with Barcelona until 2024 with a release clause of 500 million euros.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.goal.com/en/news/alejandro-balde-barcelona-teenage-left-back-500m-release/1ij5oor255tup1i0ls6yty4h47|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210813123056/https://www.goal.com/en/news/alejandro-balde-barcelona-teenage-left-back-500m-release/1ij5oor255tup1i0ls6yty4h47 |archive-date=13 August 2021 |title=Alejandro Balde: Barcelona's 'spectacular' teenage left-back with a €500m release clause |first1=Adrià |last1=Soldevila |date=11 August 2021 |website=Goal|url-status=dead}}</ref> Balde impressed during pre-season in the summer 2021, and began the new campaign as [[Jordi Alba]]'s primary back-up at the [[Camp Nou]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.sport.es/en/news/barca/barca-tie-down-alejandro-balde-their-jordi-alba-backup-11933006 |title=Barca tie down Alejandro Balde, their Jordi Alba backup |website=sport.es |date=22 July 2021}}</ref> He sat on the bench for the opening match against [[Real Sociedad]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.fotmob.com/livescores/3629093/lineup/barcelona-vs-real-sociedad?show=ongoing |title=Barcelona vs Real Sociedad lineup in LaLiga |website=fotmob}}</ref> and the next game against [[Athletic Bilbao]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.fotmob.com/livescores/3629105/lineup/athletic-club-vs-barcelona |title=Athletic Club vs Barcelona lineup in LaLiga |website=fotmob}}</ref> On 14 September 2021, he played his first official match for Barcelona's first team replacing Alba in the 74th minute of a 3–0 loss to [[FC Bayern Munich|Bayern Munich]] in the group stage of the [[2021–22 UEFA Champions League|UEFA Champions League]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.fotmob.com/livescores/3714046/matchfacts/barcelona-vs-bayern-münchen |title=Champions League vs Barcelona}}</ref> From the start of 2022–23 season, Balde was given a more prominent role by coach [[Xavi]], starting in more league matches than Jordi Alba and receiving more minutes in important matches.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.sport.es/en/news/barca/xavi-on-balde-an-18-year-old-playing-at-this-level-never-ceases-to-amaze-75566303 |title=Xavi on Balde: An 18-year-old playing at this level never ceases to amaze|website=sport.es |date=17 September 2022}}</ref> On 20 September 2023, it was announced that Balde would sign a new contract at the club until 2028, with the buy out clause set at €1 billion.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.fcbarcelona.es/es/futbol/primer-equipo/noticias/3691879/balde-cule-hasta-2028 |title=Balde, culé hasta 2028 |publisher=FC Barcelona |language=es |date=20 September 2023 }}</ref> In Thursday, January 24, 2024 he suffered a Hamstring injury in his right foot, he had to undergo surgery after leaving the pitch in tears against [[Athletic Bilbao|Athletic Club]] in the [[Copa del Rey|Copa Del Rey]] Quarterfinals ==International career== Balde is of Bissau-Guinean descent and was eligible to play for [[Guinea-Bissau national football team|Guinea-Bissau]] or [[Spain national football team|Spain]], but pledged allegiance to ''La Roja''. He received a surprise call-up to the [[Spain national football team|Spain national team]] two days before the start of the [[2022 FIFA World Cup]], as [[Valencia C.F.|Valencia]] left-back [[José Gayà]] had injured his ankle in the training camp.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Marsden |first1=Sam |last2=Llorens |first2=Moises |title=World Cup 2022: Barcelona youngster Alejandro Balde replaces injured Jose Gaya in Spain squad |url=https://www.espn.co.uk/football/fifa-world-cup/story/4805677/alejandro-balde-replaces-jose-gaya-in-spain-world-cup-squad |access-date=18 November 2022 |publisher=[[ESPN]] |date=18 November 2022}}</ref> On 23 November 2022, he made his first international appearance in a 7–0 win against [[Costa Rica national football team|Costa Rica]], substituting for [[Jordi Alba]] in the 64th minute. ==Career statistics== ===Club=== {{updated|match played 24 January 2024}}<ref>{{Soccerway|alejandro-balde-martinez/632541}}</ref> {| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center" width=67% |+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competition |- !rowspan="2"|Club !rowspan="2"|Season !colspan="3"|League !colspan="2"|[[Copa del Rey]] !colspan="2"|Continental !colspan="2"|Other !colspan="2"|Total |- !Division!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals |- |rowspan="3"|[[FC Barcelona Atlètic|Barcelona Atlètic]] |[[2020–21 Segunda División B|2020–21]] |[[Segunda División RFEF|Segunda División B]] |15||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||1{{efn|Appearance in [[Segunda División B play-offs]]}}||0||16||0 |- |[[2021–22 Primera División RFEF|2021–22]] |[[Primera División RFEF]] |14||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||0||0||14||0 |- !colspan="2"|Total !29!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!1!!0!!30!!0 |- |rowspan="4"|[[FC Barcelona|Barcelona]] |[[2021–22 FC Barcelona season|2021–22]] |[[La Liga]] |5||0||0||0||2{{efn|name=UCL|Appearances in [[UEFA Champions League]]}}||0||0||0||7||0 |- |[[2022–23 FC Barcelona season|2022–23]] |La Liga |33||1||4||0||6{{efn|Four appearances in UEFA Champions League, two appearances in [[UEFA Europa League]]}}||0||1{{efn|name=SDE|Appearance(s) in [[Supercopa de España]]}}||0||44||1 |- |[[2023–24 FC Barcelona season|2023–24]] |La Liga |18||0||2||1||6{{efn|name=UCL}}||0||2{{efn|name=SDE}}||0||28||1 |- !colspan="2"|Total !56||1||6||1||14||0||3||0||79||2 |- !colspan="3"|Career total !85!!1!!6!!1!!14!!0!!4!!0!!109!!2 |} {{notelist}} ===International=== {{updated|match played 12 October 2023}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://eu-football.info/_player.php?id=32229|title=Alejandro Balde|website=EU-Football.info|access-date=27 November 2022}}</ref> {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" |+ Appearances and goals by national team and year |- !National team!!Year!!Apps!!Goals |- |rowspan="2"|[[Spain national football team|Spain]] |2022||4||0 |- |2023||3||0 |- !colspan="2"|Total!!7!!0 |} ==Honours== '''Barcelona''' *[[La Liga]]: [[2022–23 La Liga|2022–23]]<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.fcbarcelona.com/en/football/first-team/news/3344756/fc-barcelona-liga-champions-202223 |title=FC Barcelona, Liga champions 2022/23! |website=FC Barcelona |date=14 May 2023}}</ref> *[[Supercopa de España]]: [[2023 Supercopa de España|2023]]<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/sport/live/football/64284870 |title=Spanish Super Cup: Barcelona beat Real Madrid. |website=BBC Sport |date=15 January 2023 |access-date=15 January 2023 |archive-date=25 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230125094004/https://www.bbc.com/sport/live/football/64284870 |url-status=dead }}</ref> '''Individual''' *[[La Liga]] Team of the Season: [[2022–23 La Liga#Awards|2022–23]]<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.laliga.com/noticias/los-premios-team-of-the-season-de-ea-sportstm-y-laliga-revelan-a-los-mejores-15-jugadores-de-la-temporada |title=Los Premios ‘Team Of The Season’ de EA SPORTSTM y LaLiga revelan a los mejores 15 jugadores de la temporada |trans-title=The EA SPORTSTM and LaLiga 'Team Of The Season' Awards reveal the best 15 players of the season |date=19 May 2023|access-date=21 May 2023|publisher=La Liga}}</ref> *[[International Federation of Football History & Statistics#The World Youth (U20) Team|IFFHS Men's World Youth (U20) Team]]: 2023<ref>{{cite web|date=5 January 2024|title=IFFHS MEN'S YOUTH (U20) WORLD TEAM 2023|url=https://iffhs.com/posts/3301|access-date=5 January 2024|website=IFFHS}}</ref> *[[IFFHS]] Men's Youth (U20) UEFA Team: 2023<ref>{{cite web|title=IFFHS MEN'S YOUTH (U20) UEFA TEAM 2023 |url=https://iffhs.com/posts/3387|date=5 February 2024}}</ref> ==References== {{reflist}} ==External links== {{Commons category}} * [https://www.fcbarcelona.com/en/football/barca-b/players/1863190/balde FC Barcelona official profile] * {{BDFutbol|20068}} * {{UEFA player}} {{FC Barcelona squad}} {{Spain squad 2022 FIFA World Cup}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Balde, Alejandro}} [[Category:2003 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Footballers from Barcelona]] [[Category:Spanish men's footballers]] [[Category:Spain men's youth international footballers]] [[Category:Spain men's under-21 international footballers]] [[Category:Spain men's international footballers]] [[Category:Spanish people of Bissau-Guinean descent]] [[Category:Spanish people of Dominican Republic descent]] [[Category:Sportspeople of Dominican Republic descent]] [[Category:Men's association football fullbacks]] [[Category:La Liga players]] [[Category:Primera Federación players]] [[Category:Segunda División B players]] [[Category:FC Barcelona Atlètic players]] [[Category:FC Barcelona players]] [[Category:2022 FIFA World Cup players]]'