Oleguer Presas

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Oleguer
Personal information
Full name	Oleguer Presas i Renom
Date of birth	February 2, 1980 (1980-02-02) (age 28)
Place of birth	Sabadell, Catalonia, Spain
Height	1.87 m (6 ft 1+1⁄2 in)
Playing position	Centre Back, Right Back
Club information
Current club	Ajax
Number	3
Youth clubs
	Lepanto Sant Gabriel Gramenet B
Senior clubs1
Years	Club	App (Gls)*
1999-2001 2001-2002 2002-2008 2008-	Gramenet FC Barcelona B FC Barcelona AFC Ajax	041 (2) 034 (0) 131 (1) 004 (1)
1 Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of October 18, 2008. * Appearances (Goals)

Oleguer Presas i Renom (born February 2, 1980 in Sabadell, Catalonia, Spain) is a Spanish football player, currently playing for AFC Ajax. He is an economics graduate who missed training at FC Barcelona to complete his finals.

Contents 1 Career 2 Letter to his fans 3 Political writings 4 Trophies 5 Sporting statistics 6 Career statistics 7 References

[edit] Career

Oleguer, started his career at the modest Lepanto^{[citation needed]}, a club from his hometown of Sabadell. In 1997 he joined UDA Gramenet, making his senior debut in 2001. When he was 21 he signed for the FC Barcelona B team and made his debut for FC Barcelona in 2002 during a Champions League match between Barça and Galatasaray. During the following season he played for both teams, on occasion being a last minute addition to the senior squad.

He was an important player for FC Barcelona as they won La Liga in 2005. He is a speedy and incisive defender and embodies the youth development philosophy of FC Barcelona. He usually plays as a right back, but due to repeated injuries to central defenders in the 2004-2005 season, he was often paired with Carles Puyol. During the 05-06 season, he challenged Juliano Belletti for the right back position, as he presented a more defensive alternative to the Brazilian.

He has sympathies with left wing and Catalan nationalist causes and was asked by Subcomandante Marcos of the Zapatistas to play a charity match in Chiapas, Mexico during the summer of 2005. In late 2005 he was invited to take part in a meeting of shortlisted players for the Spanish national squad, an invitation that he accepted.

On 17 May. 2006 Barça beat Arsenal F.C. to win the UEFA Champions League for the second time in their history. Oleguer was in the first eleven, but on the day he appeared tense and slow, struggling to neutralize Freddie Ljungberg's runs down the wing and more importantly not being able to stop Sol Campbell scoring the opening goal. In the 71st minute he was substituted in favor of Juliano Belletti, an inspired decision by manager Frank Rijkaard, as Belletti went on to score the Champions League winning goal on the night.

Oleguer signed a contract extension in July 2006, keeping him with the club until 2010. Oleguer had the honor of captaining the team for the first time in their initial pre-season game of the 2006-07 campaign, in recognition of his work over the last few seasons. With the arrival of Gianluca Zambrotta and Lilian Thuram, Oleguer found himself coming on from the bench in the first few matches of the 2006-07 La Liga season. On 29 November 2006 He was awarded the President Companys award for his efforts in promoting the official recognition of Catalan sports at an international level.

On the 7 February 2007, in an article written for Basque language newspaper Berria, he questioned the validity and independence of legal and judicial processes in the Spanish state, using the example of convicted ETA member Jose Ignacio de Juana Chaos and his hunger strike to question those processes. His decision to write the article brought veiled criticism from his coach, Frank Rijkaard, and Barça President Joan Laporta. As a direct result of the article, Oleguer lost his boot sponsorship with sports firm Kelme^[1]. Oleguer has been the subject of a strong public backlash among some elements in Spain and is regularly heckled and booed in some of the country's football stadiums due to the article and his pro-Catalan independence stance. When asked about whether he felt that he should not have written the piece, Oleguer replied, "The consequences I suffer are nothing compared to what many people go through. What did sadden me, though, was that most people didn't actually read the piece. If people engaged in dialogue with intelligence and disagreed, then fine, but they didn't."

The 2007-2008 season started positively in sporting terms as he became a fixture in Rijkaard's starting eleven. However, at a personal level he was accused by a Spanish prosecutor of an assault on a policeman and with ten other people charged with affray during an incident in a bar in Sabadell which occurred in 2003. He also spoke out against the Spanish football federation's banning of the Catalan national football team playing a friendly against the USA in conjunction with FIFA recognized international matches in that same week. On the 9th of February 2008 in a league match against Sevilla FC, Oleguer broke a bone in his left hand. He was operated on and it was predicted he would spend six weeks on the sidelines. On the 29 of July 2008 Oleguer signed a three season deal with Dutch club AFC Ajax. The transfer was for 3 million euros plus 2.25 million euros of variables. Ajax Manager Marco van Basten said of Oleguer: " I am happy that we have acquired Oleguer. His qualities fit exactly with what Ajax needs. We are all convinced of that. He has a good age, experience at a high level and is a real defender." ^[2]

[edit] Letter to his fans

His letter to his fans when leaving Barça is as follows:

"When I arrived at the Camp Nou I saw one of my greatest dreams come true. From an early age I dreamed of wearing the Barça shirt; I used to imagine the Camp Nou at full capacity and me playing for the league title, surrounded by magnificent players, and helping win by scoring one, two or three goals. Obviously not everything is possible, but what had only been a dream a few years before, became reality on the 13th of November 2002: to play for Barça and be able to celebrate with everyone involved in Barcelona the teams successes. I arrived without much fuss, with a desire to learn and give my very best in order for the dream to continue. Aware of my faults and virtues, but above all bearing in mind that what allowed me to play in this team was the desire to do well and the feeling that makes you give your all on the pitch. We all know that there are days when things go well and others not so well but the will to improve and the effort have been inseparable companions along the way. A few years in which I have enjoyed unforgettable experiences, like the title-winning celebrations on the streets of Barcelona and the Camp Nou, or winning the Champion’s League in Paris. But these moments would mean nothing without the little details that go along with them: the signs of joy, the support, and the warmth of the people, the complicity with my team-mates, the jokes, the hugs and above all knowing that each title has been the culmination of a years work, the team and the fans together. Thank-you to all those who shared these experiences with me, without them it would not have been possible. I’ve tried to show myself as I am. I’ve tried to act professionally coherent with my ideas. I’ve never enjoyed being the centre of attention for the press but this is not why I refuse to express my feelings. We all have our own and it is good to be able to express them and talk about them freely and respectfully in order to understand others and put ourselves in their skin. I think it is the best way to move towards a tolerant society. My declarations have often been used to create problems, they have tried to read between the lines with things I haven’t said and misinterpreted others out of context. Throughout these years I have merely expressed my will to improve the society in which we live, still full of injustices, inequality and problems to be solved. Thank you to all those who made an effort to understand and respect me, whether they agreed with me or not. I say goodbye therefore with a letter, without making a noise, just as I arrived. I am going to Amsterdam to live a new experience and I hope to enjoy the minutes I haven’t had recently and help my new team to success. I think now is the time to do so and a good opportunity to experience other cultures, other languages, a new club, new team-mates…Definitively, a good way to continue growing in every way. Therefore, it only remains to say that I will be among the millions of anonymous heads who celebrate my dream teams’ victories together. Thank you for everything. A big hug Oleguer"

[edit] Political writings

On March 30, 2006, Oleguer published his first book with recollections on his youth, early career and the La Liga triumph of 2004-2005. The book, called Camí d'Itaca (The Road to Ithaca), dealt with such varied subjects as childhood anorexia, the antifascist struggle and the previous Spanish government's involvement in both Gulf Wars. The book also touched on his love of tennis and the experience of the street parade through the Avinguda Diagonal in Barcelona upon winning La Liga in 2005.

Though injured just before the end of the 2005-06 season in a Champions League match and forced to miss the league-winning match against Celta de Vigo, Oleguer was able to return to the pitch to play in the next match at the Camp Nou when the trophy was presented to the team. True to form, Oleguer celebrated wrapped in the colors of the senyera estelada, the Catalan separatism flag. He has said he is an anarchist if by anarchist is meant a person who stands up against social injustice. ^[3]

[edit] Trophies

• 2004-05 Spanish League title
• 2005-Spanish supercup
• 2005-06 Spanish League title
• 2005-06 UEFA Champions League
• 2006-Spanish supercup

All trophies won with FC Barcelona.

[edit] Sporting statistics

• Defender
• Height: 187 cm
• Weight: 82 kg
• His squad number at Ajax is 3.
• His current contract runs until the 1^st July 2011.
• Ajax have an option to extend his contract for one more year.

[edit] Career statistics

As of December 12, 2007^[4]

Club	Season	League		Cup		Europe[5]		Total
		Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Gramenet	1998-2001	41	2	0	0	2	0	41	2
	Total	41	2					41	2
FC Barcelona B	2001-2002	34	0			-	-	34	0
	Total	34	0			-	-	34	0
FC Barcelona	2002-03	3	0	0	0	2	0	5	0
	2003-04	19	0	0	0	4	0	23	0
	2004-05	36	1	0	0	7	0	43	1
	2005-06	33	0	0	0	11	0	44	0
	2006-07	25	0	5	0	5	0	35	0
	2007-08	9	0	1	0	2	0	12	0
	Total	125	1	6	0	31	0	162	1
Ajax	2008-09	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
Career totals		201	3	6	0	31	0	238	3

[edit] References

v • d • e AFC Ajax – current squad 1 Stekelenburg • 2 Silva • 3 Oleguer • 4 Vermaelen • 5 Vertonghen • 6 Lindgren • 7 Kennedy • 8 Emanuelson • 9 Huntelaar • 10 Sulejmani • 11 Aissati • 12 Vermeer • 15 Van der Wiel • 16 Suárez • 18 Gabri • 19 Rommedahl • 20 Cvitanich • 21 Enoh • 22 de Jong • 23 Leonardo • 24 van der Heijden • 25 Sno • 26 Sarpong • 28 Anita • 29 Donald • 30 Gentenaar • 33 Martina • 37 Schilder • -- Vonk • Manager: van Basten