Francisco Manuel Rico Castro (born 3 August 1987) is a Spanish former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

. Formed at

Pontevedra Pontevedra (, ) is a city in the autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, in northwestern Spain. It is the capital of both the ''Pontevedra (comarca), Comarca'' and Province of Pontevedra, and the capital of the Rías Baixas. It is als ...

, he spent most of his career – riddled with injury problems – at

Granada Granada ( ; ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada (Spain), Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence ...

, appearing in 117 competitive matches. In

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known as the Primera División or La Liga, and officially known as LaLiga EA Sports for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Spain and the highest ...

, he also played with

Eibar Eibar (, ) is a city and municipality within the province of Gipuzkoa, in the Autonomous Community of Euskadi. It is the capital of the '' eskualde / comarca'' of Debabarrena. Eibar has 27,138 inhabitants ( Eustat, 2018). Its chief industry is ...

Club career

Pontevedra

Born in Portonovo, Province of Pontevedra, Rico joined local

Pontevedra CF Pontevedra Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. is a Spanish football team in Pontevedra, in the autonomous community of Galicia. Founded on 16 October 1941 it currently plays in , holding home matches at '' Estadio Municipal de Pasarón'', with a capacity o ...

's youth ranks at the age of 14, making his senior debut on 18 December 2005 in a

Segunda División B Segunda División B (English: second division B) was the third tier of the Spanish football league system containing 102 teams divided into five groups, until it was replaced by the new structure in 2021. It was administered by the Royal Spanish ...

match against

CD San Isidro Club Deportivo Raqui San Isidro is a Spanish football team based in San Isidro, in the autonomous community of Canary Islands. Founded in 1970 it plays in , holding home matches at ''Estadio La Palmera'', with a 2,500-seat capacity. Season to s ...

. Mainly a substitute in his first year, he became an important part of the

Galicians Galicians ( or ''pobo galego''; ) are an ethnic group primarily residing in Galicia, northwest Iberian Peninsula. Historical emigration resulted in populations in other parts of Spain, Europe, and the Americas. Galicians possess distinct cu ...

' squad the following seasons.

Real Madrid

Rico joined

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...

in summer 2008, being assigned to the

reserve team In sports, a reserve team is a team composed of players who are under contract to a club but who do not regularly play in matches for the club's primary team. Reserve teams usually include players who are part of the larger first-team squad but ...

also in the third division. He made his debut on 31 August, scoring the first goal in a 2–0 win at UD Vecindario. On 14 September, in his third appearance, against CD Alfaro, he suffered an

anterior cruciate ligament injury An anterior cruciate ligament injury occurs when the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is either stretched, partially torn, or completely torn. The most common injury is a complete tear. Symptoms include pain, an audible cracking sound during in ...

eight minutes into the match, being lost for the rest of the campaign. Thirteen months after his injury, Rico played his first game of the season, against

RSD Alcalá Real Sociedad Deportiva Alcalá is a Spanish football team based in Alcalá de Henares in the Community of Madrid. Founded in 1929 it plays in Tercera División RFEF – Group 7, holding home matches at ''Estadio Municipal del Val'', with a capac ...

. On 8 November 2009, he scored twice in the 4–2 home victory over

Gimnástica de Torrelavega Real Sociedad Gimnástica de Torrelavega is a Spanish football team based in Torrelavega, in the autonomous community of Cantabria. Founded on 28 September 1907 it is the oldest football club in the region, and currently plays in , holding home ...

, from penalties. In the first round of 2010–11, Rico found the net against Coruxo FC in a 3–2 home win. He scored a career-best six goals during the campaign, including one in the unsuccessful promotion playoffs.

Granada

On 5 August 2011, Rico left Castilla and signed for

Granada CF Granada Club de Fútbol (), known simply as Granada or ''"Graná"'', is a professional List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football club based in the city of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, that currently plays in Segunda ...

, with Real Madrid retaining an option for the player in case of a future transfer. On 25 September, he scored his first

goal in only his second league game for his new team: after replacing Moisés Hurtado at

half-time In several team sports, matches are played in two halves. Half-time (also written halftime or half time) is the name given to the interval between the two halves of the match. Typically, after half-time, teams swap ends of the field of play in or ...

, he netted the equaliser in an eventual 1–1 home draw with

CA Osasuna Club Atlético Osasuna (, ''Osasuna Athletic Club''), or simply Osasuna, is a Spanish professional football club based in Pamplona, Navarre. It was founded on 24 October 1920 and plays in La Liga, the top division of Spanish football. The team's ...

. In April 2012, Rico was sidelined for the rest of the season after suffering another injury to his right knee. He also missed the entirety of the following campaign. Rico was ever-present for the

Andalusia Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...

ns in 2013–14, with his side narrowly avoiding relegation. On 26 February 2015, he renewed his contract with the club until 2020. On 26 August 2016, Rico was loaned to fellow top-tier

SD Eibar Sociedad Deportiva Eibar (in ) is a Spanish football league teams, Spanish professional football club based in Eibar, Gipuzkoa, in the autonomous Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country. Founded on 30 November 1940, the men’s te ...

for two years. On 2 October, he scored their first-ever goal against Real Madrid and at the

Santiago Bernabéu Stadium Santiago Bernabéu Stadium (, ) is a retractable roof association football, football stadium in Madrid, Spain. With a seating capacity of around 83,000 following its extensive renovation completed in late 2024, the stadium has the second-largest ...

in a 1–1 draw. He missed the entire 2017–18 season, due to the same ailment. Returning to Granada for 2018–19, Rico only appeared in one league match during the campaign for the runners-up. On 16 July 2019, he terminated his contract. After retiring, Rico worked with Eibar and

Sporting de Gijón Real Sporting de Gijón, S.A.D. (), commonly known as Real Sporting, Sporting Gijón, or simply Sporting is a Spanish professional association football, football club from Gijón, Principality of Asturias. Founded on 1 July 1905, it plays in the ...

in directorial capacities. He was later part of his former Eibar coach José Luis Mendilibar's staffs at

Sevilla FC Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Seville, Andalusia, that competes in La Liga, the Spanish football league system, top flight of Spanish football. The club was formed on 25 January ...

and Olympiacos FC.

Career statistics

Honors

Pontevedra *

: 2006–07 * Copa Federación de España: 2006–07

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rico, Fran 1987 births Living people People from O Salnés 21st-century Spanish sportsmen Spanish men's footballers Footballers from the Province of Pontevedra Men's association football midfielders La Liga players Segunda División players Segunda División B players Portonovo SD players Pontevedra CF footballers Real Madrid Castilla footballers Granada CF footballers SD Eibar footballers Sevilla FC non-playing staff Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Greece