Rubén Rayos Serna (born 21 June 1986), commonly known as Rayo, is a Spanish 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 plays as an
attacking midfielder
In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...
.
Club career
Rayo was born in
Elche
Elche (, ; , , , ; officially: ''/'' ) is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality of Spain, belonging to the province of Alicante, in the Valencian Community. According to 2024's data, Elche has a population of 234,800 inhabitants, ,
Valencian Community
The Valencian Community is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community after Andalusia, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid wit ...
. He finished his youth career with
Elche CF
Elche Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. () is a Spanish professional football club based in Elche, Province of Alicante, in the Valencian Community, Spain. Founded in 1923, the club will compete in La Liga for the 2025–26 season, holding home matches at ...
, and played only
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 ...
football until the age of 25, representing
Villajoyosa CF
Villajoyosa Club de Fútbol is a Spanish football team based in Vila Joiosa, in the autonomous community of Valencia. Founded in 1942, in the 2022–23 season, the club competes in , holding home matches at the ''Estadio Nou Pla'', with a capaci ...
,
FC Barcelona Atlètic
Futbol Club Barcelona Atlètic, commonly referred to as Barça Atlètic or Barça B, is a football team based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that will compete in Segunda Federación, the fourth tier of the Spanish football league system onward ...
,
Orihuela CF
Orihuela Club de Fútbol is a Spanish football team based in Orihuela, in the Valencian Community. Founded in 1993 it plays in , holding home games at '' Estadio Municipal Los Arcos'', with a capacity of 7,000 seats.
History
On 4 August 1993, th ...
and
UE Lleida
Unió Esportiva Lleida was a Spanish football team based in Lleida, in the autonomous community of Catalonia. It was founded as ''Lérida Balompié-AEM'' on 30 October 1939, and became ''Unión Deportiva Lérida'' in 1947, after a merger with ''C ...
.
In the summer of 2011, Rayo moved straight into the
Super League Greece
The Super League Greece 1 (), or Stoiximan Super League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Greece and the highest level of the Greek football league system. The league was formed on 16 July 2006 and repla ...
, joining a host of compatriots at
Asteras Tripolis FC. He scored five league goals in his
first season, adding three in
the campaign's
domestic cup.
Rayo improved his overall totals to nine goals and 12
assists in
2012–13. In the
final of the Greek Cup, against
Olympiacos FC
Olympiacos Football Club ( ), known simply as Olympiacos or Olympiacos Piraeus, is a Greek professional football club based in Piraeus. Part of the major multi-sport club Olympiacos CFP (''Olympiakós Sýndesmos Filáthlon Peiraiós'', "Olymp ...
, he put his team ahead 1–0 in an eventual 3–1
extra time
Overtime (OT) or extra time (ET) is an additional period of play to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw where the scores are the same. In some sports, this extra period is played only if the game is required t ...
loss.
He was eventually chosen Best Foreign Player for his exploits
and, during most of his spell, was also
captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...
.
On 6 June 2013, Rayo signed a three-year contract with
Maccabi Haifa FC, netting 11 goals from 27 appearances in his
first year
A freshman, fresher, first year, or colloquially frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational in ...
to help his new club to fourth position in the regular season of the
Israeli Premier League
The Israeli Premier League (, Ligat HaAl, ) is a professional association football league in Israel and the highest level of the Israeli football league system. The league is contested by 14 clubs, and operates on a system of promotion and rele ...
. In March 2014, he was involved in an incident with
Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv FC's
Rafi Dahan, his harsh tackle producing 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 ...
to his opponent which sidelined him for almost one year – he received a straight
red card
A red card is a type of penalty card that is shown in many sports after a rules infraction.
Red card may also refer to:
Art, entertainment, and media
* ''Red Card'' (album), 1976 release by Streetwalkers
* Red card, suit (cards) of hearts or di ...
, and Dahan was eventually forced to retire; subsequently, Dahan filed a
lawsuit
A lawsuit is a proceeding by one or more parties (the plaintiff or claimant) against one or more parties (the defendant) in a civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today ...
against Rayo and Maccabi Haifa in an Israeli court, winning the legal action after the judge ruled that the other player's actions were deliberate.
On 8 July 2015, Rayo joined French side
FC Sochaux-Montbéliard
Football Club Sochaux-Montbéliard (; commonly referred to as FCSM or simply Sochaux) is a Football in France, French association football club based in the city of Montbéliard. The club was founded in 1928 and currently plays in Championnat N ...
, agreeing to a two-year deal for an undisclosed fee. Roughly one year later, he moved to
Anorthosis Famagusta FC
Anorthosis Famagusta (), commonly known as Anorthosis in English or Anorthosi in Greek, is a Cypriot football club, part of the Famagusta multi-sport club founded in 1911 in Varosha, Famagusta. in the
Cypriot First Division
The Cypriot First Division (), also known as the Cyprus League by Stoiximan for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Cyprus and the highest level of the Cypriot football league system. Operated by the Cyprus Fo ...
.
Career statistics
Honours
Asteras Tripolis
*
Greek Football Cup
The Greek Football Cup (), commonly known as the Greek Cup or Betsson Greek Cup for sponsorship reasons is a Greek football competition, run by the Hellenic Football Federation.
The Greek Cup is the second-most important domestic men's footba ...
runner-up:
2012–13[
Individual
*]Super League Greece
The Super League Greece 1 (), or Stoiximan Super League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Greece and the highest level of the Greek football league system. The league was formed on 16 July 2006 and repla ...
Player of the Year: 2012–13
* Super League Greece Foreign Player of the Year: 2012–13[
]
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rayos, Ruben
1986 births
Living people
21st-century Spanish sportsmen
Spanish men's footballers
Footballers from Elche
Men's association football midfielders
Segunda División B players
Segunda Federación players
Elche CF Ilicitano footballers
Elche CF players
Villajoyosa CF footballers
FC Barcelona Atlètic players
Orihuela CF players
UE Lleida players
SD Ejea players
Super League Greece players
Asteras Tripolis F.C. players
Israeli Premier League players
Maccabi Haifa F.C. players
Ligue 2 players
FC Sochaux-Montbéliard players
Cypriot First Division players
Anorthosis Famagusta FC players
TFF 1. Lig players
Bandırmaspor footballers
Spanish expatriate men's footballers
Expatriate men's footballers in Greece
Expatriate men's footballers in Israel
Expatriate men's footballers in France
Expatriate men's footballers in Cyprus
Expatriate men's footballers in Turkey
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Greece
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Israel
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in France
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Turkey