25 facts on birthday boy Angeliño
Our left wing-back turned 25 years old on 4th January | To celebrate, here are 25 things you might not know about Angeliño
Happy Birthday! On 4th January 1997, Angeliño was born in Spain. Since then, he's moved around the continent before landing at RB Leipzig.
In honour of his 25th birthday, here are 25 things to know about Angeliño.
1. Angeliño's full name is José Ángel Esmoris Tasende.
2. He was born in the small coastal town of Coristanco.
3. Angeliño began playing football at the age of 4, at the Escolar Luis Calvo Sanz near his hometown.
4. He joined Deportivo La Coruña, the most successful club in Galicia, in 2007 when he was 10 years old.
5. In 2013, a 16-year-old Angeliño joined the academy of Premier League side Manchester City.
6. Shortly after his move to England, Angeliño received his first youth call-up for Spain. He made his debut for the U17s in Marburg during a 1-1 draw against Germany. Current RBL teammate Benjamin Henrichs was on the bench for the hosts.
7. In 2015, Angeliño was loaned to American side New York City FC. Just four days after his transfer, he made his professional debut in MLS. He was involved in four goals in 14 games for the side.
8. Upon returning to England, he made his debut for Man City in 2016 under head coach Manuel Pellegrini in the FA Cup. The following season, Angeliño made his debut in an international club competition under head coach Pep Guardiola, featuring in the Champions League qualifiers.
9. Angeliño joined Girona FC on loan in January 2017 but didn't make an appearance for the club. Thirty days later he joined RCD Mallorca on loan. He made 17 appearances for the side in the Segunda División (2 assists).
10. Angeliño joined NAC Breda on loan for the 2017/18 season, playing every minute of every competitive game for the club. He scored his first professional goal while at the Dutch side (3 goals, 7 assists).
11. While in the Netherlands, Angeliño was named the Talent of the Month in September 2017, as well as being included in the league's best XI of the month on two occasions. He was also named to the Eredivisie's Team of the Season as one of just four players not from Ajax or Eindhoven.
12. In 2018, he joined Eindhoven on a permanent move. He made his Champions League debut against Barcelona for the side, starting every league and CL match and only being subbed off once (11 goal involvements).
13. During his year at Eindhoven, Angeliño was named the Eredivisie's Talent of the Season.
14. He was called up to the Spain U21s twice during his time at PSV, featuring alongside current Leipzig teammate Dani Olmo. Angeliño's second match for the U21s was against France U21s, who counted teammate Nordi Mukiele and former RBL man Dayot Upamecano to their ranks.
15. Angeliño returned to Man City the following season, and he made his Premier League debut in 2019. He was involved in two goals in 12 competitive games for City in 2019/20.
16. Angeliño joined RB Leipzig on loan on 31st January 2020. He made his debut for the club in the DFB-Pokal on 4th January, his Bundesliga debut on 9th February and his Champions League debut for RBL on 19th February.
17. His first goal for Leipzig came in a 5-0 league wn against FC Schalke 04 on 22nd February 2020. Angeliño was involved in five goals in his first season in Leipzig.
18. Angeliño scored his first Champions League goal on 20th October 2020, in a 2-0 win against Basaksehir, His first DFB-Pokal goal came in a 3-0 win against FC Augsburg on 22nd December 2020.
19. He netted an impressive four league goals in 2020/21, as well as one in the DFB-Pokal and three in the Champions League. German football weekly kicker awarded Angeliño the prestigious ranking of 'world class wing-back' in their winter edition. He was later named in the Bundesliga's Team of the Season.
20. Although he stands just 1.75m tall, Angeliño has scored two headers for RBL: in back-to-back games against Schalke and Augsburg last season (MD3 & 4).
21. Angeliño is left footed and is yet to score a goal for RBL with his right foot.
22. His younger brother Dani Tasende is also a footballer and also plays at left wing. He currently plays for the Villareal reserves.
23. Angeliño wears size 42.5 football boots.
24. Angeliño has multiple tattoos, the first of which was a turtle and an eagle on his right arm. His most recent tattoos are a lion and a wolf, both on his back.
25. His role models are Brazil legends Roberto Carlos and Marcelo.