José García Calvo

José García Calvo
	García Calvo in training with Valladolid
Personal information
Full name	José Antonio García Calvo
Date of birth	1 April 1975 (age 49)
Place of birth	Madrid, Spain
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s)	Centre back
Youth career
	Viajes Nogal-Berlín
1993–1994	Real Madrid
Senior career*
Years	Team
1994–1997	Real Madrid B
1996–1997	Real Madrid
1997–2001	Valladolid
2001–2006	Atlético Madrid
2006–2009	Valladolid
Total
International career
1996–1998	Spain U21
2002	Spain
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Template:Spanish name

José Antonio García Calvo (born 1 April 1975) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a central defender.

During his professional career he represented both Madrid clubs, Real and Atlético (but was mainly associated with Valladolid), appearing in 355 La Liga games over the course of 15 seasons and scoring 12 goals.

Club career

A product of Real Madrid's youth system, Madrid-born García Calvo appeared in six games for the first team as it won the La Liga championship in the 1996–97 season, eventually totalling only 16 during his spell.^[1] His first match with the main squad came on 2 March 1996 in a 5–0 home win against UD Salamanca (Fernando Sanz, another centre-back from the youth ranks, also played his first top flight match that day); subsequently, he signed with Real Valladolid where he was a main squad regular for four years, scoring his first professional goal in his first year.

Calvo then added five years in another side from the capital, Atlético Madrid, being instrumental in the Colchoneros' 2002 promotion from the second division with 35 games played and 11 bookings.

Unable to settle at Atlético in his final two years, García Calvo returned to Valladolid in the 2006 summer, helping the team return to the top flight after a three-year absence. He was an undisputed starter throughout the following season, netting in a 2–2 home draw against Deportivo de La Coruña on 2 September 2007 as the Castile-La Mancha outfit went on to finally retain its status.

Following recurrent foot problems that ailed him throughout 2008–09, Calvo announced his retirement from the game at 34.^[2] Immediately afterwards, he was appointed his last club's director of football.

International career

García Calvo earned three caps for the Spanish national team, the first coming on 21 August 2002 against Hungary during a Ferenc Puskás testimonial match (1–1 draw).

Previously, he was picked for the under-21 side that won the 1998 UEFA European Championship.