Asier Illarramendi

Real Madrid

On 12 July 2013, Illarramendi signed a six-year contract with Real Madrid for a fee of €32.2 million, the highest amount paid by the club for a Spanish player. He made his official debut on 14 September by starting in a 2–2 away draw against Villarreal, and scored his first goal on 18 December in a 2–0 home win over CD Olímpic de Xàtiva in the round of 32 of the Copa del Rey (also the aggregate score).

Illarramendi scored his first league goal for the Merengues on 22 February 2014, after his long-range effort against Elche was deflected and the hosts won 3–0. His second came on 5 April, when he opened an eventual 4–0 victory at his former team Real Sociedad in the 44th minute. He was a regular in the domestic cup campaign, coming on as a late substitute for Ángel Di María in the 2–1 final defeat of FC Barcelona, adding 11 matches – five starts – in the team's Champions League run but remaining on the bench as they clinched the trophy against Atlético Madrid in the final at the Estádio da Luz.

Illarramendi began his second year with a brief substitute appearance in the 2014 UEFA Super Cup triumph against compatriots Sevilla FC at the Cardiff City Stadium, and was also part of Real Madrid's squad which won the FIFA Club World Cup in Morocco, playing the entirety of the 4–0 semi-final win over Cruz Azul.

Return to Real Sociedad

On 26 August 2015, Illarramendi returned to Real Sociedad, signing a six-year deal – the transfer fee was not officially disclosed by the clubs, but was stated in the media as being between €15–17 million, around half of the figure paid in the opposite direction two years previously. He made his league debut in his second spell three days later, starting and being booked in a 0–0 home draw against Sporting de Gijón. He recorded his first goal for the team in his second spell on 25 October, in a 4–0 win at Levante UD.

In the 2016–17 campaign, Illarramendi had the second-highest number of interceptions across Europe's five major leagues behind only Chelsea's N'Golo Kante. However, he was also noted for his poor disciplinary record, having racked up ten yellow cards by March 2017 including one in each of his four previous games.

Illarramendi scored a career-best seven goals in 2017–18, including braces in home and away victories over Deportivo de La Coruña. He had already exceeded his professional output for his whole career by February with his fifth goal.

On 30 August 2019, Illarramendi suffered a broken fibula in a Basque derby match against Athletic Bilbao; it was presumed the injury would keep him out for a few months, but it was found he required surgery to his shin and ankle ligaments, and he did not feature again prior to the season being halted in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Spain. The delay seemed to have given him time to return before its conclusion, but in June 2020 he suffered a further muscle injury on the training ground, and made no further appearances.

On 24 May 2023, it was announced that captain Illarramendi would leave the Anoeta Stadium on 30 June.

FC Dallas On 3 August 2023, Illarramendi signed with Major League Soccer club FC Dallas on a deal until the end of the season. He finished his first full campaign with 25 games (22 starts) and two goals; additionally, he had a 90% passing rate and recovered the ball 157 times.

Illarramendi was not retained for the 2025 season.

Kitchee Illarramendi moved countries again on 10 September 2025, with the 35-year-old joining Hong Kong Premier League's Kitchee SC.

International career Illarramendi helped Spain to reach the final of the 2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup, featuring in all games but one. He missed one of the penalties in the final shootout, which allowed Nigeria to lift the trophy.

Illarramendi played 16 times for the under-21s in two years. He represented them at the 2013 UEFA European Championship in Israel, being first choice as the nation won the competition and being selected in the team of the tournament.

Manager Julen Lopetegui first called up Illarramendi for the senior side in March 2017, ahead of a 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Israel and a friendly with France. Additionally, he played for the Basque XI from 2013 onwards, opening a 3–1 win over FIFA member Tunisia at the San Mamés Stadium on 30 December 2016.

Illarramendi made his debut for Spain on 7 June 2017, playing the full 90 minutes in a 2–2 friendly draw with Colombia in Murcia. He scored his first goal on 9 October that year, netting the game's only in Israel for the World Cup qualifying campaign.

Career statistics Club

International Scores and results list Spain's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Illarramendi goal. + List of international goals scored by Asier Illarramendi Segunda División: 2009–10 UEFA Champions League: 2013–14

Spain U21 UEFA European Under-21 Championship: 2013