Jeffrén Suárez

Venezuelan footballer (born 1988)

Jeffrén
Jeffrén playing with the Spain under-21s in 2011
Personal information
Full name Jeffrén Isaac Suárez Bermúdez[1]
Date of birth (1988-01-20) 20 January 1988 (age 36)[1]
Place of birth Ciudad Bolívar, Venezuela
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)[1]
Position(s) Forward, winger
Team information
Current team
Chiangmai United
Number 10
Youth career
2003–2004 Tenerife
2004–2007 Barcelona
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2006–2007 Barcelona C 7 (1)
2006–2009 Barcelona B 82 (14)
2008–2011 Barcelona 22 (3)
2011–2014 Sporting CP 24 (5)
2014–2015 Valladolid 46 (3)
2015–2017 Eupen 36 (3)
2017–2019 Grasshoppers 42 (5)
2019 AEK Larnaca 14 (0)
2020–2021 Slaven Belupo 19 (1)
2021 Al Dhaid 4 (5)
2021–2023 Lamphun Warriors 44 (14)
2023– Chiangmai United 28 (5)
International career
2004 Spain U16 3 (0)
2004–2005 Spain U17 3 (0)
2006–2007 Spain U19 11 (5)
2007 Spain U20 1 (0)
2009–2011 Spain U21 12 (2)
2015–2016 Venezuela 4 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21 April 2024 (UTC)

Jeffrén Isaac Suárez Bermúdez (born 20 January 1988), known simply as Jeffrén, is a Venezuelan footballer who plays as a forward or a winger for Thai League 2 club Chiangmai United.

He started his career with Barcelona, appearing rarely and signing for Sporting CP in 2011. Other than in Spain, he also played professionally in Portugal, Belgium, Switzerland, Cyprus, Croatia, the United Arab Emirates and Thailand.

Jeffrén won 30 caps for Spain at youth level, winning the European Championships with the under-19 and the under-21 teams. In 2015, he made his senior debut for Venezuela.

Early life

Born in Ciudad Bolívar, Venezuela, Jeffrén was just one year old when his family left the country for the Spanish island of Tenerife.[2]

FC Barcelona talent scouts spotted him and, in 2004, he was signed for its youth teams from CD Tenerife, first being coached by Guillermo Hoyos, who played him as a midfielder.[3]

Club career

Barcelona

Jeffrén played three full seasons with FC Barcelona B,[4] suffering Segunda División B relegation in 2006–07 and scoring six goals in 30 games the following season in an immediate promotion. On 8 November 2006, at the age of 18, he made his debut with the first team, against CF Badalona in a Copa del Rey round-of-32 match, coming on as a substitute for Javier Saviola in the 83rd minute of a 4–0 home win (6–1 on aggregate).[5]

Jeffrén during a Barcelona training session, alongside teammates Eric Abidal and Bojan.

Impressed at the player's performance for the reserves, first-team manager Pep Guardiola called Jeffrén for the 2008–09 pre-season, where he played all seven matches scoring twice, including once on 30 July against ACF Fiorentina in the 47th minute of a 3–1 victory.[6] On 17 May 2009, he made his first La Liga appearance (of two in the season), as already crowned champions Barcelona lost 1–2 at RCD Mallorca.[7]

On 19 December 2009, Jeffrén replaced Thierry Henry late into the FIFA Club World Cup final against Estudiantes de La Plata.[8] Two days later, he picked up a leg muscle injury that left him out for 4–5 weeks in a 1–1 friendly draw with Kazma SC in Kuwait, in commemoration of the Asian side's 45th anniversary.[9]

On 10 February 2010, Barcelona announced Jeffrén had signed a contract extension with the club, keeping him at the Camp Nou until 30 June 2012 with a buyout clause set at 10 million.[10][11][12] On the 14th, he started as right back in a 2–1 loss at Atlético Madrid.[13]

On 3 April 2010, Jeffrén scored his first top-division goal after a low cross from Eric Abidal, in a 4–1 home defeat of Athletic Bilbao.[14] On the 24th he added another in spectacular fashion, in a 3–1 home win over Xerez CD[15] and, as the Catalans renewed their domestic supremacy, finished the campaign with 18 official appearances.

Jeffrén appeared less for Barça's first team in 2010–11.[16] On 29 November 2010, he came from the bench to close the scoring in El Clásico against Real Madrid, in a 5–0 home victory.[17]

Sporting CP

On 4 August 2011, Sporting CP signed Jeffrén for €3.75 million, plus €200,000 in bonus. He penned a five-year contract with a buy-out clause of €30 million. In addition, if the Lisbon club sold the player for a fee higher than €3.75M, Barcelona would receive 20% of the added value/differential value;[18][19] the Catalans also retained an exclusive buy-back option for €8 million and €12 million, in 2012 and 2013 respectively.[20]

Jeffrén played his first competitive match with Sporting on 13 August 2011, in a 1–1 home draw against S.C. Olhanense.[21] He spent the vast majority of the first half of his first season sidelined with physical problems.[22]

Jeffrén returned to action on 11 March 2012, and only needed 12 minutes on the pitch to score two goals in a 5–0 home victory over Vitória de Guimarães.[23] He contributed only 13 league games in his second year, and was deemed surplus to requirements subsequently.[24][25]

Valladolid

On 1 February 2014, Jeffrén returned to the Spanish top flight when he joined Real Valladolid on a two-and-a-half-year deal.[26] He made his debut on 9 February at home against Elche CF, coming on at half time for Víctor Pérez: he crossed the ball for Humberto Osorio's 2–2 equaliser, but only a minute later left the pitch with a muscular injury after his team had already used all three substitutes.[27]

Jeffrén scored his first goal for Valladolid on 2 November 2014, coming off the bench to score an 81st-minute winner in a 2–1 win against Girona FC at the Estadio Nuevo José Zorrilla that put his team on top of the second division table.[28] He finished the campaign with three goals from 35 appearances, the other two coming in each fixture against former side Barcelona B – the first being a 7–0 thrashing on 21 December.[29]

On 29 August 2015, Jeffrén terminated his contract with the Castile and León club.[30]

Eupen

On the same day as leaving Valladolid, Jeffrén signed a three-year deal at K.A.S. Eupen from the Belgian Second Division.[31] He made his debut on 13 September, replacing Guy Dufour in the 57th minute of a 1–4 home loss to K. Lierse SK. He scored his first goal for his new team thirteen days later, an added-time strike to seal a 3–1 win over R. White Star Bruxelles at the Kehrwegstadion.[32]

On 3 October 2015, Jeffrén netted twice in a 5–1 rout at K.S.K. Heist.[33] He finished the season with three goals in 17 matches, as the side came third and were promoted to the Belgian First Division A for administrative reasons.[34]

Later years

Jeffren signed for Grasshopper Club Zürich of the Swiss Super League on a two-year deal on 9 July 2017.[35] He left in late January 2019 for AEK Larnaca FC in the Cypriot First Division[36] and, one year later, switched to the Croatian First Football League with NK Slaven Belupo.[37]

After a brief spell with Al Dhaid SC in the United Arab Emirates, Jeffrén signed with Lamphun Warriors F.C. of the Thai League 2 in June 2021.[38]

International career

Spain youth

Jeffrén playing for Spain under-21s in 2011.

Jeffrén was part of the Spain under-19 squad that won the 2006 UEFA European Championship, playing eight matches and scoring three goals.[39] Shortly after, he was called by Venezuela national team coach Richard Páez for the 2007 Copa América, but eventually did not switch allegiance due to injury.[40]

On 6 February 2009, Jeffrén received his first under-21 callup. In 2011 he was selected by manager Luis Milla for the European Championships in Denmark, appearing in three games and scoring in the semi-final against Belarus (3–1 win)[41] as the national team won their third trophy in the category.[42]

Venezuela

Following his Spanish international youth spell, Jeffrén showed openness to represent Venezuela at senior level,[43] an option he himself had discarded in 2010 when he was consulted by a journalist of his native country.[44] On 19 March 2015, however, he acquired the necessary paperwork,[45] being called up for the first time on 18 August[46] and winning his first cap on 8 September by playing 31 minutes in a 1–1 friendly with Panama.[47]

Career statistics

As of match played on 12 May 2023[48][49][50]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Cup[51] Continental[52] Other[53] Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Barcelona C 2005–06 Tercera División 5 0 5 0
2006–07 Tercera División 2 1 2 1
Total 7 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 1
Barcelona B 2006–07 Segunda División B 32 3 32 3
2007–08 Tercera División 30 6 30 6
2008–09 Segunda División B 20 5 20 5
Total 82 14 0 0 0 0 0 0 82 14
Barcelona 2006–07 La Liga 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0
2007–08 La Liga 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2008–09 La Liga 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
2009–10 La Liga 12 2 2 0 2 0 2 0 18 2
2010–11 La Liga 8 1 3 0 2 0 0 0 13 1
Total 22 3 6 0 4 0 2 0 34 3
Sporting CP 2011–12 Primeira Liga 11 3 1 0 1 0 1 0 14 3
2012–13 Primeira Liga 13 2 1 0 3 0 4 0 21 2
Total 24 5 2 0 4 0 5 0 35 5
Valladolid 2013–14 La Liga 11 0 0 0 11 0
2014–15 Segunda División 35 3 1 0 36 3
Total 46 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 47 3
Eupen 2015–16 Belgian Second Division 17 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 18 3
2016–17 Belgian First Division A 19 0 5 0 0 0 7 2 31 2
Total 36 3 6 0 0 0 7 2 49 5
Grasshoppers 2017–18 Swiss Super League 32 5 3 1 0 0 35 6
2018–19 Swiss Super League 10 0 1 0 0 0 11 0
Total 42 5 4 1 0 0 0 0 46 6
AEK Larnaca 2018–19 Cypriot First Division 14 0 2 0 0 0 16 0
Slaven Belupo 2019–20 Croatian First Football League 11 1 1 0 0 0 12 1
2020–21 Croatian First Football League 8 0 1 0 0 0 9 0
Total 19 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 21 1
Al Dhaid 2020–21 UAE Second Division League 4 5 0 0 4 5
Lamphun Warriors 2021–22 Thai League 2 27 12 1 0 0 0 28 12
2022–23 Thai League 1 17 2 1 0 0 0 18 2
Total 44 14 2 0 0 0 0 0 46 14
Career total 340 54 25 1 8 0 14 2 387 57

Honours

Barcelona B

Barcelona

Sporting CP

Lamphun Warrior

Spain U21

Spain U19

References

  1. ^ a b c Jeffrén Suárez at AS.com (in Spanish) Edit this at Wikidata
  2. ^ "Jeffren Suárez, el nuevo Henry" [Jeffren Suárez, the new Henry] (in Spanish). Official website. 30 March 2010. Archived from the original on 14 February 2010. Retrieved 30 March 2010.
  3. ^ "Jeffren Suárez Bermúdez" (in Spanish). FC Barcelona. Archived from the original on 4 September 2012. Retrieved 2 November 2011.
  4. ^ "Debe ser el número 23" [Must be number 23] (in Spanish). ESPN Deportes. 18 November 2006. Retrieved 15 September 2015.
  5. ^ "El Barcelona golea sin problemas al Badalona y Saviola se aprovecha" [Barcelona have no problems routing Badalona and Saviola seizes chance] (in Spanish). Marca. 8 November 2006. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  6. ^ Bogunyà, Roger (30 July 2008). "Another strong display (1–3)". FC Barcelona. Archived from the original on 24 May 2011. Retrieved 1 January 2010.
  7. ^ "Mallorca 2–1 Barcelona". ESPN Soccernet. 17 May 2009. Archived from the original on 26 October 2012. Retrieved 3 November 2011.
  8. ^ "Estudiantes La Plata 1–2 Barcelona". ESPN Soccernet. 19 December 2009. Retrieved 19 December 2009.
  9. ^ "Barcelona's Suarez out with injury". Fox Sports. 22 December 2009. Retrieved 22 December 2009.
  10. ^ "Jeffren extends deal until 2012". FC Barcelona. 10 February 2010. Archived from the original on 30 July 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2010.
  11. ^ "Jeffren handed new Barça deal". FIFA. 10 February 2010. Archived from the original on 17 February 2010. Retrieved 28 February 2010.
  12. ^ "Jeffrén accepts new Barcelona terms". UEFA. 10 February 2010. Retrieved 28 February 2010.
  13. ^ Clos, Jordi (14 February 2010). "Barça lose unbeaten record (2–1)". FC Barcelona. Archived from the original on 23 March 2010. Retrieved 10 February 2010.
  14. ^ Leong, KS (3 April 2010). "Barcelona 4–1 Athletic Bilbao: Jeffren, Bojan Krkic & Lionel Messi tame Los Leones". Goal. Retrieved 3 April 2010.
  15. ^ McLean, Andrew (24 April 2010). "Barcelona 3–1 Xerez: Ibrahimovic powers the Blaugrana past nine-man Xerez". Goal. Retrieved 24 April 2010.
  16. ^ "El Barça permite a Jeffren negociar con el Sporting de Lisboa" [Barça allow Jeffren to negotiate with Sporting Lisbon] (in Spanish). Reuters. 1 August 2011. Retrieved 10 November 2021.
  17. ^ Brown, Oliver (29 November 2010). "Barcelona 5 Real Madrid 0: match report". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 30 November 2010.
  18. ^ "Acord entre el FC Barcelona i l'Sporting Clube de Portugal pel traspàs de Jeffren" [Agreement between FC Barcelona and Sporting Clube de Portugal for transfer of Jeffren] (in Catalan). FC Barcelona. 4 August 2011. Archived from the original on 31 July 2012. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
  19. ^ Comunicado (announcement); Portuguese Securities Market Commission, 3 August 2011 (in Portuguese)
  20. ^ Comunicado (Announcement); Portuguese Securities Market Commission, 4 August 2011 (in Portuguese)
  21. ^ "Leão também arranca com empate" [Lion also starts with draw] (in Portuguese). Diário de Notícias. 13 August 2011. Retrieved 10 November 2021.
  22. ^ "Jeffren ainda longe de ser opção" [Jeffren still far from being an option] (in Portuguese). Record. 12 November 2011. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  23. ^ Cole, Richard (11 March 2012). "Sporting hit Guimaraes for five". PortuGOAL. Archived from the original on 10 August 2012. Retrieved 12 March 2012.
  24. ^ Jones, Daniel (2 June 2013). "Liverpool want Sporting winger Jeffren Suarez to cushion blow of Luis Suarez exit". Metro. Retrieved 15 September 2013.
  25. ^ Lazarevic, Nemanja (31 August 2013). "Jeffren Suarez set for Espanyol switch". Soccer News. Retrieved 15 September 2013.
  26. ^ "El Pucela ficha a Jeffren" [Pucela sign Jeffren] (in Spanish). Real Valladolid. 1 February 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  27. ^ "Osorio inspires Valladolid fightback". Sky Sports. 9 February 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  28. ^ "Zorrilla vuelve a ver ganar a un Valladolid que se sitúa líder" [Zorrilla finally sees win for Valladolid that reach the top place] (in Spanish). Marca. 2 November 2014. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
  29. ^ "7–0. El Valladolid despide el año con gran goleada ante el Barcelona B" [7–0. Valladolid say goodbye to year with great thrashing of Barcelona B] (in Spanish). Mundo Deportivo. 21 December 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
  30. ^ Jeffren sale del Pucela (Jeffren leaves Pucela); Real Valladolid, 29 August 2015 (in Spanish)
  31. ^ "L'AS prend sous contrat "Jeffrén", un vainqueur de la Ligue des Champions" [AS engage to contract "Jeffrén", a Champions League winner] (in French). K.A.S. Eupen. 29 August 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
  32. ^ "AS Eupen: Hart erkämpfter 3:1-Sieg gegen White Star Brüssel" [AS Eupen: Hard-fought 3:1 win against White Star Brussels] (in German). Belgischer Rundfunk. 27 September 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
  33. ^ "D2: Jeffrén (AS Eupen), deux buts à Heist avant le Paraguay et le Maracana" [D2: Jeffrén (AS Eupen), two goals at Heist before Paraguay and the Maracanã.] (in French). Sud Info. 6 October 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
  34. ^ Ramírez, Pavel (7 May 2016). "Eupen make the ascent to the Belgian top flight". Diario AS. Retrieved 20 November 2016.
  35. ^ "Ex Barcelona star Jeffren signs for Grasshopper". Sport. 9 July 2017. Retrieved 5 March 2019.
  36. ^ "Jeffrén Suárez se muda al fútbol de Chipre" [Jeffrén Suárez moves to Cypriot football] (in Spanish). El Nacional. 22 January 2019. Retrieved 5 March 2019.
  37. ^ Bona, German (10 February 2020). "El nuevo destino de Jeffrén Suárez" [The new destiny of Jeffrén Suárez] (in Spanish). Sport. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  38. ^ Batalla, Jordi (8 June 2021). "Jeffren se marcha a la segunda división de Tailandia" [Jeffrén heads off to Thailand's second division] (in Spanish). Mundo Deportivo. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
  39. ^ a b "Los Europeos sub 19 de España (III): el doblete de Alberto Bueno en una generación con dos mundialistas" [Spain's under 19 Euros (III): Alberto Bueno brace in generation with two World Cup players] (in Spanish). El Desmarque. 26 July 2019. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  40. ^ "Jeffren Suárez: O canterano que veio da Venezuela" [Jeffren Suárez: The youth player who came from Venezuela] (in Portuguese). Trivela. 15 September 2010. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  41. ^ Spain's late redemption breaks Belarus hearts Archived 26 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine; UEFA, 22 June 2011
  42. ^ a b Gustems, Pol (25 June 2011). "España sub-21, campeona de Europa: El ciclo continúa" [Spain under-21, European champions: The cycle continues] (in Spanish). Diarios de Fútbol. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
  43. ^ Jeffren Suárez quiere ser Vinotinto (Jeffren Suárez wants to be a Vinotinto); Líder en Deportes, 14 August 2013 (in Spanish)
  44. ^ Jeffren Suárez le cierra la puerta a la vinotinto (Jeffren Suárez closes door on the vinotinto) Archived 8 September 2013 at archive.today; En La Pizarra, 4 May 2010 (in Spanish)
  45. ^ Jeffren: "Voy a trabajar duro para recuperar la titularidad" (Jeffren: "I will work hard to recover my starting spot"); Marca, 19 March 2015 (in Spanish)
  46. ^ El exbarcelonista Jeffren Suárez, convocado por vez primera con Venezuela (Former barcelonista Jeffren Suárez, called up for the first time with Venezuela); Sport, 18 August 2015 (in Spanish)
  47. ^ "Rondón salvó el empate en un partido muy poco amistoso" [Rondón rescued draw in not-so friendly game] (in Spanish). Diario AS. 9 September 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  48. ^ "Jeffrén » Club matches". Worldfootball. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
  49. ^ a b c d e f g "J. Suárez". Soccerway. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
  50. ^ Jeffrén Suárez at FBref.com Edit this at Wikidata
  51. ^ Includes the Copa del Rey, Taça de Portugal, Belgian Cup, Swiss Cup, Cypriot Cup, Croatian Football Cup and Thai FA Cup
  52. ^ Includes the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Europa League
  53. ^ Includes other competitive competitions, including the Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, Supercopa de España, UEFA Super Cup, FIFA Club World Cup, Europa League play-offs
  54. ^ Tong, Kobe (1 March 2018). "The Barcelona B team that made Pep Guardiola famous – where are they?". Give Me Sport. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
  55. ^ "Jeffrén Suárez gritó "campeón" en Tailandia" [Jeffrén Suárez shouted "champion" in Thailand] (in Spanish). Sólo Venex. 30 April 2022. Retrieved 2 May 2022.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Jeffrén Suárez.
  • Jeffrén Suárez at BDFutbol
  • Jeffrén Suárez at ForaDeJogo (archived) Edit this at Wikidata
  • Jeffrén Suárez at National-Football-Teams.com