Central midfielder who began playing with the Spanish national team in 2003 and joined Real Madrid in 2009. He was named Spanish Player of the Year in 2003 and he won a World Cup title with Spain in 2010.
He began his professional career playing for Real Sociedad in 1999.
He played for Liverpool from 2004 to 2009 and helped lead the team to an FZ Cup in 2006. He also won two European Championships with Spain in 2008 and 2012. He signed with Bayern Munich in 2014.
He and Nagore Aramburu were married in 2009. They have three kids, Jontxu, Ane, and Emma.
He and fellow soccer player Mikel Arteta were neighbors growing up.
