Joseba Arriaga


Joseba Arriaga Dosantos is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a forward.
Formed at Athletic Bilbao, he spent most of his 18-year senior career in Segunda División B, representing a host of clubs. His professional input consisted of 56 La Liga matches, and 83 appearances in Segunda División for four teams.

Club career

Born in Ermua, Biscay, Arriaga emerged through Athletic Bilbao's youth system at Lezama, and was promoted to the first team for the 2002–03 season. He made his debut in a friendly against farm team CD Basconia on 26 July 2002, coming on as a substitute for Julen Guerrero. He first appeared in La Liga roughly one month later, playing the full 90 minutes against Real Sociedad in a local derby.
Arriaga's importance would drastically diminish in the following campaign, being only third or fourth-choice in the offence, and eventually had to resume his career in the second division, with SD Eibar and UD Las Palmas. Following that, he had two steady years with Real Jaén – but in the third level.
After a good second year, Arriaga stayed in Andalusia but moved to Cádiz CF, freshly returned to division two. He was loaned to Deportivo Alavés in the third tier in the 2010 winter transfer window after receiving very few opportunities, and alternated in the following years between the second and third divisions of Spanish football, with AD Ceuta, CD Guadalajara and Gimnàstic de Tarragona.
Arriaga was released by Catalonia's Gimnàstic in late December 2012. In mid-January of the following year he returned to his native region, signing for lowly Barakaldo CF.
On 22 May 2014, Arriaga moved to neighbouring SD Amorebieta also in the third level. Four years later, after another spell with that club and also Real Unión, the 36-year-old announced his retirement.