Odisha FC have wrapped up the signing of 32-year-old Spanish winger Víctor Rodríguez for the upcoming season.
From the province of Barcelona in Spain, Victor spent his formative years (from 1998 to 2008) at the academies of FC Barcelona, Mercantil FA and CF Badalona. At FC Barcelona, he was part of the academy for four years following which he was released alongside Jordi Alba for being too small.
In 2008, he was given a spot in the senior team of CF Badalona. After a year out on loan, he spent three seasons in the Spanish third tier (then known as Segunda Division B) with Badalona. 2012 saw the 5’7″ winger move to Real Zaragoza. He played the next few seasons in La Liga with Zaragoza, Elche CF, Getafe CF and Sporting Gijon. Overall in La Liga, he has made 143 appearances in which he scored 10 goals and assisted 16. He also played in La Liga 2 for Real Zaragoza and briefly for Elche CF.
After leaving Sporting Gijon in 2017, Rodríguez joined MLS club Seattle Sounders and played three seasons in the MLS. He won the MLS Cup with the club in 2019.
Following his stint in Seattle, Victor returned to Spain with Elche CF and played in La Liga 2 in 2019-20 and in the La Liga in 2020-21 (Elche CF won promotion).
Last season, the left winger did not play competitive football – Elche CF had released him in July 2021.
The Spaniard’s arrival marks the final foreign signing for Odisha FC ahead of the new season. They have so far signed Spanish defender Carlos Delgado, Australian defender/midfielder Osama Malik, Brazilian forward Diego Mauricio, Spanish midfielder Saúl Crespo and Spanish forward Pedro Martín.
[…] Ahead of the 2017-18 season, Rodriguez moved abroad for the first time in his career, eventually making 53 appearances for Seattle Sounders in Major League Soccer (MLS), the MLS Cup Playoffs and the US Open Cup across nearly three seasons. Last summer, he arrived at Indian shores for the first time when he signed with Odisha FC. […]